When I started my fall down the SR rabbit hole I decided early in my journey that I was going to hone my own razors. I started a thread in search of the basic minimal kit on another forum. I thought some of you guys who are just starting your SR journey might be interested, so I am posting a summary of that thread here. To begin, I purchased one shave ready Dovo 6/8 SR so I would know what a keen blade looked like and felt like. I shaved with this for a few weeks…and it was not long before I was getting very good shaves. Learning to shave with a professionally honed razor makes all the difference. By that time I accumulated a cigar box of antique store SRs…some old beaters and some in excellent condition. All needed restoration and honing. My minimal honing kit consists of the following: I purchased a Naniwa 1k stone and a Naniwa 3/8k stone...and a leather covered board strop. I did my experimenting on a couple of old beaters and they taught me valuable lessons. I was able to set the bevel and achieve a mirror finish on the edge, perform the hanging hair test and shave successfully with the razors. So, yes, the gurus are correct, you can be achieve a very good quality edge with just the 8k stone. For strops: I used my board strop and a newspaper strop for the first couple of months. And this worked fine. After honing I would strop 25 laps on the newspaper and 50 laps on the leather. I use a piece of 600 grit wet-dry sandpaper on my glass stove top (yes it is perfectly level) for lapping my stones. Works fine. After two months with this minimal kit I decided to add a Naniwa 12k finishing stone. The 12k stone did improve my edges, but again, I was able to achieve a good edge with the 8k. At this point I don't think I will go to a higher grit...but I have learned in life to "never say never". I do not use pastes. I always use one layer of electrical tape on my spine. I also added a hanging leather strop. The one I purchased came with a linen strop as well, but truthfully, I rarely use the linen side. I use the board strop for when I travel. I also purchased a 60x loupe so I can closely examine my edge. To all of you who are sitting on the sidelines who think honing is a great mystery I say to you pick up a minimal kit as described above, buy a couple of training razors and do it! Patience and attention to detail is all you need. If I can do it so can you! It is a wonderful feeling to sharpen your own SR and even better to get a great shave from a razor you sharpened yourself.
Excellent points. I too went minimal, sort of. I went 1k King stone for bevels. 3k/8k unknown stone. Then 8k 12k 15k Welsh Slate Stones. I got the Welsh Slates for the price of a single better known synthetic stone. I also bought a relatively inexpensive Illinois 827 strop. I also bought a cheap $2 Chinese linen strop, to paste up with Chromium Oxide. I learned to used what i have, and have honed many many razors successfully. I didn't need the uber expensive hones, to successfully hone my razors. If I tried some of these very expensive hones, I'm afraid they might spoil me. I hear the cut metal faster. Since I don't do this for a living, speed isn't that important.
Ok, where do I pick up some Welsh stones? I was gifted a Norton 4000/8000 for Christmas. I need a flattening stone and a 1K. Suggestions? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Ebay. Just type in Welsh Slate Hones. The guy quarries his own and sells a good selection and variety. The shipping is a little high, because of the weight, but that's expected.
For 1k, the King is ok. Inexpensive, and it works. You will need a flattening/lapping stone, for the artificial stones. I chose a Norton (from what I remember). For lapping and maintaining the natural stones, I use 320 wet/dry sandpaper, and a granite tile.
I'm on it, thanks buddy! Hopefully I can produce edges like yours with time! I have about 40 straights to work on... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Wow everything I need is only $150 with shipping from the bay! I'll get to it this weekend! Also found out today, my sister in law is sending me a BelOMO X10 Loupe and some Russian and Belorussian aftershaves!! Thanks guys! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
10 x is too low. Order a Lighted Jewelers Loupe 60x from Hong Kong, under $2 each. I bought two, in case the battery goes on one.
Minimal is the way to go, it allows you to get to know your stones and really perfect your technique. Changing all the time never allows you to master what you have. I use a 1k and 4K Shapton gs, LV Coticule and an Artaunon with thuri slurry stones. I have never used a loupe, one day maybe but I have not had a need for it yet. The cotti and Artaunon give such good feed back I know when they are ready.
Don't underestimate the need for "The 60x Loupe". I've used it on blades that never seemed to feel right, before the loupe. Under magnification I was able to see "micro chips", corrosion on the edge, as well as various other issues.
You can get a 60x-100x Carson microscope at Amazon for $15. You can also get a $3 lighted loup and for another $3 you can be about 10 of the batteries required.
I started off with a 3k / 8k combo stone and a 12k Cnat. It got me started and I was able to get a decent edge out of that setup. I was in for about $70 in hones and another $20 for a cheap strop. Add another $15 for the Carson microscope and $85 all in. Ive upgraded the hones and strop since, but I was able to maintain the edges on my blades with that initial setup.
BTW:I started out with a used Norton 4k/8k and used DMT (both for $45) and eventually added a used Naniwa 1k ($20). I shaved off the 8k for a while before adding a used C12k ($35). Plenty of rough shaving experiences early on.
To Be Honest a Pasted Strop & Naniwa 12 K Super Stone is All that's Required to Maintain SRs for a Very Long Time..Cant Go Wrong..Or Even the Likes of 1 Micron Film as a Refresher/Finisher.. Billy..
To maintain you can get a Cnat for $15 or Tsushima Ocean Blue for $35 or one of AJ's Welsh Slates for $13 shipped (smallest size) and they will all do more or less what the Naniwa 12k does for even less if we're talking about getting really minimal.
I get very good results from the three 8x3 inch Welsh Slates, from AJ. They all did require some lapping, by me, prior to being hone ready. Excellent stones.
