Thread: Carborundum and Swaty question

I am a complete neophyte when it comes to honing (trust me.. my pocket knife is only sharp once a year.. when I take it to the guy selling sharpeners at the state fair!).. So with that being said..

What is..

Carborundum for..? I bought one on ebay but I'm not sure what it is good for..

is it.. like a Swaty..? for touch-ups?

Coticule? What is? why?

slurry stone?

Is an 8000 grit stone absolutely nec? I seem to be doing ok on a 4k waterstone.

...and wth can't I keep my knife sharp? heh. With razors, it is easy.. you lay them flat. With my knife, I just can't keep a consistent angle to form a good edge (it is so round, slicing warm butter would be a challenge). Is there a way to make a guide ?

Just to answer a few of your questions. The swaty is a type of hone referred to as a barbers hone. Its usually used as a finishing hone. The carborundum is the same but might be lower grit. Coticules are natural stones used for fine finishing.

If you are doing fine with a 4K and shaving with that you are a tough guy. Personally I would never want to shave off a 4K. Some razors are shaveable off a 6K but for most of us an 8K is the minimum to get a great shave.

Hmmmm.. I saw a 1000/8000 combo on Amazon that was pretty reasonable..

You may find the jump from 1K to 8K a bit to high. Norton is a 4K/8K combo.

Carborundum is, I believe, a substance used for synthetic sharpening stones. Grit depends on size of the carborundum particles that went into the hone.

I could go from the 1000 to the 4000 stone I have and then to the 8000. Nortons are kinda expensive (my $$ is going into the house I just bought) but this thing is $30

Amazon.com: Woodstock International G4233 Japanese Water Combo Stone - 1000/6000 Grit: Home Improvement

Oops, I gues these things are 'spensive. That was a 1000-6000 The 8000 is below:

Amazon.com: Woodstock International G3299 Japanese Water Stone - 8-1/8" L x 2-7/8" W x 7/8" T - 8000 Gr.: Home Improvement

If you are on a tight budget and you are doing well with the 4K you have: why look further? I don't know the hone from Amazon on the link you showed. You better not try the Amazon stone unless it gets a thumbs up from other members here. You could try it of course and see whether you like it but in case you don't you wasted 30 bucks. Some stones can be very slooooow or wear very fast.

So... Carborundum stones are like swatys.. right? You use them prior to stropping? I'm just curious because I just received my stone in the mail. Its box says "use dry" and it does not seem as smooth as my 4k wetstone.

Originally Posted by Cyclophile

So... Carborundum stones are like swatys.. right? You use them prior to stropping? I'm just curious because I just received my stone in the mail. Its box says "use dry" and it does not seem as smooth as my 4k wetstone.

What number hone is the Carbo? Does it specifically state that it's for razors? It may need to be lapped.

I have a few carborundum hones and a carborundum sharpening stone...totally different animals.

Originally Posted by joke1176

What number hone is the Carbo? Does it specifically state that it's for razors? It may need to be lapped.

I have a few carborundum hones and a carborundum sharpening stone...totally different animals.

It is reasonably flat. carborundum stone No. 106 is marked on one side of the stone. The box specifies that it is for razors.

Originally Posted by Cyclophile

It is reasonably flat. carborundum stone No. 106 is marked on one side of the stone. The box specifies that it is for razors.

Cool, I have a No.106 also. I lapped mine with a DMT coarse and it feels very smooth now. The unlapped side feels very coarse, too coarse for razors.

I would say it's about 10K grit, give or take a thousand , and cuts pretty fast, . The inside cover says it can be used with lather, water, or dry (even though it comes with a paper that says "dry razor hone").

I used mine with water and it works better, keeps away that unpleasant crunch/crinkle sound when using it dry.

IMHO, it's good enough for a coarser finishing hone, and you can get good shaving results off it.