So I shaved last night with my new old Boker King Cutter 6/8 full hollow. I bought it from the antique shop near my house of course and I put what I thought was a nice sharp edge on it, stropped it using both sides 100 times each. My shave was 3 passes and after the 2nd I actually stopped and stropped again which I'm sure if my edge was actually sharp enough I would never have to do, right?

I'm not exactly sure the grit of my stone or even the material for that matter it was my great grandfather's who was a barber and a bookie. Now usually with that stone, my technique, my strop and a little more elbow grease than necessary I can get my edges decent but here's the rub, I only have my own work for comparison whereas what I may think is decent to anyone else it would be like trying to shave with a butter knife. Can anyone help me with a few tips and advice on stones???

Advise: Send one of your blades to a respected "Honemeister". Then compare your razors and honing skills to that razor.

That's a good idea thank you. Do you have a preferred "honemeister" I should use?

You couldn't do any better than Glenn (@gssixgun ).
But, there are many here that do phenomenal work with the stones.

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Ok great thank you.

Go to gemstar customs.com.

Glen Mercurio known in these parts as @gssixgun.

I've never heard a negative comment on his work. He freely shares information and how-to vids with the wet shaving community, and has for years.

Don't tell him I said so, but he has been around longer than dirt.


Give him a shout, you won't be sorry.

Edit - oops, late

Here's a picture of my stone I'm hoping someone could help me identify it.

It looks like the duel grit ones that Norton produced for carpenters and those sharpening knives. I doubt you will get the results you are looking for, with that type of stone.

I'll throw out another endorsement for Glen (@gssixgun).

@Jake Gibson, what is your level of experience shaving with a DE or cartridge blade? It should feel like that. If you've only ever used electrics then that isn't going to help. If you get any tugging or pulling whatsoever it ain't ready.

Dr. Matt357 on YouTube uses tomatoes to check his edge. You could try that and it would at least let you know if you are tracking correctly.

I've read that you can shave off of a 4k stone but I don't know how comfortable that would be.

Also, there's no harm in stropping in between passes. If you were removing hair and got a smooth shave you may be pretty close.

I've been using a DE since about March and the SR for about a month. DaltonGang just got back to me and said I'm most likely using the wrong stone for honing so it seems I've got problems even before I start which is never good, especially when one is dragging a piece of razor sharp steel across one's face and neck...pun intended.

Well that's definitely not good. Do you have any recommendations for a proper stone? I've been seeing a lot on here about 4k/8k are they somewhat bank account friendly?

Jake, there's always the lapping films option, which is the least expensive way. Sharpeningsupplies.com sells lapping film kits pretty cheaply, and a couple of the guys answering the phone are straight shavers. I'm a newb as well, straight shaving for about as long as you, but my oldest son has been a straight shaver for two decades, and has been helping me out. If you have questions about lapping films contact @Slash McCoy and ask about the "Method". It 's a step by step method that if followed precisely will get you where you want to be. It does work. You can also contact @Trigger who's a lapping film honer of several years. Good luck, Jake!

There are many ways to get the job done, inexpensively. My way isnt the cheapest, but I have learned through trial and error.
Learning and using lapping film, with a high quality finishing stone is the least expensive way. @Billyfergie would be the King of Lapping film.

I use a Norton 220/1000 to begin, usually the 1000 grit. Next is a Chinese 3k/8k. Usually i just use the 3k. Next are my Welsh Slate Stones, 8k 12k 15k. Then is the Arkansas Surgical Black, as the Ultra finisher 20+k. This setup has done the job for many many razors.
Lately Ive been using a very hard JNAT(Japanese Natural stone). I have one, and several differing grit slurry stones(Naguras), and this stone allows me to bypass the Welsh Slate Stones, and go to the Arkansas Surgical Black.

Just read up on prior threads. There is a wealth of information at your fingertips.

After I finish on my .3 micron film, I go on a pasted strop with Crox , then fabric and leather. There really isn't a need to use a finishing stone, unless you want to do so.

Since I was Called by @DaltonGang Scott about Film..Yeah..I Learned to Hone on Lapping Film.15 Micron Diamond Film to Set a Bevel..Aluminum/Oxide Film..12 Micron, 9 Micron, 5 Micron, 3 Micron, 1 Micron as a Progression..1 Micron = 16 K as a Great Finishing Grit..

Most of the Learning is on the Bevel Hone..Thus..I Would Recommend a Naniwa 1 K Professional Stone for Bevel Setting & then the Aluminum/Oxide Film.for the Progression as Mentioned above..Lapping Film is NOT Ideal for Learning to Bevel Set a Razor..Trust Me..That Said it Can Be Done..

Best Advice I Can Offer is to Pay to Get it Honed..Learn to Shave & Strop & then Ya Can Think about Hones..Otherwise as We Say in Scotland.."Ya are Pissin in the Wind"..Ya Need to Feel & Experience a Proper Shave Ready SR to Know What You are Looking for on the Hones..

Billy..

Thank you very much for the info and suggestions they're greatly appreciated.

@Billyfergie, I mostly agree with you as far the lapping film progresssion, except how I end the honing and a newbie learning to set a bevel on a hone. I honed four razors on films with great results. The 5th time was when I had to set a bevel on my Dovo Special because the edge had a tiny chip that had cut me. First time out, I set the bevel and went through to the .3 micron films. Needless to say, that it shaved beautifully. With that said, I am no where near your caliber in experience, but I am living proof that a newbie can set a bevel with lapping films.

As I have said before, and agree with you, first get it professionally honed. Then learn to hone.
Stropping is an art needing to be learned before learning to hone. A good edge can be fast ruined, with poor stropping skills. .

.

That being said in your opinion is it better to strop with the leather on a paddle or with a traditional hanging strop? I've got both and I've used both so I'm curious if I should use one over the other or if the results will be similar and it's just personal preference...

Edit* I should mention that both my hanging strop and paddle strop are of mid range quality and I did get a block of mysterious green and white paste with my paddle strop from Amazon

Yes, there is a progression in straight shaving. I first learned my technique using a shavette. As soon as I became proficient, I graduated to straights freeing me to concentrate on stropping. During the first year, I refreshed my blades on a pasted strop with Croz. Finally last year on July, l tstarted to hone using lapping films.