Thread: My first try with a Trans Ark

A lot going on for you.

When I started, I was given a 2x6 translucent and a strop to maintain my razor, “burn the ships”, no alternatives.

I shaved with just that for 10 years, there was no internet, no books. My barber was my only source, he gave me a couple quick lessons. You do this and this, then this.

If you are learning to hone and to finish on an Ark, it can be a steep learning curve. It will get better. You must learn to hone, then you must learn your stone. If you add other razors to the mix, you extend your learning curve, each razor is different.

The best advise would be to get a good pre-finisher, a good 8k Naniwia Snow White, or 12k Super Stone, perfect that edge, so you take a fully honed edge and mirror bevels to the Ark and improve that edge.

Finish one side to a clean 600 grit and burnish the heck out of the other after 2k wet & dry. Run all your kitchen knives on the burnished side to get some mileage on it and do laps on your razor. Try pressure, no pressure, different strokes, different lubes. Stay on it and it will shave, but one day it will be a smoking edge.

The only way to learn to hone is to hone. Arks can be frustrating, but folks have been honing on them for hundreds of years. They are not magical stones, but they can make magic.