Thread: 2 guys honing in Nova Scotia

So, Ironsidegnr (Matt) is restoring some heirloom razors, 3 to be exact, and decided it'd be fun to get together and get our hone on. Of course, this was a good time to get ALL our stuff out in one place and pick and choose from what we wanted to use.

On the left you can see my stuff: 1k chosera, welsh slate trio, Jnat (Ozuku Mizu Asagi Nashiji) and Asano nagura trio as well as my Wakasa Tomonagura, 3 of my brushes, one black, one silvertip and one boar, as well as 35 of my razors... yes today was the first day I counted and I was shocked.....

On the right is Matts stuff: Naniwa 1k,3k, 5k, 8k, 12k, CrOx pasted balsa and his coticule. Not in the picture is his DMT. The whetstone holder is mine

Some cool stuff happened in this hone session. While Matt was working on the restorations, I started setting a bevel on an old Mappin that had been laying around his workshop and that neither of us was able to hone in the past. It's been months since either of us has done more than look at the razor. The issue with it is the spine has a very slight curve to it. Applying all the knowledge/skills I've developed as a result of being part of this forum, I was able to effectively set a bevel on the 1k. A rolling x stroke and some rolling circles did the trick and before long the bevel, while not the prettiest i've ever had, was effectively set and popping hair above the arm! Next up was the coticule. A nice size for hand honing it measures in at about 5X1 1.5 inches. I started with a slurry made off the belgian blue side of his slurry stone and diluted then to the coticule slurry and a dilution. Next up was the welsh trio and finally a stropping. I've got this thing shave ready but want to take it to the next level tomorrow by putting it through the paces on the JNAT.

I also honed up one of the heirlooms for him using only the synthetic stones. Let me tell you, after going from nothing but naturals in my progression, it sure was strange to go back to Matt's Nani's that he originally taught me to hone on. On the other hand, Matt seemed very pleased and enjoyed the feel and feedback off all of my natural stones.

At the end of the day, 4 razors honed to a shave ready state. Test shaves to follow but both of us are pretty confident in our honing capability! I'm sure they will be great!

ANYWAYS, enough bullsh%t, here are the pictures of all our stuff and a few of my razors set out for display purposes!

We're really hoping to have a 'meet' in Nova Scotia one of these days but there aren't many of us doing this out here that we know about.

That was an awesome evening!

It was pretty cool to see a table that full of hones and razors!! What was even better though was being taught to hone by the person that I taught to hone...Grasshopper becoming the master???

Had a great time, stand by for a Nova Scotia meet in the spring time!

Nice spread. Looks like a lot of fun.

Consider me jealous! Great spread of stuff and a fun day on top of that!

Thanks guys! It really was a good night of honing and delicious coffee. Matt has been a great mentor and it's nice being able to teach him some stuff too. If it wasn't for this site, neither Matt or myself would have the knowledge that we have now! We joke about opening our own shop and stuff because we're both so passionate about these razors!

Hey guys! Greetings from Vancouver, I wish we were closer as I am learning to hone as well. I have honed about 10 razors successfully but I have a couple of tough ones ,

Originally Posted by Cobre

Hey guys! Greetings from Vancouver, I wish we were closer as I am learning to hone as well. I have honed about 10 razors successfully but I have a couple of tough ones ,

If you need anything, feel free to PM either of us!

Nice work guys! Looks like a time and a half! I'll be interested in the meet

Patrick, where have you been hiding??
Let me or Matt know what your schedule is like! We'd love to have you down in the valley to do some honing and show and tell.

How have you been doing with the brush handles? Any progress? Any other projects on the go?

Originally Posted by brooksie967

If you need anything, feel free to PM either of us!

Will do, thanks!