Why can't I find a brand new barber hone?

I am new to straight shaving, and brand new to honing. I am interested in a barber's hone as i have heard they are great for touch ups, which can make your edge last longer between bull honing sessions if done properly.

I would prefer a brand new, never used barber hone as I dont trust myself to lap a stone correctly, or even be able to identify a stone that needs to be lapped. but this seems like it is impossible to find.

are all barber hones vintage? do they not make them anymore? and if so, why? it seems as though there is at least a small demand for a brand new barber hone, but i cant seem to find one, am i missing something?

Also, if i am forced to go the vintage route, how would i identify a hone that needs to be lapped?

thanks everyone. the knowledge ive gained from this forum has made my shaving experience much more enjoyable, thanks for sharing!

james

There are no current mfgs of barber hones though a member here has been working on just that. He may eventually get up and running but is still in the experimental stages. NOS barber hones come up in the SRP classifieds and on the bay from time to time. As far as lapping, I hung out with old barbers in the 1980s, guys as old or older than my 63 years now. I picked up a few coticules, a barber hone , and some razors from them back then. I received instruction in honing/shaving and never once did any or the few that I was conversant with mention lapping a hone. I don't think they ever did that.

When I came around here I lapped some barber hones I had. I determined for myself that , in most cases, it is not necessary. Now I check them with a straight edge, maybe knock the corners and edges down with a diamond plate if they have chips, and clean them with dish soap and a nylon scrub brush. I prefer them with the factory finish. I may be right and I may even be wrong but that is my advice. :gl:

Hi James,

Spyderco make an ultra-fine hone that can be used for razors. One side of it appears a little roughly milled, but the other side is usually quite flat enough. Its inventor originally saw it as a modern barber hone.

However, why confine yourself to the unknowns of buying a used vintage barber hone (might need lapping - they are extremely hard to lap; lapping sometimes destroys the surface of some barber hones; you will not know the grit rating - could be anything from below 9k to around 12k - the upper ratings are rarer) when you can buy a new final polisher of known grit at a fair price? Lapping is not hard - plenty of advice here on how to do it - and if you get a stone that has a softer formulation like a naniwa superstone they are a breeze to lap. The Naniwas, incidentally, are very good value for money and the 10k or even the 12k would be the one to use in this instance.

Final polishing stones can be used for touch-ups in exactly the same way as the barber hones - you may need more laps (barber hones were fast - usually only half a dozen laps on a small stone) but you may find that the extra length of the stone more than compensates.

For what you have said you want, you don't even need a stone. Some green chrome oxide powder is cheap and worked onto a flat piece of balsa wood (plenty of articles here on how to do it) would serve you admirably, using 5 - 10 laps it is quick too!

Regards,
Neil

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

... I may be right and I may even be wrong ...

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Wrong????

C'mon Jimmy, I don't believe it - that would be twice!:rofl2:

If you are currently using a norton 4K/8K to hone you can use the 8K like you would use a barber hone. Just wet it and do 2-10 strokes to touch up the edge

The problem with vintage barbers hones is that they were typically used to sharpen knives and who knows what! They are often dinged and scratched. Frequently, just the age and storage conditions makes the surface oxidize or become corroded or something and so aren't good for honing. Almost every vintage barbers hone I have purchased I felt needed to be lapped.

But, lapped can be everything from turning the surface into a scientifically flat surface with a DMT 325, or simply sanding by hand with sandpaper. Some has been said above about some fairly rudimentary lapping techniques, and I agree.

If you decide to do touch ups and a little bit of honing it's hard to escape the need for occasonial lapping. Fortunately lapping is really easy when you're all set up.

There are many fine synthetic and natural hones you can use for maintenance. Using a vintage barber hone is very traditional and suits the old razors we use. Barber hones usually take quite some effort to lap because of their hardness. So when you're looking for a used barber hone pick one that only has minor scratches and is not or hardly chipped. They are very common at ebay so don't fall in love with the first one you see. You can also keep an eye on the classifieds.

I used to actively collect barber hones. The best finds for me were usually at flea markets, antique stores, curio shops and similar. Some coin shops, especially in the smaller towns, have had razors and hones. It can be time consuming.

Just keep looking, you will eventually find one in good enough shape. No cracks, chips and etc.

This guy has some that have been lapped. I've been thinking about getting one.

Shaving Style - Razor Hones

You can't find any because Jimmy has them all.....:rofl2:

But seriously, What they said. You may be able to pick one up on the classifieds or ebay, or at a flea market. I've never had any luck here with flea markets or Antique shops. Some guys do though. Usually the vintage barber hones do not require lapping, but if they do, They are hard, really hard...I've cleaned up a few Swaty's in my day, and I think that's what prompted me to buy a DMT XX.


