I've been reading all around lately and the thing that is confusing me most is honing. The norton stone everyone recommends is a bit pricey for me right now...and i keep reading about barber hones. Ive seen the pics of the swaty, i believe its called and its just a small little hone.

How effective are these barber hones? Lets say i buy a razor thats not shave ready from the classifieds...would i be able to get it sharp using one of these. If thats the case why is everyone buying these expensive hone sets? Im really looking for something cheap that i can at least maintain my blades with, without having to send it out every couple months. Eventually i want to learn to hone...is this something i can do that on?

I also have a pasted Filly strop, but theres no way that is as effective as a stone.