Thread: please tell me the hype on natural stones

Allow me an attempt to insult half of the SRP community...

A lot of people shave with a 5 blade-cartridge mounted in a vibrating battery driven fixture. Many use a 3 bladed device called MachIII. Some use 1 blade in a DE. A minority uses the old-fashioned straight razor, which is probably the most challenging of all shaving tools.

This is the same with honing.

I never quite understood the human tendency to convert fellow humans into the same believes, the same methods, the same tools,... The concept "hype" is the culmination of such behavior. I personally couldn't care less.

Bart.

Originally Posted by Bart

Allow me an attempt to insult half of the SRP community...

A lot of people shave with a 5 blade-cartridge mounted in a vibrating battery driven fixture. Many use a 3 bladed device called MachIII. Some use 1 blade in a DE. A minority uses the old-fashioned straight razor, which is probably the most challenging of all shaving tools.

This is the same with honing.

I never quite understood the human tendency to convert fellow humans into the same believes, the same methods, the same tools,... The concept "hype" is the culmination of such behavior. I personally couldn't care less.

Bart.

Excellent, excellent, and excellent. Thank you for giving such a poignant explanation!

He is right. Natural stones are rubbish.

Please send all natural stones to me for disposal.

Originally Posted by Slartibartfast

He is right. Natural stones are rubbish.

Please send all natural stones to me for disposal.

I wouldn't dare allow you to take that on that burden all by yourself. I volunteer my services also.

Here's my plan for recycling those dreadful Belgian stones:
(Anyone fancy a game of slurry-chess?)

Well, I personally disagree that there is any extra hype over naturals at all. When I first joined SRP, the Norton 4/8 was all anyone talked about. Mparker had some Shapton Pros which sounded exotic and mysterious.

Move forward a few years, and all people were talking about were the Shapton glass stone series.

Coticules have always had a following, and a lot of the talk on here historically has been about how to use them most effectively. Eschers have also had a following, and from my take on it most of the mystique surrounding them is how the hell do you get hold of one for less than 600 bucks...

More recently, the Japanese Naturals have made a surge, driven in large part by the fact that we now know a bit more about them, and have more ready access to them, thanks to the efforts of Old_School in the main.

As we develop, grow, and become more sophisticated, we move toward new (or should that be previously unknown to us?) things. As I said before, I do not believe the naturals have received any more hype than the synthetics. It is just that the naturals, by their very nature, require more experimentation and discussion, and are more of an unknown, than the synthetics.

James.

For me, it is all about variety. The natural hones provide a nearly limitless
number of possible experiences. The surprise I experienced when I found out that the Scottish Tam O'Shanter worked best when used with a slurry and is very effective at removing very small nicks. The surprisingly sharp edge coming off a Chinese 12K after 100 laps. The unique sensation of a Natural Japanese finishing hone and its resulting edge. The variations in Coticules and Eschers. I do not like to be bored, if I did then I would have worked for the goverment. But I did not.
On the other hand I do like the predictability of the synthetics when I am short of time or teaching a new guy.
But what I like about both is the crazy sharp edges they produce!

Straight razors and hones are kinda like women.... and I just want to try them all!

Originally Posted by randydance062449

Straight razors and hones are kinda like women.... and I just want to try them all!

And maybe we can run with this a little more... natural hones are like real women and synthetic hones are like the Replicants from Bladerunner?

To use a similar analogy: natural hones = country girls, synthetic hones = city girls. Either one will take you where you wanna' go. And preference might be based on which you try first...

Originally Posted by Sticky

To use a similar analogy: natural hones = country girls, synthetic hones = city girls. Either one will take you where you wanna' go. And preference might be based on which you try first...

and country girls give off a nice earthy smell when using them. BTW did I mention the fact they are NATURAL. NATURAL wins!!

apologies for the plagiarism oldschool~