Thread: belgium coticule

I'm going to buy a coticule from howards.I will use as finishing a hone along side my 4k 8k. What i need to no from those that use the coticule is do you use water or a slight slurry and how many laps aprox? Also i no you can refresh a almost keen razor on the coticule with out having to use the 4k 8k what is the normal progression and strokes aprox needed? i no slurry has to be used at some point but could any one give me the basic run down so i can give it a try and see if i get a better edge just by using the coticule. Thanks very much

I do something like
- 25 laps with light slurry
- 25 laps with water only.

after I have used the 4000/8000, this approach works well. You may need to adjust, depending on the razor you are using. that is where experience and trial and error come in.

The same would work to refresh a razor, assuming that the edge is not too far gone. The duller you've let it become, the more metal you need to remove and the more laps you need to do.

For basic honing, just do your regular routine on your 4/8K. You need to have a decent edge at this point, because finishing on the coticule will primarily make the edge smoother, not so much sharper. After the 8K, do 70 round trips on the coticule with water only. 70 is my best average, but it does not hurt to do 100. Pressure should be very light.

Using slurry changes things quite dramatically. Coticules cut surprisingly fast with slurry, but the slurry also has a rounding effect on the very edge. The result is more than sharp enough for kitchen cutlery, but not for shaving. If you put a good Norton 8K edge on a coticule with slurry, the edge will be smoother, but also duller. The coticule with water does not display this effect, but it is too slow to undo the dulling effect of the slurry, within a reasonable amount of strokes.
If you ilke to hone with slurry on your coticule (I know I do), you can try refining the edge again with the Norton 8K, before going to the coticule with water only. Another trick is to hone with slurry, till the razor shaves arm hair very well. Add two layers of tape to the spine to divert the honing action completely to a very small area at the tip of the cutting bevel, and do 20 light laps on the coticule with water only. This actualy creates a very small secondary bevel (almost unvisible to the naked eye), and leaves an edge comparable, if not better, than the edge of the Norton/coticule progression.

Best regards,
Bart.

Depending on the blade, my typical refresh using the coticule is 20 laps wet, 10 laps dry. No slurry.

Hi i am using a kitiyama at the moment as a finisher do you think the coticule will give me much better result as i don't mind buying the coticule if i'm going to get a much better edge.

I usually do about 30 laps dry only and then test and usually wind up doing about 60-70 total to get the job done.

I have a Kitayama and the Coticule and really don't even use the Kitayama anymore. I find the Coticule to be superior. Not that the Kitayama is a bad stone, its not at all but the Coticule is really kind of the cats meow to me.l

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

I usually do about 30 laps dry only and then test and usually wind up doing about 60-70 total to get the job done.

I have a Kitayama and the Coticule and really don't even use the Kitayama anymore. I find the Coticule to be superior. Not that the Kitayama is a bad stone, its not at all but the Coticule is really kind of the cats meow to me.l

Dry?!? Do you get a finer finish on the coticule when dry? I haven't tried it with mine yet.

Originally Posted by joke1176

Dry?!? Do you get a finer finish on the coticule when dry? I haven't tried it with mine yet.

I've tried dry honing on my coticules and I just don't like it. I don't like the feel or the sound. I didn't notice a marked difference in the edges from honing with plain water. YMMV.

Chris L

Thanxs for that chris i've just orderd a 8x3 i will give it ago not sure wheather to use dry or with water or a slurry that is what baffles me i must say i seem to of got a better edgde of my kitiyama with just water and not so good wit a slurry.infact it seemed like the slurry took the edge of a little. I have watched lynns dvd and he recomends a slurry of the coticule for finishing so this is what i carn't get my head around.

I have the 8x3 too.
Great stone.