Most of your higher grit hones can serve as a barbers hone. A cheap Chinese 12k will do. If you have the bucks, A naniwa 12k is better. And as Neil mentioned, Crox on Balsa, or even .50 diamond paste, or my favorite, .50 diamond spray on wool felt...

I've got a Naniwa 12k and it's remarkably fast for as fine a stone as it is. That's a typical property of barber's hones, too--they're very fast cutters. If you want a new stone, I'll add my vote for the Naniwa. It's much bigger than barber hones, too--which makes for easier honing, in my opinion.

A good place to look for New vintage Barber hones is eBay. They are on there all the time. You can buy a used hone that has been lapped, if it is done properly it will work as good as a new one. Balsa wood and a fine diamond spray would be effective and inexpensive.

I have recently bought two ceramic stones through my barbers supply. They are about 3 x 5 and will put a nice finish on a razor. They are about 8k.

Those sound interesting. Who's making them? Not that I have HAD or anything...

I don't know who makes them but you can type in barber supply on line and look at them in their catalogs. Most of them sell to anyone. The ones I have were very inexpensive.

can you find the link? all i can find are arkansas stones.

The one I have looks like an arkansas stone. It is white but definately ceramic. Hard as flint. I don't have a link. I asked my barber and he ordered it for me. I have since moved but I will try to get in touch with him and find out which supply he uses.

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Originally Posted by jgrunst

I am new to straight shaving, and brand new to honing. I am interested in a barber's hone as i have heard they are great for touch ups, which can make your edge last longer between bull honing sessions if done properly.

I would prefer a brand new, never used barber hone as I dont trust myself to lap a stone correctly, or even be able to identify a stone that needs to be lapped. but this seems like it is impossible to find.

are all barber hones vintage? do they not make them anymore? and if so, why? it seems as though there is at least a small demand for a brand new barber hone, but i cant seem to find one, am i missing something?

Also, if i am forced to go the vintage route, how would i identify a hone that needs to be lapped?

thanks everyone. the knowledge ive gained from this forum has made my shaving experience much more enjoyable, thanks for sharing!

james

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I have never seen a flat stone until I flatten it.

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Originally Posted by mackie

The one I have looks like an arkansas stone. It is white but definately ceramic. Hard as flint. I don't have a link. I asked my barber and he ordered it for me. I have since moved but I will try to get in touch with him and find out which supply he uses.

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Could it be this one?

Barber Supplies - Barbershop Equipment - Hard Arkansas Razor Hone

You have been given some very good advice here. The only thing I can add at this point is that the main advantage of a barber hone is the size which makes it very convenient and the ease of use, use it dry, with water, or lather.
With any hone the one thing you want to avoid is where the sides are "high" ( center is dished). That is about the only time lapping would be required for a barber hone. It can be kept clean with rubbing stones, nylon scrub pads, brush etc.

Just my $.02, :)

thanks to everyone here for the advice, very helpful for someone like me who is new to straight razoring shaving and maintenance.

i ended up getting a swaty off ebay in really nice condition, 22 bucks. Seems to have a flat surface, so i cleaned it up with a nylon brush and i tried it out on my razor and got a nice shave after.

Thanks again for the help, im sure ill need some more in the future.

One way you can tell if the stone is flat when lapping is that it will have a good suction for lack of a better word and stick to your hone. However, you still may have small areas that aren't perfectly flat. I trick I learned is to take a pencil and draw some zig zag lines that are closely spaced all across the surface of the hone. Then lap it a bit and check to see if all the pencil marks are removed. If not, your stones not perfectly flat, keep lapping until they are gone. I use a DMT diamond stone to lap with BTW. Hope this helps.

To the OP, I have a fully lapped barbers hone-vintage of course- if you'd like it, pm me and we can discuss options. I already have a few finishing stones and to be honest cannot even use those correctly. Anyways the offer is on the table......if you decide to go that route, but like Neil and a few others said there are finishing stones, such as the naniwa super stone 12k, which I have that are cheap and even more reliable!

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Originally Posted by anthogia

To the OP, I have a fully lapped barbers hone-vintage of course- if you'd like it, pm me and we can discuss options. I already have a few finishing stones and to be honest cannot even use those correctly. Anyways the offer is on the table......if you decide to go that route, but like Neil and a few others said there are finishing stones, such as the naniwa super stone 12k, which I have that are cheap and even more reliable!

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Ok I didn't realize this post was a year old! I feel like a DB! Lol!

Nonetheless your heart was in the right place ,offering a free barber hone to a fellow member. ;)