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I just got a zenith barber's hone off of ebay and I have a swaty on it's way.
Now I understand that barber hones can vary with regards to grit size but on average do you guys use a barber hone after a coticule or in lieu of one?
I mean is there a case where a barber hone is fine enough to be used after a coticule?
I'm just trying to get a feel for where it will fit in with my progression. Maybe just as a touch up stone in my razor cabinet.
The barber I got my Swaty from used a coticule to sharpen and the Swaty dry for touch ups between shaves. He was about 70 and had been cutting hair for 50 years. When I finally got into honing I had the Norton 4/8 and the 3 lines of text Swaty. Until I got sonething else I used the Swaty with water as a finisher and it was pretty good. Of course I had to lap it and that was a job but in my case it was alright once it was flat. I have no experience with the Zenith but ChrisL could probably help you there.
JCitron,
It's great to see another Florida native on SRP! I am a Deputy in Tampa. At any rate, I have been using a straight for some 31 years. I utilize a swaty very often dry for touching up my razors after a few shaves. It is very effective for keeping the edge clean & neat. As the previous post described, when used wet it is also good for polishing. In general, most barbers hones, in particular the swaty hones are at least 10,000 grit and maybe a little finer. They were my Grand-Dads "Go To" stone and thus I was taught this procedure. It has worked for me most of my life. I also supplement often with the Chinese 12K. This is a very good polishing stone as it is natural and predictable. I use it in lieu of a barbers hone generally because it is double the length of a swaty. This cuts down substantially on the amount of strokes if I am pressed for time.
Like they say all roads lead to Rome. There are many ways to get the result you want. if you use a coticule you should be able to get an outstanding edge off it. Nothing else is needed. if you use barbers hones and have a proper one you should be able to get the same result.
Ok, so the gist I'm getting is that when honing I can hone up through the coticule and don't really need to move on to a barbers hone since both give a really fine edge. But the barbers hone, given it is of a high grit, is good for touching up the blade once it's in rotation. If thats the case I like it. The barber hones are small and will fit in my cabinet very well.