Thread: Help choosing hone

Hello everyone!

I'm trying to figure out what hone to get in my situation. Seeing that there are very few sources of hones in Calgary, Alberta, I think the only reasonably priced choices are stones from Lee Valley ( I don't know of any comparably priced on-line source for us canadians)
Here's my situation.
I already purchased 4000 grid Japanese stone, King Brand, even before I started with straight razor (4000x Water Stones - Lee Valley Tools). Obviously I need 8000 grid and I have 3 options:
1. Get King brand 8000x Gold Stone - Lee Valley Tools , it's a cheapest option
2. Get Norton 8000 grid Norton Water Stones - Lee Valley Tools, most expensive option
3. Get Norton 4000/8000 combination stone Norton Water Stones - Lee Valley Tools, but I already have 4000 grid stone.
All suggestions will be appreciated.

does fendrihan.com sell hones?

They sell belgian coticule. Would that be an option for my situation?

It appears the only difference between the Norton 8K at Lee Vally and the Gold Stone is size. The gold seems to be the best value… it is ½ inch thick versus the N8K at 1 inch… But the Gold at 2 and ½ inch wide and 7 inch long is still plenty of honing surface.

Trouble is… there is not much information on the Gold’s quality and performance.

Thanks for posting that link, I may try out the Gold.


Incidentally… If you are still interested, you may also get the Norton 8K cheaper here Craftsman Studio

Originally Posted by smythe

It appears the only difference between the Norton 8K at Lee Vally and the Gold Stone is size. The gold seems to be the best value… it is ½ inch thick versus the N8K at 1 inch… But the Gold at 2 and ½ inch wide and 7 inch long is still plenty of honing surface.

Trouble is… there is not much information on the Gold’s quality and performance.

Thanks for posting that link, I may try out the Gold.


Incidentally… If you are still interested, you may also get the Norton 8K cheaper here Craftsman Studio

I'm pretty sure that Gold Stone is a King brand made in Japan, I think it's a good brand but don't quote me on that.
Thanks for that Craftsman studio link. Unfortunately, after currency conversion and shipping accross the border and possible duty, their stones will be even more expensive then at Lee Valley.

Hey Iakov,

Harrelson Stanley ships Shapton stones (ooh
tongue twister ) to Canada, and that's what
I use. I've also gotten coticules from Howard,
and Nortons from ClassicShaving. You can
get Naniwas and Shaptons from SRD as well.

In terms of pricing and availability, I haven't
found the need to look locally for stones, but
it sounds as if the 8k King stone from Lee
Valley would be a good option for you. What
do you have for lapping?

- Scott

Originally Posted by sebell

What
do you have for lapping?

I have this:
Truing Stone for Water Stones - Lee Valley Tools
Should I be looking at something else?
I'm not really set on getting something local, it just seems that ordering online in this case is going to be more expensive with shipping and duty. Do you think otherwise?
Getting things online obviously opens more possibilities, what would I need to get if I decided to go with online purchase?

Yeah, ordering from the US is probably going to
cost more, but you could price it out and compare.
The Naniwa stones at SRD are a great price I think,
and you can't go wrong if Lynn is using them.

I think it depends on what you want to buy, I
would make that decision first and then find the
cheapest place to get it from, but that's just me

The Norton flattening stone from Lee Valley should
do the trick, but I've found the finish on the stone
to be much rougher than you would get from a
DMT D8C. I would consider the D8C an `upgrade',
but perhaps not necessary.



- Scott

Do you think I should use my 4000x King stone that I already have and get best possible 8000x stone, or do I need to upgrade 4000x?

Just priced Naniwa 8000 grit stone at SRD, it comes to CA$92 before duty.
How is this stone compares to 8000 grit Norton that I can purchase for CA$95 all in?