Thread: Getting the Most out of an Escher

Originally Posted by sharptonn

True, but there are those who like to experiment. Great edges are to be had.

My favorite thing about the Escher finisher is you can stay on it forever until you feel it. If you never feel it, you were not there to begin with.

Backhone a few strokes, hit the strop progression. Bingo!
Lasting edge!

Depends on the mood!

I am curious, if you dont mind me asking, what does your stropping progression consist of? Do use different leather types or different strops of the same leather but by different makers? Any info would be apprecaited.

More experimenting... try the green slurry on the dark blue stone and then try vice versa, blue slurry on the green stone. I had good results there.

As stated earlier, one of the most important things to getting the best out of your Escher is to make sure you have a very good 8K, or finer, edge first. When used with water only, the Escher is purely a finishing stone. Don't expect to remove much, if any, metal with it.

I had a bunch, and I sold a bunch. I still have a very nice blue one I keep to tinker with.

My opinion: Although we love to look for the "holy grail" of finishing stones, good stone work is only a set up for proper stropping. Really good stropping tends to blur the differences between finishing stones to the point that those differences become almost meaningless.

First, do you know what type of edge you like?

Can you consistently get a good shave off your stones at 8K? If not, you need more work before you mess with the thuringian. A thuringian does not magically make you a honer, it just means you have the tools.

Is it a butter smooth edge (coticule finished), crisp edge (jnat or synthetic), or a semi-crisp (thuringian). A pro honer can get almost all three out of their stones, but that is a simple guide.

My go to for me and those who like my edges (I no longer hone for others for the biggest part due to time) is Shapton GS stones through 16k, then to a yellow green escher. As many have mentioned, if the edge is not shave ready, you are wasting stone on a thuringian as they are slow and will only refine the edge. When I finish on the Escher, I start with a milky slurry and dilute to a water only stone. On finishing, I make x-strokes until the blade has gone almost dry, then I stop. If I am wanting a more "soft" edge off the esher, I start with more slurry and keep it milky.

Again, thuringians are very slow stones and if you aren't doing in excess of 50 strokes...you aren't hanging with it enough. According to the steel, I'm sure I do over 100 strokes on most blades.

FIND A HONING MENTOR! Just a few hours with someone can save you LOTS of frustrations and typing...

I mean, it makes your life easier if you set a correct bevel and move up on a synthetic scale, 8K to 10K and then go to an Escher / Thüringer hone

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL1PCgN1tn4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pYlnbrXHQ4

These vids made me use slurry on these hones, my Thüringer stones are much smaller and narrower, so strokes vary

Look at the slurry, getting undercut, same with water; if you razor doesn't undercut, I'm not confident in the edge.

Scott,

Thank you for the advice. Although I don't have any synthetic stones, I have gotten consistently good edges from both coticules and JNats. I appreciate the edges from both, however I have found I like the JNat edges a bit more.

I don't ever use an escher without having a shave ready edge from a coticule or JNat. It may be that I'm not a fan of the Escher edge. I'm not sure. I do know that I've been able to get pleasurable and irritation free shaves off both a coticule and a JNat.

I think I do need more time with the Eschers to get the best results. If anyone in the NY metro area who is an experienced honer would like to help me out with honing it would be welcomed and appreciated. I'm certainly open to learning as much as I can about honing and the different stones I have. Surely, the issues im having getting a great Escher edge has to do With me rather than the stones. Hopefully more work with them can help me figure it out.

Matt:
I had a great shave this AM on a little Peso razor that originally had a very nice J-Nat edge on it. I got a new (to me) two tone Thuri Koppa and wanted to see how the edge from it flavored the original J-Nat edge.
I worked a very light skim milk slurry a very short time and diluted it to plain water in about three steps then quite a few water only laps till the edge felt uber smooth and developed a slight stiction. WOB pressure or less only.

I have stopped using linen or canvas on these very finely developed edges, right off the stones, and instead just use about 25 laps on Cordovan just off the stone.
Edges are usually just as keen as the a J-Nat but the flavor of the smooth is somewhat different. This is just how I experience it on my face with my beard with my stones and skills.
Since you don't hone on synthetics this might be a worthwhile experiment for you, go from a well finished J-Nat edge that you have shaved with then re-finish in a like manor as above on your Thuri.
Will give you a good idea of what your Thuri is changing.
I routinely go from a 10K Shapton G/S edge or 12K Nani SS to my Eschers or Thuri's and get wonderful edges also.
I use and all natural progression often using J-Nats with high quality Suiita for the middle work and then instead of finishing the J-Nat progression switch over to Thuri's to finish.
This yields wonderfully keen and smooth edges on many razors that I use.
Coti to Thuri is not my favorite with my stones.

Using less stropping off the stones gives me a better idea of what I am producing with my work on the stones.

Originally Posted by FranfC

Using less stropping off the stones gives me a better idea of what I am producing with my work on the stones.

The 1961 barber manual section on honing recommends stropping on leather only after honing. Reserving the linen before leather once you've shaved. So you're no doubt on to something there.

Yes. Busting the synthetic teeth off with the fabric is necessary sometimes.
A proper Escher finish should see only leather the 1st round. YMMV

Finished two razors this morning on my dark blue. I do like the 'earthy' smell of honing with an Escher and water. Oh yeah, the shave was great!