Need Feedback on my vintage coticle find!

**danstar250** · 12-05-2009, 02:25 PM

Gents...I would really appreciate your opinions on this stone. I've been shaving entirely with straights for a year and a half now, and honing my own from the start. This is the first coticle I've come across though. It seems to have had a somewhat rough life due to the nicks on the edges.

As far as I can see, it is a vintage BBW/coticle combination stone. I got it at an antique store for $5 so it's no big deal if it isn't usable. Plus, I'm already comfortable with my honing setup. But I'd still like to know if it looks redeemable, and if so...what steps should I take to get it ready to use besides flattening it? If it's not usable for honing, should I break it up and sell it as slurry stones? Hope I covered all the bases...looking forward to your input.

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**Sticky** · 12-05-2009, 05:05 PM

I'd just lap it up, round the corners slightly, and test drive it. That might be all it needs.

**OldSchoolYoungin** · 12-05-2009, 05:21 PM

That's one hell of a find for $5! I'll give ya $6

**professorchaos** · 12-05-2009, 05:23 PM

$7! I'll give you $7

**Sticky** · 12-05-2009, 05:39 PM

$8.00! (When does the bidding end?)

**danstar250** · 12-05-2009, 08:34 PM

I'd be OK with selling it (of course now everyone knows my cost ;)) but I honestly have no idea what it's worth. I KNOW it's vintage, and there is what looks like a faint stamp on the yellow coticle side, but it is illegible. It's a narrow stone, measuring
1 5/16" x 6"

On the other hand, it would be nice to see what kind of edge it gives before saying goodbye.

I don't have a DMT any coarser than the extra fine (1200) so I would probably need to lap it with glass and 600 grit sandpaper, right? How about rounding the edges though...any suggestions as to what works well? Or what works fairly quickly?

Thanks guys!

**Sticky** · 12-05-2009, 08:47 PM

theperfectedge and SRD both sell coticules. Check 'em out. You can lightly round the corners with the 1200 (or 600 sandpaper), use lots of running water and remove very little.

All joking aside, you might want to make that hone a keeper. It looks like it might be one of the "old rocks". Even if not, it can likely put a killer edge on a razor. I don't believe I just said all that...

Play with it for several months before you even think about selling it, really.

Now that I'm almost back to normal: $9.00 !!!

**Redhead** · 12-05-2009, 10:55 PM

Hi,
Congrats, you have a very nice stone!I have an old combo stone too, but mine is glued together and came with its original box. I have never needed a supposedly better hone! It looks to be a natural combination stone thats not glued together(bbw, coti). I say this because it looks like the depth of both stones are uneven from the side. These are rare because they are mined were the two veins meet. They are still being produced today, but yours is most likely a vintage one. Does the coti side have a pinkish hue with mottled sm brown spots on it?
In any event you should buy a slurry stone for your hone or use a harder stone to raise a slurry to take full advantage of its capabilities. There is also a website dedicated to the use of coti's called coticule be.

Best,
Red

**LessLemming** · 12-06-2009, 03:09 AM

This looks lika very nice find! I recently cought a similar coticule, it cost me 25€ wich still is a steal.

It is a vintage Coti/BBW combo as well and it had a very thick patina just like yours.
Coticules grow thick and dull patinas over time,
so yours might be very well quite old.

Coticules where backed up with BBW in the early days, because they didn´t know the BBW could be used for honing.

All you will have to do is lapp the coticule nice and clean.
You might want to start with 300 grit and go up to 800.
Lapp the BBW as well, and see if you find a layer that has no impurities,
then you can use this part, too.

You should under no circumstances break the coticule, I´m sure it is a fully functional hone you have there.

Vintage coticules are said to be finer than freshly mined ones,
but I don´t think so. Besides the intage coticule I own a green "new" one,
wich is just as fine as is the vintage one.
Both are very nice finishers in the 8-10K grit range
and can be used without pasting afterwards

congratulations on your find

**danstar250** · 12-06-2009, 05:42 AM

Can you guys see the nicks on the edges that I'm concerned about? Sticky mentioned slightly rounding the edges, but removing very little stone. Since the edges are already slightly rounded, I'm not entirely sure how I should proceed. Since I'm pretty positive this is indeed an "old rock", I want to get things right the first time. It seems like a couple of the nicks could catch the spine as I hone and create a bumpy ride (and the edge too

) I don't want to be a pest, but would appreciate any further guidance on working with the edges. Also, how would the 1200 dmt work for lapping this. Too slow?

**gary haywood** · 12-06-2009, 10:43 AM

It's hard to see but the nicks don't look that bad. I round all my coticule edges of i use dmt325 c. i just work it around the edges take a look at heavy dutys honing progression videos and you will see him doing it on is 4k 8k norton thats how i do it. as for using dmt 1200 i'm not sure . i think you couls use it but i would use some wet and dry p600 lay it flat lap the coticule and just work the edges on the wet and dry it realy is easy.

**danstar250** · 12-06-2009, 12:06 PM

Thanks Gary. This little rock has really got me kinda excited

**danstar250** · 12-06-2009, 04:32 PM

Thanks so much for the support and helpful tips. Here is the result of applying the suggestions in the post above. Pictured below is the stone on each side, both dry and wet.

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**OldSchoolYoungin** · 12-06-2009, 06:33 PM

Outstanding! Looks like it turned out great.

For your time and hard work, I will up my ante to $6.50.

**danstar250** · 12-06-2009, 07:43 PM

SOLD for six hundred and fifty bucks !!

BTW, I honed four razors with it today. I started with a DMT 1200, then went to the BBW side, then on to DMT 8000, then to the yellow coticle side, then a chrome ox paddle, and finally a TM latigo strop. I haven't shaved with any of them yet, but I'm pretty confident the 'ol rock put a wicked edge on em.

**Redhead** · 12-06-2009, 08:27 PM

No disrepect,

But if you really want to get to know your "new" stone, next time skip the paste and see how your razor does. I would also suggest just starting with one razor and seeing if you can "max out" what you can do on your coticule with that one razor. You might have to experiment a bit, but that's really the fun of having one of these stones. Personally I find that for most full hollows I get best results(at the very end) by doing a small pyramid on the bbw and coticule and then finishing on the coticule with 5-8 laps with a very watery lather.

Best,
Red

**danjared** · 12-08-2009, 12:03 PM

So, are you going to tell us what antique store you found this in? ;)

**danstar250** · 12-08-2009, 02:03 PM

It was in Waseca, MN. I can't remember the name of the store...there are a few antique stores in Waseca. Other than a corroded old Gold Tech and an old Genco straight with a rust eaten blade, this stone was the only shaving item I could find. It turned out to be $5 well spent

**Disburden** · 12-08-2009, 06:22 PM

Whenever you need to know the absolute most information about a Coticule, contact Bart over at Coticule.be and Straightrazorplace.com

He is the coticule MAN.