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So I've bought two razors now off this forum, one that is shave ready and one that needs stropping. I would like to get a hone, so that I can practice honing on one of my razors. What is the bare mininum that I would need for a hone? Cheaper is better in this case as long as it works well.
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The 4x2 is usable, 6x1.5 is perfect, anything more is great but not necessary.
Barber hones are good sometimes, but the Coticule will completely cover your bases for razor maintenance (it can cut aggressively when needed, and polish as well).
The bare minimum would be a Swaty barber hone or something comparable, but that wont be enough if you ever need to hone out a small nick from bumping the faucet etc.
Thanks for the quick reply. Do these stones need to be lapped? Is this something that needs to be done often or just a once and a while? I have a old baber stone that I found cracked in half, I glued it together with epoxy and have been using it for sharpening knives for years, I don't know how it would work on razors though, I don't want to get a razor and screw it all up trying to hone it.
All hones should be lapped before being put to use on razors, Howard (owner of The Perfect Edge) offers to do it for a small fee, but you can use 220 grit sand paper on a counter top to get the job done, there is a thread on how to do it in the stickies at the top of the forum.
I generally lap my stones after every 10 uses or so. It doesnt take very long to do after the first time.
About your barber hone, if it were lapped flat it might work, but the grit levels on those is a guessing game most of the time. Some brands are known to be of consistent quality while others are a gamble.
What is the difference between the yellow and blue stones?Quote:
Originally Posted by Russel Baldridge
The yellow is the finer on the two, Ardennens Coticule has some nice info about them.Quote:
Originally Posted by foundlingofdollar
blue http://searchdatacenter.techtarget.c...es/aproxeq.jpg 6-8kQuote:
Originally Posted by foundlingofdollar
Yellow http://searchdatacenter.techtarget.c...es/aproxeq.jpg 10-12k
These are natural stones, so there are variations.