Thread: ...In for a pound - should I pick up a barber's hone?

I had my first all-straight, full-face shave last night. I'm completely hooked. I'm thinking about eventually picking-up a Norton 4000/8000 set and another razor to learn more. However, I need to take this incrementally and I have been told that it may be possible to maintain an edge indefinitely using a barber's hone.

Is this true? Is it advisable to pick up a barber's hone? If so, where can I get one at a decent price? What's a decent price?

Many thanks,
trjk

It is true that you can maintain an edge indefinitely on a barber's hone, and they certainly have a place in a modern shave den. However, if you are going to grab a norton 4/8, the same can be said about that. Barber's hones were made to be very fast to use, with just about 5 laps to refresh the edge, whereas the norton is a regular hone and takes a little more.

Barber's hones are fun, but not necessary - grab one for laughs if you feel like it. I got my barbers hones off ebay.

Thanks str8fencer. I'm trying to be incremental about this, mostly just to minimize initial cash outlay. If I really can maintain an edge indefinitely on the barber's hone I think it might be worth it if it isn't too expensive. How much should I expect to pay? They seem hard to find, new. Do they go by different names? For example, is there a standard sized grit stone that is also known as a barber's hone?

I understand the appeal of the barber's hone but if you're in that kind of a rush it's time to use a DE or a disposable, or your old cartridge, rather than refresh your str8. The Norton 4/8k will easily replace a barber's hone, just plan ahead for it. Cash outlay=my advice is best.

Thanks AxelH. I probably wasn't very clear. I'm not in a rush at all. In fact, quite the opposite. I'm just trying to understand things bit-by-bit. My understanding is that refershing with a barber's hone is something like a precursor step to honing with a 4/8k. My thinking is that I could find that using barber's hone every X shaves and sending the thing off for a honing at long intervals is absolutely adequate for my needs. If that proves to be true for me, the minimalism of that sort of scenario could be very appealing. On the other hand, I might find that I really want more control over my edge and in that case would look at taking my honing to the next level.

Originally Posted by therealjohnkeel

Thanks AxelH. I probably wasn't very clear. I'm not in a rush at all. In fact, quite the opposite. I'm just trying to understand things bit-by-bit. My understanding is that refershing with a barber's hone is something like a precursor step to honing with a 4/8k. My thinking is that I could find that using barber's hone every X shaves and sending the thing off for a honing at long intervals is absolutely adequate for my needs. If that proves to be true for me, the minimalism of that sort of scenario could be very appealing. On the other hand, I might find that I really want more control over my edge and in that case would look at taking my honing to the next level.

Expect to pay about half of what a Norton 4/8 combo costs for a barber's hone on eBay. It will be shorter than the Norton, about 5" instead of 8" and narrower, about 2" instead of 3".

Yes, you can use a barber's hone to refresh your edge for a long time, but you can do the same thing with the 8k side of the Norton, and it's probably easier since you have a larger surface area to work with.

That said, go ahead and get a barber's hone. It will add to your education, may possibly be the only hone you need, and is easily resold here on SRP if you decide to "move up to the next level".

Rick

Barber hone grits aren't standardized, but some are finer than the Norton 8K. IMHO, it's easier to get a shave-ready edge on a fine-grit barber hone than on a Norton 8K[*].

They pop up in the "Classifieds" here occasionally, and Larry at WhippedDog.com may have some in inventory. There are worse ways to spend $20 - $30 on razor gear.

. Charles
[*] This is based on my limited experience with a few razors, and two barber hones. The "Boss Barber" seems to be around 8K, and gave me a poor edge. The fine side of my "Amalgamite" hone is finer, and gives a nice edge with little effort.

Originally Posted by PensacolaTiger

Expect to pay about half of what a Norton 4/8 combo costs for a barber's hone on eBay. It will be shorter than the Norton, about 5" instead of 8" and narrower, about 2" instead of 3".

Yes, you can use a barber's hone to refresh your edge for a long time, but you can do the same thing with the 8k side of the Norton, and it's probably easier since you have a larger surface area to work with.

That said, go ahead and get a barber's hone. It will add to your education, may possibly be the only hone you need, and is easily resold here on SRP if you decide to "move up to the next level".

Rick

That last part is especially true. For the price these things go for, you can buy and sell one if it doesn't suit your needs fairly easily. I got one, also got a Norton 4/8 stone and a finishing stone to "play with," but I've also used the Norton to put an edge on some kitchen knives. Not sure the barber hone would serve that purpose.

it is your choice but I bought a balsa strop loaded with CrO from ebay from a store called starshavingsupplies (I think). it is great for touchup. once you get more advanced you will probably have the norton 4/8k and a finisher (escher, coti, chinese 12k, jnat, etc) and you will see that barber hones are not really the way to go.