Hi Guys,

I've been DE shaving since April 2007 and was already using brush/cream with cartridge for a couple of years before that. I've been lurking the forums for the past week and eventually took the plunge and bought a reconditioned straight from The Invisible Edge in the UK. I haven't bought any accessories yet, so for now I will just have to sit and admire the new razor until I get comfortable and everything I need.

I think I know roughly what I need to do in order to maintain my razor, but here are a few questions that a re floating around my head;

1. Stropping - strop before each shave but should allow 24-48 hours between each strop? Therefore if I choose to shave every day (I don't currently) I will need to buy at least one more razor and rotate?
2. Honing - big uncertainty here. How often do I need to do this? I have read different things in different places. Some say every 5-6 shaves, some say every couple of months. I am a fairly impatient person when it comes to practical work and will be liable to wreck the blade. Are there any good videos/tips for this or should I just send it away for this?
3. Still honing related - is there a different way to deal with certain types of metal/construction of blades? Is there an easy way of identifying what I have and how to hone it correctly?

Other than this I am fairly happy to start.

Nick