Thread: Lap a barbers hone?

This is a dumb question but...Should I lap my barbers hone before use like we would any other whetstone? I just to make sure to not adversely effect the stone seeing that it is around 150 years old. It is in mint condition and doesn't seem to have seen much use over the years. Even came in the original box!

Personally I think any hone should be lapped. Some barber hones can be tough. I lapped a Swaty with a D8C and it took over a half hour to do one side. Also there have been reports from members of older barber hones deteriorating in the lapping process. It may have been due to the particular formula of the binder and the age of the hone. My old Swatys, both long and standard lapped with no damage.

I can relate to your hesitation. It seems that you shouldn't be messing with the integrity of something so old. Unfortunately, it comes down to an issue of do you want to preserve it or do you want to use it. I have found that most of my barber hones are not even close to flat. The puzzler is how their original owners were able to make use of them in that condition. I've tried using them unlapped and just can't get the hang of it. Either they've significantly changed shape over the years or else their users were much better at making do with a warped stone.

I would suggest you try the hone unlapped and see if it works okay. That will clear up the question of whether or not you should lap it.

What barber hone did you get?

I bought a cheap Carborundum hone and lapped it on principle. What started as a bland dark grey-green surface changed to a bright green-yellow one.

Ebay pic/After lapping pic:


I think it was an improvement, no point keeping a glazed and unflat surface IMO.

Just lapped a old pike I bought yesterday and wooooooooooooooo
Took 2 hrs to complete this misson Useing norton 320 w/d paper
and that was only one side

I lapped my Primble barber hone with a 400/1000 diamond plate. I also had to grind out some pitting, so there's that, too...took a good 45 minutes, but it wasn't too terrible.

Keep in mind you'll lose the factory glaze on that new looking barber hone in a big way. That may be very disappointing to you or at least unexpected. There are ways to return the surface to a polished reflective finish (lapping with continually finer media), but even then, the original glazing usually doesn't exhibit the mottling that seems to be common in barber hones once lapped.

Here's a pic of a lapped reconditioned Swaty 3 line I sold some time ago. You can see the original uniform glaze color on the embossed area, and the polished yet mottled surface.



Chris L

I appreciate the replies gents. I wanted to get your past experiences/opinions before proceeding. I'm not concerned with the finish of the hone as long as it is flat and cuts properly.