SHAVE-OFF Cnat -v- Pasted Balsa

[rbscebu]

Can you please elaborate? I mean, where does one begin if not at the beginning as a beginner? Wasn't this a first step as a natural stone beginner yourself? I've honed on natural stones for 10 years and I started out on them. There really was no other way to learn other than to jump right in.

As I stated, I was referring to a beginner in honing, not a beginner in honing on natural whetstones.

If you have no or only a little experience in honing using films and/or synthetic whetstones, I do not recommend that you jump straight in to using a stone like my Adaee 12000. I didn't really start on natural whetstones until I had first honed up about 100 SRs using films, diamond pasted balsa strops and later including synthetic stones.

If I had tried the Adaee 12000 early on in my honing experience, on films and synthetics, I probably would have given up on naturals thinking that they just didn't work for me.

Unlike what is recommended by many, including me, I didn't have the opportunity in the Philippines to learn the basics of SR shaving before learning honing. I had to teach myself both at the same time. Using the B&B Method for honing saved my day.

 

[Titleist]

As I stated, I was referring to a beginner in honing, not a beginner in honing on natural whetstones.

If you have no or only a little experience in honing using films and/or synthetic whetstones, I do not recommend that you jump straight in to using a stone like my Adaee 12000. I didn't really start on natural whetstones until I had first honed up about 100 SRs using films, diamond pasted balsa strops and later including synthetic stones.

If I had tried the Adaee 12000 early on in my honing experience, on films and synthetics, I probably would have given up on naturals thinking that they just didn't work for me.

Unlike what is recommended by many, including me, I didn't have the opportunity in the Philippines to learn the basics of SR shaving before learning honing. I had to teach myself both at the same time. Using the B&B Method for honing saved my day.

Guess I was the exception to the rule then. But then again, I know of one other here who recently jumped all in on a JNAT with great success too.

I'm one of the lucky ones back then but like you, it came with trial and error. I had numerous failures on Naturals, we all do. But, no one is born knowing what to do be it with films, synthetics, et al

Glad to hear you are progressing with your CNAT.

 

[Steve56]

CNat = PHIG, the ‘People’s Hone of Indeterminate Grit’. lol.

 

[Eben Stone]

Mine does not self-slurry so I had to use a 600 diamond plate to get a slurry.

Is there something in particular you can suggest? Should I get a slurry stone?

 

[rbscebu]

Is there something in particular you can suggest? Should I get a slurry stone?

I don't have a slurry stone, other than a "flattening stone" that came with one of my Chinese synthetic whetstones. That is probably too course for finishing. That is why I used my worn 600 grit diamond plate to develop a light slurry from the Adaee #12000.

The diamond plate cost me a couple of dollars, about $8 for three.

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Perhaps someone who uses slurry on a hard Arkansas can chime in and help you if you want to try using a slurry stone.

 

[Steve56]

Is there something in particular you can suggest? Should I get a slurry stone?

Yep, a diamond plate should raise a little slurry.

 

[steveclarkus]

I don't have a slurry stone, other than a "flattening stone" that came with one of my Chinese synthetic whetstones. That is probably too course for finishing. That is why I used my worn 600 grit diamond plate to develop a light slurry from the Adaee #12000.

The diamond plate cost me a couple of dollars, about $8 for three.

View attachment 1482449​

Perhaps someone who uses slurry on a hard Arkansas can chime in and help you if you want to try using a slurry stone.

I used wet/dry sandpaper to slurry my old Cnat. Works fine but I don’t have the patience for a Cnat - very slow stone.

 

[WenC]

I'm doing my research on Chinese Forum and bilbil. Let's see what they say.

 

[WenC]

@rbscebu Do you know where this stone is mined from in China?

 

[Steve56]

It’s allegedly a river stone from Guangxi.

 

[WenC]

From my search, Guangxi has one of the best natural whetstone mines in China. There is one person in the Chinese whetstone community, that goes out and mines it himself for best quality, name Lao mo. The community also believes China has good natural stone/mineral deposits just that no one is willing to put their money to develop it, since everyone just looks for Jnat. There are also problems with inconsistent quality with Jnat, just very few talks about it to start an echo chamber. Most posts and videos talk about the Cnat compared to #6000 grit <【图片】中国到底有没有天然砥石能比肩或者媲美日本天然砥石！_砥石吧_百度贴吧 - https://tieba.baidu.com/p/7548268674?pn=1>, I have not seen any that truly compared to #12000. I got one last video to watch with this guy going over all his collection of Cnat. <十多款国产砥石的视频「能得罪的都快得罪完了」应该是使用手法不得当或是控水或是等等不当……多有得罪「仅代表我手里的这些砥石性能，并不能代表平均水平 切记」_哔哩哔哩_bilibili - https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1V4411S7Da/?spm_id_from=333.788.recommend_more_video.0&vd_source=22fb2661589025ba83bdb0a7f1b49fa0> Wife is getting mad at me for spending too much time on this forum.

 

[rbscebu]

I used wet/dry sandpaper to slurry my old Cnat. Works fine but I don’t have the patience for a Cnat - very slow stone.

True. My Cnat required a lot of patience to start getting good shave-ready edges off it. However, I have found that patience in all things related to SR shaving produces the best results with what you have.

 

[Herrenberg]

Slow is not a bad quality in a finisher. It just affects what you do to the edge before you bring it to the stone. My hard arks are unbelievably slow, the way I have their surfaces prepared, but it doesn't matter, because I use a high grit prefinisher first. I think slow might even be a desirable quality for a final finishing stone.

 

[rbscebu]

From my search, Guangxi has one of the best natural whetstone mines in China. There is one person in the Chinese whetstone community, that goes out and mines it himself for best quality, name Lao mo. The community also believes China has good natural stone/mineral deposits just that no one is willing to put their money to develop it, since everyone just looks for Jnat. There are also problems with inconsistent quality with Jnat, just very few talks about it to start an echo chamber. Most posts and videos talk about the Cnat compared to #6000 grit <【图片】中国到底有没有天然砥石能比肩或者媲美日本天然砥石！_砥石吧_百度贴吧 - https://tieba.baidu.com/p/7548268674?pn=1>, I have not seen any that truly compared to #12000. I got one last video to watch with this guy going over all his collection of Cnat. <十多款国产砥石的视频「能得罪的都快得罪完了」应该是使用手法不得当或是控水或是等等不当……多有得罪「仅代表我手里的这些砥石性能，并不能代表平均水平 切记」_哔哩哔哩_bilibili - https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1V4411S7Da/?spm_id_from=333.788.recommend_more_video.0&vd_source=22fb2661589025ba83bdb0a7f1b49fa0> Wife is getting mad at me for spending too much time on this forum.

I wish I had learnt Chinese when I was living in China. Unfortunately I had to leave when I was only a couple of years old and my parents only spoke English at home.

I'm not saying that my Adaee #12000 Cnat is of 12k grit. That #12000 could just be a model number. All Iknow is that it is very fine and hard when I hone with it.

Grit rating is really only a comparative measurement within one manufacturer. Every "manufacturer" appears to use their own "standard".

 

[WenC]

@rbscebu I left China at age of 10, but my parents spoke Chinese at home and I read manga at home, Chinese translation is more accurate than English.
I support your choice in using the Adaee natural stone if it achieves the result you enjoy. I'm still looking at other possible options for natural whetstones. Keep us updated with your experience on cnat, I will be following.

 

[steveclarkus]

True. My Cnat required a lot of patience to start getting good shave-ready edges off it. However, I have found that patience in all things related to SR shaving produces the best results with what you have.

Old codger that I am, patience is not one of my virtues.