Honing: Slurry thickness

[Jeltz]

I was having trouble with honing, it appeared that I would reach a certain level of sharpness then move to the next grit and I'd end up dulling the razor.

I'm pretty sure now that I was using too thick a slurry on the stones, I'm basing this on the fact that having moved from a thick slurry (double cream) on my coticule to a light (semi-skimmed milk) slurry I've started to get good edges quickly.

So, honers, whats your comments on slurry thickness with both naturals and synthetics.





P.s. PigCat not that kind of slurry

 

[Guest]

The more slurry you use, the quicker it cuts, but the rounder the actual edge will be. Your basically suspending cutting particles in front of and on top of the edge. Food for thought.

 

[MichaelS]

I have only used slurry on coticule (also following the advice of not too thick/gradually get thinner etc). I'd also love to hear about slurry use on other naturals like Thuringian and on synthetics....

 

[Birnando]

In my experience it is very much depending on your individual hone.

On one of my Japenese naturals I need to keep the Tomo Nagura slurry very thin.(Oozuku)
On a couple others I prefer a rather thick and dryish slurry for optimum result.(Nakayama and Shoubudani)

My La Dressante au bleu Coticule will start to dull the razor if the slurry is not very thin. When in the final stages of sharpening that is.

On a Chosera 10k, my experience is that it can handle, and seem to excel, on rather thick slurry. The same on my Escher as well.

I have spent a good many hours experimenting on this, and so far this is what I feel works best on my hones.
I am still very much learning to get the most out of each stone and system, so my conclusions might very well change dramatically

 

[Arrowhead]

I'm still experimenting too. In the case of my coticule I start with thinnish slurry and dilute it to nothing; with the thuringer it starts out even thinner, like watered down skimmed milk. The King 6k which I like so much though works very well with a thick, dryish muddy slurry at the outset, but again I progressively dilute it. Ask again in ten years or so and I might have worked out what I think about about this.