Thread: Newbie hone on coticule

Check this wiki page for lapping your coticule. Hone Lapping 101 - Straight Razor Place Wiki

It's actually a coticule being lapped in all of the pictures, so if you follow the tutorial you should be set.

Don't expect to match Lynn's edge. He has vast experience and a broad arsenal of tools and techniques up his sleeve to produce outstanding edges. You have one hone and limited experience. Based upon your post, I'd say that you are doing very well.
A Coticule is a very versatile hone, you'll surely be able to get some more keenness out of it. A trick I always use is to slowly dilute the slurry while honing, once the razor is at arm hair shaving level on a milky slurry. For that I dip two fingers in my cup with water and add a few drops to the hone, next I do about 10 laps and repeat. It takes about 70 to 100 laps to completely wash down the slurry to plain water. I also add a drop of dishwashing detergent to the water in the cup, once I get to the diluting stage.
70 to 100 laps may sound as a lot, certainly if we compare to barber hones, where lap counts of 5 to 10 are in order, and the Norton combo that uses lap counts in the 10 to 20 range. When used with water for finishing, I have found 50 laps a minimum to achieve anything on a Cotiucule, unless you are finishing the already very refined edge of a 8K or 10K synthetic hone. When correcting a bevel on a Coticule with slurry, laps are irrelevant. You just have to carry on till the edge shaves arm hair very well. Always hone with light pressure on a Coticule, certainly during the diluting stage and while finishing. The lighter you can perform a consistent X-stroke, the sharper your edge will be.
This method can give very good results. The shave will always be smooth, but the final keenness will vary between razors.
If you want a more consistent shot at ultra keenness, I recommend that you buy one of Straight Razor Designs' Naniwa Super Stone 10K hones. They're great for getting some extra keenness after the diluting slurry stage and before final finishing on the Coticule with just water (about 20 laps).

Hope this helps,

Bart.

I took Bart's advice and gave it another 50 passes with water only. The shave test was great. Much, much sharper. A great improvement in comfort.
It may be that the slurry passes dulled the edge some. I may give it another 50 laps just to see if it gets even sharper (do I dare?).
Thanks for all the advice.

Thanks for the update.

Yes you can try another 50 laps on the Coticule with water. As long as you maintain minimal pressure, it won't hurt. Heavydutysg135 (the guy from the 9-part video series) once did several series of 100 laps on the Coticule with water, daily before his shave, to see how far he could bring the edge and if he would overhone at some point. While the keenness of the edge maxed out after the second series, the edge just kept performing the same, no matter how many additional laps he did.
Bottom line, if you suspect there's still something to gain from doing 50 more, it doesn't hurt to try.

Good luck,
Bart.

Originally Posted by Bart

Thanks for the update.

Yes you can try another 50 laps on the Coticule with water. As long as you maintain minimal pressure, it won't hurt. Heavydutysg135 (the guy from the 9-part video series) once did several series of 100 laps on the Coticule with water, daily before his shave, to see how far he could bring the edge and if he would overhone at some point. While the keenness of the edge maxed out after the second series, the edge just kept performing the same, no matter how many additional laps he did.
Bottom line, if you suspect there's still something to gain from doing 50 more, it doesn't hurt to try.

Good luck,
Bart.

I did try another 100 laps with water only. There was some improvement, but not much. I am definitely satisfied with the touch-up/honing.
I shaved against the grain this morning with it (I don't always do that) and easily had the smoothest shave of my life. BBS except for some problem areas on the neck.
Thanks so much for the advice.