Thread: coticule connundrum

A coticule was my first hone. And the first razor I managed to hone to shave-readiness was honed on it. If you have a good quality coticule bought from a reputable seller you should be able to get any razor shave-ready with it. Perret in 1770 describes them as the only razor hone available in Europe at the time. He did not mention slurry stones at all so that is something that came on later. Probably influenced by Escher and other Thuringian hone resellers.
Start using them without a slurry, get to grips with it and only then start experimenting with a slurry stone. Make sure you use a good quality slurry stone as well. The first coticule slurry stone I had to be replaced because it had a few hard inclusions that scratched the surface of my coticule. When those inclusions are mixed into the slurry they will damage your edge.