Thread: Barbers Hones

I see a lot of talk about Barbers hones and their use to maintain an edge.

I never see anyone mention a grit for them or what they are made out of.

Can they be used as a finisher or is there something different about them?

barber hones are a very fast cutting hone the grit verries. it could be used as a finisher but i dont recommend it. there great for doing 4-6 swipes on with lather on the stone and then a good stropping whenever your razor just starts to pull a little bit.

Though there are no set in stone grit ratings for barber's hones, the majority of them seem to fall in the 6-8k range.There are also some that are noticably less and others that come closer to 10k. The thing they all have in common though is that they are fast cutters and can keep your edge "shave ready" indefinitely.

The answer is directly related to how many you have touched

The Grit question comes up often and is best described in a generalization... In general they are fast cutters because they have a high grit concentration, look at it the same way you look at the two different types of Naniwa 1k hones ... Both of these are rated at 1k but the Chosera has more OOoomff becasue it has more grit then the Naniwa SS but they are both 1k same as the Chosera 10k and the Naniwa SS 10k the Chosera is a faster cutter yet they are both 10k...

I would put the grit range at 6-8 also, although some might be either a finer grit or were buffed to a more fine finish at the factory... This also makes these different by the time they get in our hands compared to when you find one NOS...

I have found the shaving comfort to be very comparable to most everything in that 8k range... you can also adjust the final finish with the use of water, lather, or even oil on many of them...

Thanks for all the replies.

To me, the main difference between the Chosera and Super Stones is feel. The Chosera's have a softer feel to me. From a result and use standpoint, I find them very similar.

On Barber Hones, I would would agree with the 8K range. Most seem to be pretty consistent with water, lather and oil from a results perspective. It really becomes a matter of preference when using them in my opinion.

Have fun.

As of late all I have been using is Barber' hones to keep my razors shaving ready. They are very fast, you need 3-6 strokes, and then you can strop and shave. I like this over a coticule for a touch up hone because coticules are slow and can take 100 strokes to touch up. Most Barber's hones are in the 8K level range but some are more prized than others. A good standard one to get is a FRanz Swaty on Ebay which are 8K level and have three lines of text on the back. I use mine with lather and it's wonderful, I also like Carborundum razor hones that are smaller in size and grey in color. They usually come in a black case on ebay as well.

Some Barber's hones that are in the high grit level can go for a lot of money on Ebay, those are hard to get and are very prized. An example of these would be the Frictionite 00 hone which can sell for 300USD and the Norton hone which is a pocket hone prized by AXMEN and can sell for 700USD on ebay.

Sham, a friend of mine on shaving forums, has said that his norton axman hone improves all edges he's tried, even over the Escher stones.

makes you wonder what it would take to get norton to make them again.

I have a Corborundum 103 that I hit my razors with once a week to keep the edge keen. It's prevented me from having to get it honed for 5 months so far, so that's nice.

I also just picked up a thuringian this weekend at an antique store for about $14. Brought it home and lapped/chamfered it and it seems to be a wonderful addition to my collection. I put a scary edge on it with that one if I do say so myself. Passed HHT nearly silently with a full hollow ground.

(follow up question on barber hones)

I've picked up a few a flea markets that are really grimy and have small chips and knicks.

Can I lap these with my DMT 325/600 ?

Should I polish one side after lapping ?