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The Art Of Shaving - Shave Educator, Sales, Vintage Razors, Restorations, Honing and what your father did not teach you about shaving.
Daily straight razor shaver, passionate restorer of antique straight razors, honer and shave educator.
21/04/2026
Japanese natural whetstones (Jnats) have a huge reputation but for most beginners they feel mysterious, expensive, and risky to experiment with. YouTube here https://youtu.be/fySxEw4aolA?si=ytI_bGEeXH3IxPh9
This guide is meant to be your no‑hype starting map:
- Golden rules of buying – why stamps, color, and pretty skin don’t guarantee performance, and why a warranty or return policy matters with naturals.
- Decoding Jnat taxonomy – East vs West mines, the 1–5+ hardness scale, and color families like Asagi, Kiita, and Karasu so the labels finally mean something on the bench.
- Evaluating stone performance – testing on known steel, separating polishing from cutting speed, and using simple comparison tests instead of guessing.
- The sharpening journey – why a solid 90% bevel set, plus 5% mid‑range work and 5% finishing, beats chasing magical “one stone to rule them all.”
If you’re Jnat‑curious but overwhelmed, this is the overview I wish I had at the beginning: practical, steel‑focused, and honest about the learning curve.
Save this for your next honing session and let me know in the comments where you’re stuck right now: choosing a stone, reading stamps, or building a progression? razorsharpening knifesharpening wetshaving traditionalshaving barbereducation honeandstrop sharpeningjourney dappershaves
Final Polishing.Refining sharpness and improving smoothness on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Tanaka Ozuku Mizu Asagi 田中砥石業所 with Nakayama - ФШ Karasu カラスor烏 on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Ozuku, light water ,light slurry, 1k dressing, light pressure , 1layer insulation tape, slightly soap water
Natural Stone PreFinisher. remove 8k with suita. Refining sharpness and improving smoothness. To follow will be Ozuku awasedo with Nakayama Karasu Tomae on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Sunashi Suita (巣なし
No nest (su). To follow will be final finishing Ozuku awasedo on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Suita, light water ,light slurry, 1k dressing, slight edge biased pressure , 1layer insulation tape, slightly soap water
Last synthetic stone in the progression. remove previous 6k with 8k. To follow will be sunashi suita, Ozuku awasedo on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using King G1 8K, light water ,no slurry, 1k dressing, slight edge biased pressure , 1layer insulation tape, slightly soap water
bevel polishing progression. remove previous 3k with 6k. To follow will be, King G-1 8k , suita, Ozuku awasedo on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Suehiro 6K, light water ,no slurry, 400grit dressing, slight edge biased pressure , 1layer insulation tape, slightly soap water
Starting bevel polishing process. remove previous 1k with 3k. To follow will be 6k, 8k , suita, Ozuku awasedo on RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Suehiro 3K, medium slurry, 400grit dressing, slight edge biased pressure , 1layer insulation tape, slightly soap water
Bevel set RWL34 straight razor (Nitrogen Quenched) using Suehiro 1K, heavy slurry, 400grit dressing, 1layer insulation tape.
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6/8 H. Diamond Straight Razor
6/8 Hamburg Ring, Ariana & Evans Revolution, Omega 98 Pro Boar
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Nickel Street
Centurion
0157
Opening Hours
| Monday | 09:00 - 16:00 |
| Tuesday | 09:00 - 16:00 |
| Wednesday | 09:00 - 16:00 |
| Thursday | 09:00 - 16:00 |
| Friday | 09:00 - 14:00 |