Results 1 to 8 of 8
  1. #1
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default Can I play with your synthetics? (in the Netherlands, The Hague)

    Hi all,

    I've been honing my own straights for about half a year and still manage to get only one razor up to very smooth and pretty sharp, the others give me a hard time. When I honed a (distant) friend's razor to the same sharpness, he said it still needed some work on the 8K and 12K.

    I own a BBW, coticule and C12K and plan on buying a set of Shaptons, already have the 1K for proper bevels. I would very much like to borrow someone's synthetics in the 4K-16K region to have a feeling of how sharp and smooth a razor is after each stage. I think it will give me more insight in my natural honing technique as well as an idea on which Shapton I want to buy next (since money is a large object to me, I buy them separately).

    Also, someone who can teach me personally how to use my naturals (since I think I got the theory right, but probably not the practice) is more than welcome. I am eager to learn!


    Any and all advice are appreciated. As a sidenote, I travel for free from Monday to Friday with public transport.


    Thank you, guys!

  2. #2
    Historically Inquisitive Martin103's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Upstate New York
    Posts
    5,780
    Thanked: 4249
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default

    This search engine might come in handy to find members in your area, Goodluck!
    http://straightrazorpalace.com/memberlist.php?do=search

  3. The Following User Says Thank You to Martin103 For This Useful Post:

    Laurens (03-23-2013)

  4. #3
    Chat room is open Piet's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Rotterdam
    Posts
    937
    Thanked: 229

    Default

    If your friend is correct you didn't spend enough time on either your BBW or Coticule. A bit of slurry might also help.

    Fine synthetic hones of quality are expensive so it may be hard to find someone who wants to lend them to you. I don't have any btw

    A 400x USB microscope or a loupe could also help to see what's happening with your edges.

    Unless you're planning to hone dozens of razors I would try a cheap solution first, more practise, slurry stones or microscope/loupe.

  5. #4
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default

    Thank you, Piet, for your reply. I should have mentioned that I use and dilute slurry and have tried circles, half-strokes and regular x-strokes, both pressured and without pressure, and I easily spend a few hours on one razor. I also have a jeweler's loupe which is a help, but I would really like someone to guide me through the honing, or have a go at some synthetics. I have the feeling my technique needs tuning, and I want to know more about synthetics.

    I enjoy restoring and rescaling razors, very relaxing, although I do need a lot of practice there. I have a small pile of razors waiting for me and I intend to sell a few restored ones to make up for the costs I made. Apart from that, I like keeping the kitchen knives in good shape, so I think the Shaptons should be money well spent.

  6. #5
    Senior Member stingray's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Odessa, Texas
    Posts
    259
    Thanked: 40

    Default

    I love my Shaptons and wouldn't take for them... but, I found that the super stones do just as good at a much more reasonable price. IMO

    straight razor designs had a special on a set that I got and am very happy with the results.
    Stingray

  7. #6
    Chat room is open Piet's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Rotterdam
    Posts
    937
    Thanked: 229

    Default

    I don't know where you can buy Shaptons but you can buy Super Stones and Choseras from a Dutch shop with free shipping.

  8. #7
    Scheerlijk Laurens's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    The Hague, the Netherlands
    Posts
    1,184
    Thanked: 164

    Default

    My distant friend has a series of super stones, but he told me they wear out relatively quickly. I guess it's not much of a problem for razors, but I'm not sure about kitchen knives. For that reason I looked into the Choseras in the Dutch shop you mentioned, Piet, but the 10K is just too expensive for me and as far as I know, not the best finisher in terms of smoothness. The Shaptons seem like the ideal combination of hard-wearing and giving smooth edges.

    And they look cool. It's not much of a reason, but I tend to buy things when they do

  9. #8
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Posts
    388
    Thanked: 51

    Default

    I recently purchased the 4k, 8k, and 16k Shaptons and I couldn't be happier with them. They're a little spendy, but they're worth every cent. If you decide to get them, don't bother with the Shapton lapping plate. It's way too expensive, and a DMT325 will do the job just as well. If I was close enough, I'd definitely let you try mine out. My wife and I were in the Netherlands about a year ago, and we had a lot of fun there. Definitely a beautiful country.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •