You have been unlucky. My swaty was not disimilar to my coticule.That's why I sold it, I didn't need two similar hones.Price wise however, the swaty is a honing bargain.
Incidentally, 1000 or 1500 grit wet and dry paper is outstanding for bevel setting.In my opinion, it's not the poor man's choice. For me it is the go to option. Actually a diamond hone is probably the cheaper option if you do a lot of renovation work. In England, you can buy packs of wet and dry from the car parts and accessories shops (Halfords as an example). It's used a lot for body repair work.The worst paper comes from Norton and the best from either Halfords own label or from various German manufacturers. Better quality paper has a more consistant grit size. I use the paper dry if I want a strong cutting action which I do for bevel setting. I use the same paper wet for lapping natural hones.
It doesn't have to be a glass surface, just a perfectly flat surface. I find that double sided sticky tap along the edge holds it in place just fine and stops it curling up at the edges. I've got some tape which is used for putting the rubber handles on golf clubs. It is double side, inexpensive and very effective.
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