Budget honing stones for the beginner

As Advised Above..A Piece of Glass is Fine..or Marble or Summit..Any Joiners Joint Should be Able to Cut Ya.. Say 22 Cm By 7 or 8 Cm Piece of Heavy Glass..There are 2 Ways..You Can Use One Piece Only as a Base Plate..That Means Using Water Underneath to Suck it Down as it Comes Sticky Back..You Can Remove the Film & Re Use the Same Base Plate for the Full Progression..o_O

The 2nd Way is to Get Multiple Pieces Cut & Just Stick the Film Down Permanently or Until it Needs Renewed..When I was Using Film as a Progression I Used the Former Method..Just Make Sure there are Zero Air Bubbles Underneath..Its Easy Once You Get the Hang of it..:)

I Hone with the Edge & Heel Slightly Leading for Most of My Strokes..You Can Use Fancy Pig Tail Type Strokes which Involve Both Blade & Spine Leading or Circles..Probably Best to Stick to Edge leading X Strokes Until You Get the Hang of it..You Can Also Use Small Circles Up & Down the Hone on the Lower Grit Hones to Speed things Up..:rolleyes:

In Short the Same as Any Hone..Light Pressure is All thats Needed..Dont Go at it Hammer & Tongs..Lapping Film is Quite a Fast Cutter in Capable Hands..:D

Billy
Thanks Billy..
 
I can answer a couple of those questions, I think! :D

Yes, flattest surface possible. You can buy exceptionally flat glass which works well with it - I'm fairly sure someone on here had a good source for 'lapping glass', as it is often known... It'll need to be wet as this helps the lapping film 'bind' to the flat surface, minimising the risk of tears as well as reducing the risk of rounding the blade, and it is edge first until you strop! I.e. edge first like you would with a stone, as you said.
Thanks @Benz3ne
 
Thanks Billy..
Oh Aye..Forgot the Wet or Dry Question..Use Water..Splash & Go..As I Finish Off Each Hone I Go Down to Almost No Water But Not Completely Dry..In Other Words..Almost Dry But Not Quite to Finish Off Each Hone..I Use Very Light Strokes at this Stage..There is a Lot of Cushion with Film & Plenty of Feedback..:)

Billy
 
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Greetings

Here is the difficulty (IMHO) in choosing stones and at the same time trying to save a few bob.

The most important part in honing any razor is setting the bevel, if this step is not correct everything else just does not come together properly, therefore a good quality bevel setting stone does set the foundation for all the other work you will do on the blade.

The downside is having perfectly set your bevel on your high quality stone you may quite realistically not need to use that stone on that razor again for literally years! So if you have, lets say just a couple of razors, once you have mastered bevel setting you are likely to get about 2 hrs use every three years (or even longer) out of your bevel setting stone.

Good quality stones generally cut much quicker than cheaper ones and there is no question they make the most important job of bevel setting easier but the stone you will use the most will be your finishing stone.

It's just impossible to get it 100% right and make a substantial saving.

Another point to consider is that if you choose to finish on a stone rather than lapping film (and there is nothing wrong with lapping film) with synthetic stones, the finer the stone the higher the cost, this is because manufacturing a fine stone is technically more difficult and time consuming than making a coarser one.

I'm sure this has not helped you one bit but it shows the difficult conundrum (not carborundum) :D with stones and saving money.

Regards
Dick.
 
By the way how do I know when it is time to replace a worn lapping film?
And will the light green 1 micron film be transformed to 0,5 micron at some stage and should be saved as a super finisher?
Its Really Quite Obvious when its Worn & Needs Replaced..It Will Lose its Cutting Surface & Just Stop Working Properly..In Other Words..Its Not Performing as You Know it Should..When its Very Worn it Can be Seen..Its Obvious..o_O

Also..It Needs Replaced when it Gets Lumpy or Bumpy & No Longer Flat & Even Due to Steel Particles Embedded in the Film..This is More Likely to Happen with the Lower Grit Film..Gets the Most Work..You Will FEEL & SEE it..:cool:

On the 1 Micron..1 Micron = 16 K..It has the Finishing Capacity of 20 K when Worn..Or From New in Capable Hands..So Yeah..You Can Keep it for a High Grit Finisher or Do What I Do..Just Use Less Strokes & Take it Off where You Want it..16 to 20 K..Lapping Film has a Higher Grit Potential Finishing Capacity than its Grit Rating at the Best of Times..Like Most High End Synthetic Hones in Capable Hands..;)

I Am Using a Piece of 1 Micron Film at the Moment that I Have Run Well Over 150 Blades On & Maybe then Some..If its Cleaned & Rubbed Down with a Cotton Cloth Lapping Film Can Last a While in Capable Hands..:rolleyes:

Like Any Hones..Ya NEED to get to Know Youre Hones..Inside & Out..I Treat Lapping Film with the Same Respect as Any of My Hones..I Look After Em..:D

Billy
 
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I have a King 1000 and it is ok. If you do a lot of work not the best of choices I guess because it is rather soft. Still for me, the cheap occasional honer it is ok. To put in perspective, I am the same with shaving brushes, no Shavemac for me, I am perfectly happy with a boar for a fiver :)
 
These inexpensive hones work fine as do the smaller ones. Most of the people saying they are "crap" are just pushing their own preferences (nothing wrong with that).

Who cares if a cheaper hone is slower? Are you in a hurry? :) If you are only doing one razor every now and then it's just not an issue. Nor is using a smaller hone. I use smaller hones all the time.

If you are really into the zen-like nature of being one with your hones then get the best in the largest sizes with all the stone holders and then get into Jnats and thurigans and coticles etc. If you just want to set the bevels on a few razors and keep them shave ready most any razor hone will work.

I have about 10 razors, all from Ebay and they are now all shave worthy. I got them that way with inexpensive hones.
 
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