Thread: Finishing with slurry on Japanese naturals

That system works really, really well on the J-nats that break down the slurry and leave a better edge with that slurry going to dry then the edge off clean water... I'll be honest, that is a long shot that you have one of those Stu obviously does My Nakayama I was told to do that way too and it works..

If you have a Norton 8k it really works a treat, that was where I came up with the "Go to dry system" at..

I have a feeling you may be overhoning &/or using overly thick slurry. You don't say how fast your stones are but 200 passes seems an awful lot on razors that are "close." I don't know your stones so its just an assumption on my part.
Another way to finish is to use the lightest of slurries ie one that is not visible except for a slight cloudiness in the water on the razor. The stone should simply look wet. It is one step away from just using water but it will make a difference with some stones.

Good point Oz man I missed the 200 number when I read through it...

Yeah, 200 on some stones I've used would destroy the edge

Yeah, those 325 DMT's are pretty aggressive..!

Im expecting a Jnat soon.

Stu - you go from a 12K or 16K to the Jnat. Out of interest do you reckon that you could still get the same edge if you were to go from a 8K Nani say?

The number of strokes is kind of high.
As Oz mentioned you are probably overhoning.
My rule of thumb when I test a new stone is, medium slurry 20 circles each way 10 x-strokes and test shave. Then depending on the result I adjust number of strokes and slurry consistency.
I have had only one stone that requires the use of jim's method ,all other (10 stones and counting) were much faster.

Originally Posted by Scipio

Im expecting a Jnat soon.

Stu - you go from a 12K or 16K to the Jnat. Out of interest do you reckon that you could still get the same edge if you were to go from a 8K Nani say?

I reckon so. I have a DD Goldedge that Dylan honed which has a superb edge and he went from his 8k Naniwa to an Asagi on that one.

If your razor is already sharp, just try honing on your stone with a light slurry until it gets kind of pasty and dry. So basically just hone on that same slurry without dilution until it is dry. But you will need to experiment a bit to see what works best with your stone.

Thanks for the tips, everyone. I'll try starting off with a lighter slurry and testing the razor out earlier in the process. I'll probably do that today, so I'll update the thread after that.