Thread: Full range of hones

Does anyone have a full range of hones (1,3,5,8,10,12,???)? If so do you find any benefit to gradually stepping up in the progression over "jumping" grit levels?

Just curious.

I do, but when I finally learned the art (still learning) I quit using half of them,did not need them.

I do, but I find them most useful in sequence when putting a new edge (bevel and up) on restores, for just general that has a bevel, but not a sharp bevel I skip my 2k green aoto and go straight from the 1k chocera to either the 5k naniwa or 6k arashiyama, then 8k naniwa ss or snow white, then 12k naniwa. Just how I started learning, and it works for me so, if it aint broke I guess?

I get good results with 1K, 4K, 8K, 12K and then one of various finishers. I have the 16K and 30K Shapton stones but find I almost never use them anymore.

ace, what is your most often finisher?

All good info, thanks guys.

I've got the norton set with the 1, 4/8, and a C12k. Wondered if filling in gaps would be an advantage and it sounds like its "nice to have" but not all together needed.

Two different sets

Naniwa SS 1-3-5-8-10-12

Shapton GS 1-2-4-6-8-16-30

I most often use a Chosera 1-5-10 then a Finisher after, but I do find that the two full runs are very useful with finicky razors
Take many of the very hard steel new production brands and run them up either of those progressions and you should find a silky smooth edge at the end..

Originally Posted by ZeroCool

Does anyone have a full range of hones (1,3,5,8,10,12,???)? If so do you find any benefit to gradually stepping up in the progression over "jumping" grit levels?

Just curious.

Shapton pros 220, 320, 1, 1.5, 2, 5, 8, 12.

Less jumps mean less work on each stone therefore less lapping if bulk honing but I'm not sure it's quicker.

I actually like a low grit progression for bevel setting. 320 -2k for extreme edge restores. 1.5k - 2k for bevel set or 2k start for not so bad edges.
Not so much about the grit jumps but the 320 & 1.5 are so loaded with SiC they cut very fast.

It's not necessary to use every stone in a line up. For a long time I jumped from 5k - 12k. A lot of YMMV here.

btw the 220 Pro is strictly a knife stone.

I've used them all in progession, both Shapton and Naniwa. Like Glen said, on some razors it works well. Your basically doing less work on each stone.

Like others who've already posted I've had progressions with the shapton pros 1 through 30k, and naniwa superstones 1 through 12k. I sold those some time ago and stuck with the chosera 1k, norton 4/8 and finished with an escher or a coticule. It is worth noting that the glasstones shapton came out with, like the nortons, seem to double in grit between stones. IIRC the glass are 1k, 2k, 4k, 8k, `16k and 30k. I think Harellson Stanley, the expert plane iron honer, and head of Shapton USA, said that seemed to be the most useful progression ...... doubling in grit as you go up the ladder.

Anyway, I drank some more of the kool aid and now I have the chosera 1, 3, 5, 10 and Suehiro 20k. Excepting my go to bevel setter, the chosera 1k, I've not had the other choseras long enough to tell how I will like them, but the 20k is quite the finisher. All of the aforementioned progressions worked fine BTW, the superstones, shapton pros. All good stuff. Just a matter of which you get to know and get used to.