Thread: Natural replacement for DMT 8K?

Well... I am not dead set against something slow... I know nothing is going to rival the diamond's speed.

I am looking harder at Howards 8" belgian blue...

A bunch of guys around here bought some Dragon's tongue hones, but last time I checked that thread, few had responded with results or comparisons. That makes me wonder.


A few guys have some Tam O Shanter's, and those had piqued my interest over the last few months, but they are very hard to find.


Dalmore blue? I haven't heard anything about em. How do they compare to a belgian blue: speed wise and polishing-wise?

Good morning Joe. The only stone that comes close to the DMT 8K for speed is the Shapton 8K. For $80 it seems like a bargain to me. Shapton GlassStone Waterstones I sold my DMT 8K and my Norton 4K X 8K on the BST when I got my Shaptons.

bj

I'm getting a lot of joy out of using a Belgian Blue right now. I really recommend it. The slurry issue is a strange one, I'll admit. Coming off a DMT1200, I'm finding the best results by using slurry and a little pressure for ~50 laps on the Belgian Blue, followed by slurry and no pressure for ~50. Then polish with no slurry (water only) and no pressure for ~50 and if you really want a smooth finish follow that with water-only on a coticule.

Now here's the interesting thing: you don't get edges that pop those hairs on the HHT, but shave with it and it's close to the smoothest shave I've had, with zero irritation and just as close. With a Norton combo plus diamond paste to finish I was getting scary sharp edges and close shaves, but irritated skin.

I would go for the Tam that Chris offered. I have found mine to be a very effective hone. When I am in the Scotch hone mode I use a Dalmore Blue followed by a Tam with slurry and then the Tam with water only. I finish on a Blue/Green Escher as I haven't gotten a Water of Ayr yet. I like a Belgian Blue too but the Tam is far more scarce. You can always get a blue.

I PM'ed Chris L about the trade possibility already.

I like the sound of the Tam... but I don't want to give him a possibly messed up DMT 8k. No need to delve into the specifics on it, but I'm not comfortable trading a perfectly good Tam for a hone I don't like.

Bad karma and all that, plus I would just feel guilty if it really WAS messed up. Not that it is, but you never know...

I am a big fan of the yellow belgian coticule, you can shave off that stone with a good stropping prior to the shave, but using the escher right after the yellow gives you that feeling like your wiping the lather off, you dont even feel the shave!

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

I am a big fan of the yellow belgian coticule, you can shave off that stone with a good stropping prior to the shave, but using the escher right after the yellow gives you that feeling like your wiping the lather off, you dont even feel the shave!

But I wants a new hone!! I NEEDS a new hone. Don't you see? This new one will surely be the one to put me over the top save-wise. This will be the last hone I ever need....seriously.


Edit: I have talked to Chris L about the Tam and Dragon's tongue hones: he feels they are finer than a belgian blue, and that's not really the direction I am wanting to go right now...yet. I emailed Howard and am going to look into a nice big belgian blue...for now. I think. Maybe.

Quick update, I am going with an 8"x3" belgian blue from Howard. For now....

Must. Fight. HAD.Must...be...STRONG...

Originally Posted by joke1176

Must. Fight. HAD.Must...be...STRONG...

"Good luck with that!" He said with a sinister grin!

You're going to like that 8"x3" Belgian Blue. I have one and use it a lot.

I recently started using it for a purpose other than honing: I've been finish lapping my stones on the Belgian Blue. Nice!!! The stiction is a huge factor, but I like the smooth results that it gives to the surfaces of my other natural stones (I have not tried it on my Shaptons) that I'm probably going to lap the bottom side of my Belgian Blue and score some diamond pattern into the surface which should reduce the stiction and make for a great 4000 +/- grit lapping stone.

I bought some carbide tile hacksaw blades (inexpensive) that rather than having teeth, it's like a thick wire with abrasive bonded to it. It should cut the bottom of my belgian blue easily. I'll just score the surface down to maybe 1/8".

I'll post pics and results when done.

Chris L