Thread: My First Coticule

When Mother Nature Makes a Batch of Rock she doesn't measure, it's a handful of this and pinch of that and if she has to leave and comeback she may forget what the original was and put in two handful of this and a handful of that. And she might not mix it together real well. That's why not all natural hones are created equal. Some vary even when quarried side by side.

Like you I am fortunate to have a nice Coti for a finisher, some may not be so lucky.

I'm also blessed with a Zulu Grey that gives nice finished edges.

I also have several synthetics.

As my friend Glen likes to say: "Naturals are a Romance, Synthetics are a Science".

At least it's very close to what he's said.

Heeding Doctor Glen’s sage advice regarding hones and honing saved me from a serious bout of HAD. Thanks to him, I’ve stayed largely with synthetics (ok, and a Thuringian or 2).

I found that my Ardennes mined coti from TSS needed more pressure than my vintage coti. Or, not pressure, but torque lets say. That helped me get to the finish line with it. And the gritty sensation is normal, at least in my experience. Also, like others have said the edge scratches don't look too different from my bevels after the modern coti.

When I first started using my coti, I dulled a razor to butter knife status. I totally messed up the geometry. It takes a lot of time to learn them. I'm still learning myself. Keep at it. Focus on your honing stroke and the pressure. I learned the most about my coticule doing the dilucot method on it. It allowed me to feel the different feedback sensations the slurry provided, and the feedback of water only. I also only used one razor on it when I first got my stone. It helped limit the variables, as some have said. Keep at it. Its very rewarding when it clicks. Mastery will definitely take a long time. I've had mine about 6 months and I'm NO WHERE near mastering my coti, not even 5% of the way there, but the journey is fun!

Looks pretty typical, for me.

Originally Posted by outback

Looks pretty typical, for me.

Page 3...pictire of the stone wet evidences a transverse line light redish-brown in colour.

That could be a line of iron that is/has been transforming solwly into red iron oxide-aka rust.

Rust takes up more volume then iron and exerts a pressure effect.
So a crack mai develop that leads more water in until the all the iron oxidizes.

Also next to the crack on the down right pic...I se a few patchi areas where the colour tends to be grayish-light green/blue...surface pattern seems to disapear over these spots witch makes me belive that thise spots are diffrent then the rest of the stone.

The only thi g that matches the description is coryde quartzite .... that did not have enough pressure or manganase to catalise...
How I see it...

Oil and finishing under water help indeed but not so if the stone is inconsistent.

Originally Posted by ovidiucotiga

Page 3...pictire of the stone wet evidences a transverse line light redish-brown in colour.

That could be a line of iron that is/has been transforming solwly into red iron oxide-aka rust.

Rust takes up more volume then iron and exerts a pressure effect.
So a crack mai develop that leads more water in until the all the iron oxidizes.

Also next to the crack on the down right pic...I se a few patchi areas where the colour tends to be grayish-light green/blue...surface pattern seems to disapear over these spots witch makes me belive that thise spots are diffrent then the rest of the stone.

The only thi g that matches the description is coryde quartzite .... that did not have enough pressure or manganase to catalise...
How I see it...

I'm talking about the stria that most Coties leave behind. Its never a highly polished edge. I have four Coties, one seems like more of a cutter, two are about the same, the other very slow and fine. Some like lots of pressure/torque, some don't.
That's the fun.!! Learning each one you have, or mastering the one you have, and finding its potential or your own sanity. [emoji38]

I'm going to play for a while with this stone and see how it works for me. I've just got a little concern that if its a bad spot in the stone (BTW, No blame on the seller) all it will do is cause me problems trying to learn the stone. I dont get a lot of time to play so its time to put stuff away and get ready for bed. In another 6 days I'll get a little more time to play but for now, It time to put my toys away.
Thanks to all for the comments and hoping all will turn out fine in the end.

BTW, I was eyeing that really colorful Coti for sale on the B/S/T thread but I need to hold off on everything for a while. Plus I dont know squat when it comes to these things so I'm not buying. But it sure is a perty rock!

Thanks Jerry, now I'm seriously looking at ANOTHER stone!!!!!




Dang enablers

Originally Posted by Gasman

....So I sent an email to Superiorshave.com and got a reply the next day.
....
This is 50mm X 175mm or about 2 X 7 inches. Came with a slurry stone but no box.
....

They look nice to me. I like the size too. Nice folk at superiorshave too.

I used a coti and strop for decades and nothing else.
With water four to five light as heck strokes once every two weeks or so.

When I got my coti and razor in the early '70s there was no clue about veins
or anything... I never lapped it flat my first couple razors and the coti
got to like each other. Even dry shaving was easy.

RE the box keep an open eye open for scrap wood... It is easy to make a box with
waterproof gorilla glue by hand. Nails are not needed just drill holes for bamboo skewers and reinforce the
box if needed. The urethane brown gorilla glue is stronger than wood it foams up to
fill voids so hand tools will do the trick. Just do not glue the stone into the box ;-)
Even a little cardboard box will keep the hone safe. I still have the original cardboard box
that my first coti came in ;-) I am tempted to shellac or varnish it so it will last even longer.

Have fun...