Thread: Hones and how to

In my opinion, the first three hones you should acquire are a DMT 325-grit diamond plate for lapping, a middle-quality 1k hone for bevel setting, and the Norton 4/8k for sharpening and polishing. Once you're consistently getting comfortable shaving edges from the 8k, my suggestion for the next nicer level would be a Naniwa 12k. It's reasonably priced, surprisngly fast, and you know exactly what grit it is. After that, if you want to play with naturals, you can have a sort of benchmark to compare them to--nicer than Naniwa, less nice than Naniwa?

A good hand lens is an important honing tool, too, especially as you learn. This way you can see whether your 4k has cleared all the 1k scratch pattern yet, check an edge for pitting, see whether your new natural has a finer or coarser scratch pattern than your 8k, etc. I always recommend a Hastings triplet (a type of magnifier, not a brand) because it has the best detail-resolving ability you'll get from a hand lens. Magnification without resolution will only give you a bigger blurry blob. Bausch & Lomb is a good reliable brand.

With natural hones, there are other factors than grit size at play. There's grit shape (nearly spherical for coticules), grit density, binder, all sorts of subtleties that vary between and within types of hones. Quality control comes into play, too--that's why Eschers are so valuable, and Thuringians a little less so. They're the same kind of rock, but Eschers only earned their labels through a kind of quality control that we just don't see any more. You may find an anonymous Thuringian that's as good as any Escher, but to be guranteed the goods you pay for that old label.

Coticules are not universally good hones, either, though a good coticule is a fantastic tool. I have four; one is a superb finisher, one is a really fast cutter, one is a very good all-around hone, and one is a pretty paperweight. It's best to buy a coticule from someone who's actually used it and whom you trust when they tell you it's a good one.

So, if I was forced to give up all but four hones, I'd keep the DMT 325, my nameless bevel setter, my Norton 4/8k, and my Naniwa 12k. If I was forced to carry but a single hone (oh, the horror), it'd be my small, good all-around coti.

Sources of info: there are great videos on this site (check the Wiki and the honing threads), and Lynn's DVD. I saw you started a thread somewhere else, looking to gather some guys and meet up with a honer--that's a great idea, and hands-down the best way to learn.

Good luck and best wishes to you.