Thread: Starting out...Polish style

Ok, got the black stone hone from Warpencia guy (sorry, forgot his name right now).

My question is, is this ok to start honing with? If so, do I need to do anything to this stone prior to use?

Disclaimer: haven't ever tried honing anything before. Thought I would start on some warpencia razors and work my way up. That way, start cheap so as not to get totally upset if I ruin a good razor or two.

Am I going for too much of a stretch here or should I just buy the Norton and go that route?

Wapienica will make a great shaver. It outperformed some much more expensive pieces that I've had my hands on. However, I'm not sure about the hone. If I were you, I'd shell out the cash and get a Norton.

Don't let the conditions of the purchase fool you. Those blades are excellent and may be your favorite shavers.

Originally Posted by Friggin Joe

Don't let the conditions of the purchase fool you. Those blades are excellent and may be your favorite shavers.

From what I hear...that is true...but my question is not about the blade but the hone.

the hone you got is extremely slow cutting. it might be a little coarse to get a comfortable shave ready blade. You can get a shave ready razor with it as the wapieniacias are pretty close to begin with, but it won't be the most comfortable shave. you might want to get something a little finer, at least 8000grit or more. or a paddle strop pasted wtih 1.0micron diamond compound and 0.5micron chromium oxide

be sure to keep the blade flat throughout as it's easy to let the blade lift when using the x pattern

I found that the polish stones work well, but very, very slow. Also I don't think I could use the razor without following up on paste as even the arkansas stone isn't fine enough for me.
Try them out, and if you have no luck, get the norton, which is probably much more beginner friendly, and there is much more advice available on the Nortons.