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Thread: puzzled about barber hones
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05-12-2008, 01:53 AM #1
Actually most barber's had many hones but in general the "barbers" hone was a finishing hone they kept out with their other tools and every so often they would give their razor a few swipes to keep them up to snuff since they used them continuously all day every day.
No matter how many men you kill you can't kill your successor-Emperor Nero
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05-12-2008, 03:16 AM #2
My barber uses an ancient barber hone which fits in the palm of his hand and has never been lapped. His razors are scary sharp and his shaves are amazing. The skill and experience of the person doing the sharpening are the key.
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05-12-2008, 05:27 AM #3
I would agree with this statement!
This is a rather odd comment to me, as straight razor shaves have been an uncommon sight in America for at least the last thirty to forty years!Unless you were a barber who knew lots of barbers it doesn't seem that you should make such a certain all encompassing statement as this! I was recently reading an excerpt from a barbers manual from the 20's and 30's that said that most barbers only carried two stones, a fast cutting stone and a slow cutting stone.
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05-12-2008, 11:17 PM #4
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Thanked: 369Good catch Mark!
In fact some manuals confirm that many barbers prefered the fast cutting hone in order to save time, which makes sense in context of the job they performed. And I can't see a barber going through all of this honing progression stuff. If his razor really needed that much work, he'd send it out. 2 hones would have been more than enough.
I think it should be considered that barbers were probably more simple "Craftsmen" than sophisticated "Technicians."
Based on what is written in the barber teaching manuals, everything is based on subjective feel rather than objective findings as, say, looking at the edge of a razor under a microscope. In fact, I can only imagine the odd looks a customer (and the other barbers) would give were his barber to first place the razor under a microscope prior to the shave. Would have probably started a disease scare...
I'm sure most barbers never considered the grit of the hone. If it produced the proper edge (based on the feel of the thumb nail test) that was all he need to know.
It worked then, should work now.
ScottLast edited by honedright; 05-12-2008 at 11:36 PM.
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drfred (05-12-2008)
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05-12-2008, 11:59 PM #5
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Thanked: 2204Just be aware that some of the barber hones on Ebay are totally unsuitable for razors. One of them is the "Champion".
A safe bet is a "Swaty". One that has 3 lines of text imprinted on the hone. Also a Frictionite 00, Apart, Dubl Duck, Keen Kutter. Others will chime in here with others that are OK.Randolph Tuttle, a SRP Mentor for residents of Minnesota & western Wisconsin
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05-13-2008, 12:08 AM #6
My favorite is my Keen Kutter Kombo. Also on hand is the Barbers razor hone, the Duro hone and the velvet Edge.
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05-13-2008, 12:30 AM #7
Lithide, Frictionite, Little Devil
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05-13-2008, 12:45 AM #8
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Warning!!! Slightly and
Hey Randy,
Just curious... Regarding your moving avatar - the razor is completely straight up and down in relation to the hone (back edge of razor to narrow end of hone). Yet in all the manuals I've seen, the razor is slightly canted, about 45 deg. to the end of the hone when honing. I'm imagining the effect either would have on the cutting striations created at the razor's edge. I opt for, and use, the canted method of the barber manuals.
Thoughts?
Scott
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05-13-2008, 01:59 AM #9
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05-13-2008, 12:58 AM #10
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Thanked: 2204Here are a few on Ebay now.
http://cgi.ebay.com/razor-hone-strop-back-old-and-in-not-to-bad-a-condition_W0QQitemZ220232125221QQihZ012QQcategoryZ 1461QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/DIFFERENT-RAZOR-HONE-DOBL-DUCK-SHARPENING-STONE-in-BOX_W0QQitemZ350058363670QQihZ022QQcategoryZ35992Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/DIFFERENT-RAZOR-HONE-AUSTRIAN-SHARPENING-STONE-in-BOX_W0QQitemZ350058367756QQihZ022QQcategoryZ35992Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-RAZOR-HONE-FRANZ-SWATY-AUSTRALIAN-SHARP-STONE_W0QQitemZ200223627979QQihZ010QQcategoryZ3599 2QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/The-Swaty-Straight-Razor-Honing-Stone-Franz-Swaty-NR_W0QQitemZ160239373700QQihZ006QQcategoryZ43220QQ ssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/E-Co-Escher-vintage-German-razor-hone_W0QQitemZ320251240728QQihZ011QQcategoryZ35992 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-WATERE-RAZOR-HONE-GERMANY-E-C-BEST-QUALITY_W0QQitemZ130222045310QQihZ003QQcategoryZ35 992QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItemRandolph Tuttle, a SRP Mentor for residents of Minnesota & western Wisconsin