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Hone Grit Size?

Hi,
I've heard various numbers, but I believe the Spyderco rep said it was around 2,000. Not sure how correct this is, or which system (U.S. or Japanese) he was referring to, but mine works great on my straight razors. It travels better than a Norton (ask me about my poor shattered 4k/8k....great hone, but I guess I had to learn somehow) and can be used dry.
In practice, it seems to work somewhere in the ballpark of the 4k side of the Norton, because my travel hone set consists of it and a cushion hone-strop (thanks Tony Little) for finishing, and usually this is all I need to get in business.
At home I can play with the Belgian hones, or other Barber hones, etc but that Spyderco is just plain reliable and does a great job.
Sorry, I guess I could've just typed 2,000.....
:tongue:
John P.
 
I miss grits. I love grits. I live in NYC. People here don't even know what grits are. :mad:

Size depends on the type of grit. your basic storebought grit is fairly small, and very uniform in size. Stone ground grits tend to be a little larger, with much more variation in size, creating a more interesting texture when eaten.

Frankly I would stay away from those grits you're talking about. Never heard of grits from Spyderco, but extra fine isn't a good thing, unless your in a blasted hurry to cook them, and synthetic grits?!?!?! bleh.
 
moses said:
I miss grits. I love grits. I live in NYC. People here don't even know what grits are. :mad:

Size depends on the type of grit. your basic storebought grit is fairly small, and very uniform in size. Stone ground grits tend to be a little larger, with much more variation in size, creating a more interesting texture when eaten.

Frankly I would stay away from those grits you're talking about. Never heard of grits from Spyderco, but extra fine isn't a good thing, unless your in a blasted hurry to cook them, and synthetic grits?!?!?! bleh.
Them extra fines go good with cheese or red eye gravy..
 
JohnP said:
Hi,
I've heard various numbers, but I believe the Spyderco rep said it was around 2,000. Not sure how correct this is, or which system (U.S. or Japanese) he was referring to, but mine works great on my straight razors. It travels better than a Norton (ask me about my poor shattered 4k/8k....great hone, but I guess I had to learn somehow) and can be used dry.
In practice, it seems to work somewhere in the ballpark of the 4k side of the Norton, because my travel hone set consists of it and a cushion hone-strop (thanks Tony Little) for finishing, and usually this is all I need to get in business.
At home I can play with the Belgian hones, or other Barber hones, etc but that Spyderco is just plain reliable and does a great job.
Sorry, I guess I could've just typed 2,000.....
:tongue:
John P.

The spyderco ultra fine is 2000 grit US or 4000 grit Japanese, so it is similar to the 4K side of the Norton. I agree with everything else you said, plus they stay true and flat. For an even finer ceramic look for the Moors White ceramic hone. Basically just like the spyderco (without the cool plastic box) but in a grit range of 6000 US or 12,000 Japanese. I use the moors white for maintenance touch up honings. The only gripe I have with either of these stones is that they will clog up pretty easily. OTOH, you can put them in your dishwasher and they come out practically as clean as new.

Orest
 
I'll have to look those up, because I really like my Spyderco hone for both its performance as well as its convenience. Unfortunately, I've since lost the cool plastic box you were refering to.
Thanks for the heads up on those hones.
John P.
 
I think the Spyderco would be a bit rough for straights unless you bought an old one that had some sizable nicks in it. Then the Spyderco would be good for repair. But for everyday honing I would stick to the 4000/8000
 
