Originally Posted by
pcb01
My first honing setup was the Norton 220-1K-4K-8K, soon accompanied by a Guangxi. I struggled with these, but I had no mentoring other than the Wiki info and some videos.
For me, Bart's Unicot instructions were my most important tutorial. Maybe I should have appreciated that a bevel is not set until arm hair can be shaved, but I didn't get that until then. I was really lost when it came to when exactly to progress to the next finer hone (either by switching up the stone or diluting the slurry), and Bart's strict "30 on this, 30 on that, 50 on the next" instructions gave me the specificity I needed, and helped me hone my first shave-ready blade, which of course is a great confidence-builder for a newbie. His suggestion to create a double bevel helped me to visualize and understand for the first time exactly what I was trying to do with the bevel, and appreciate the multiple factors that go into sharpening a razor. Maybe it was just "time" for me to get it, and it would have happened if I'd just stuck with the Nortons a little longer -- hard to say.
Another thing worth mentioning, but which may be peculiar to me and the other Belgian stone lovers out there, is the beauty of these stones and the fact they are natural products. I remember sitting with my first coti-BBW natural combo and staring at it, touching it, admiring the grain, imagining the millions of years that went into it's creation, etc., for over an hour. To me it was a totem, a holy object, and still is. I always feel it is an honor for me to posess and use such a stone, and I take pride in using it well.
All this said, there is a place for synthetics, and I routinely use them -- now that I understand what I am trying to do, and how to judge my progress -- at least through the edge repair and initial bevel establishment. After that, though, it's naturals for me: Coti, BBW, Guangxi, Asagi, Kiita.
I have no argument with the idea of recommending Naniwas to newcomers. If I had it to do over, I might go that route myself. But one could do worse than begin one's honing career slavishly following Bart's instructions until the golden door of enlightenment swings open.