Despite the fact that modern stones/pased strops are more consistent, I still have a soft spot for vintage barbers' hones.
I'm not an expert and with only 7 hones, my collection is quite modest, but I still really enjoy using them.
I have several that I got from the e-bay vendor "Tilley" and a few others I picked up here and there.
My coarsest hone is a "little devil" that i use for truing other hones and setting a bevel on new razors and I then go to my medium/medium-fine hones (GEM, Cushion Strop, Amalgamite) and on to one of my finishing hones (Lithide, American, Apart).
While I don't have a Swaty, the Apart hone is clearly a clone, as it is made in the same region of Austria and seems to have the same characteristics. The Apart is my favourite - I got it for around $10 on e-bay in excellent condition and it puts a great final polish on the edges of my razors.
In addition to the fact that they're old-school, I like the barbers' hones because they're cheap and convenient - they can be used dry, wet, with lather and they don't need to be soaked. Also, they're handy in the sense that you can keep one in the bathroom for a quick touch up.
I know there have been various discussions here and there on barbers' hones, but I thought it would be nice to have a new thread devoted to the subject in the new "hones" section.
I'm not an expert and with only 7 hones, my collection is quite modest, but I still really enjoy using them.
I have several that I got from the e-bay vendor "Tilley" and a few others I picked up here and there.
My coarsest hone is a "little devil" that i use for truing other hones and setting a bevel on new razors and I then go to my medium/medium-fine hones (GEM, Cushion Strop, Amalgamite) and on to one of my finishing hones (Lithide, American, Apart).
While I don't have a Swaty, the Apart hone is clearly a clone, as it is made in the same region of Austria and seems to have the same characteristics. The Apart is my favourite - I got it for around $10 on e-bay in excellent condition and it puts a great final polish on the edges of my razors.
In addition to the fact that they're old-school, I like the barbers' hones because they're cheap and convenient - they can be used dry, wet, with lather and they don't need to be soaked. Also, they're handy in the sense that you can keep one in the bathroom for a quick touch up.
I know there have been various discussions here and there on barbers' hones, but I thought it would be nice to have a new thread devoted to the subject in the new "hones" section.