thestubblefactory said:
I think the Spyderco would be a bit rough for straights unless you bought an old one that had some sizable nicks in it. Then the Spyderco would be good for repair. But for everyday honing I would stick to the 4000/8000
One would think so. However, as I have both, I can assure you that surprisingly, the Spyderco hone performs on a par with the 4k side of the Norton. Perhaps it is due to the difference in grit size reporting, U.S. vs Japanese, as posted above. The Spyderco cuts sufficiently slow that it is still a good deal of work to get rid of the sizable nicks. I almost think the Norton 4k cuts those a little faster; If the razor is ESPECIALLY bad, I've been known to use a 1200 grit stone until the nick is ALMOST gone, then switch to the Spyderco or the Norton.
On the plus side, the Spyderco is extremely durable, doesn't require the 10 minute soak before each use (unless you LEAVE it in the water) and in fact, unlike the Norton, can be used dry.
Personally, I think this sickness is just like SCAD; once you buy one hone, you'll buy another, and another, and then your straights will breed in dark places, and there will be 10 straights where once were 1 or 2.....
I have pretty consistent results using the Spyderco hone interchangeably with the 4k side of the Norton. Hope this helps.
Have fun
John P.
 
My understanding is that the Sypderco ULTRA FINE is a 12,000 grit, used by many to polish off the edge after hitting the Norton 8K stone.

Randy
 
Randy,
if that's true WHOO HOO!!
Mine only cost me around 20 bucks...
Couldve sworn it was 2K, though; I've been using it in lieu of my 4k side on the Norton (which poor thing, was shattered after not doing well during helicopter transit...lol long story)
I will be buying another Norton, but in the mean time, the Spyderco is EXCELLENT.

John P.
 
JohnP said:
Randy,
if that's true WHOO HOO!!
Mine only cost me around 20 bucks...
Couldve sworn it was 2K, though; I've been using it in lieu of my 4k side on the Norton (which poor thing, was shattered after not doing well during helicopter transit...lol long story)
I will be buying another Norton, but in the mean time, the Spyderco is EXCELLENT.

John P.

John,

Remember...ULTRA FINE. Spyderco makes several hones, and most are not the Ultra Fine. Check with Robert at Straight Edge Razors. He uses the Ultra Fine on his razors.

Randy
 
Yes, Randy...
mine is an UltraFine, with serial numbers ending in UF. I specifically ordered it for my straights about a year or 2 ago after being very satisfied with another Spyderco sharpening product I owned. The 2K number I got was from the Spyderco rep, over the phone about a year ago when I asked. Nothing in the documentation with the hone says what grit it is, so it is entirely possible it is much finer and I am wasting my time with it in place of the 4k, but I've been getting decent results with it FWIW.
OBTW...I also know I "stole" it. It was being clearanced by a site that mostly sold electronic items like USB drives, believe it or not...
I've never seen them that cheap since.
John P.
 
Randy,
I read some of the stuff Robert said over there, and, just curious, what is the "Fernsler's Ruby hone" he referred to using after the spyderco? I have both Belgians (blue and yellow) as well as Norton, Swaty, the usual suspects...but am not familiar with this hone...any info would be appreciated, I am really drawn to hones that I don't have to soak first, or use next to the sink....
John P.
 
JohnP said:
Randy,
I read some of the stuff Robert said over there, and, just curious, what is the "Fernsler's Ruby hone" he referred to using after the spyderco? I have both Belgians (blue and yellow) as well as Norton, Swaty, the usual suspects...but am not familiar with this hone...any info would be appreciated, I am really drawn to hones that I don't have to soak first, or use next to the sink....
John P.

I don't have a clue. Considering he has just forged his own razor, I think he would be the authority!

Randy
 
rtaylor61 said:
I don't have a clue. Considering he has just forged his own razor, I think he would be the authority!

Randy
No kidding? Is he planning to start selling these? I remember there was some talk a LOOOONG time ago on SRP about perhaps someone here in the U.S. starting up manufacture of straights....maybe he could succeed where others did not....
That would be REALLY cool.
John P.
 
JohnP said:
No kidding? Is he planning to start selling these? I remember there was some talk a LOOOONG time ago on SRP about perhaps someone here in the U.S. starting up manufacture of straights....maybe he could succeed where others did not....
That would be REALLY cool.
John P.

I'm not sure. I don't know enough about the process to know if it would be feasible.

Randy
 
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