Hey all,

I have just started straight razor shaving and went the route of buying a good vintage razor that needed to be honed, and being a hand tool woodworker, I already have some sharpening gear. I sharpened the SR I purchased using a 1000 king stone to shape the bevel, followed by a norton 4000/8000 combo. I then went to a leather strop charged with green compound and finished it on the bare leather side. It seems to work okay as I have now shaved twice with it. My shaving technique needs a lot of work but there is no denying my razor was sharp. That said, I think I could do better...

I am intending on buying new Japanese ceramics as I go as my Norton is getting a bit thin these days and I get great deals through my work on Sigma Power Select II and Bester/Imanishi stones, but I am not in a spot to replace all my stones at once just yet (the kids need stuff too apparently... ), so I am thinking about buying a new 13k stone to finish off with rather than going from 8k to green compound on a strop...

What are your thoughts on this? Is that a bit too big a jump for a razor? I wouldn't hesitate to do it with my chisels and plane irons (which also shave hair haha) but wood is not skin. Eventually I will get a new 1k, 4k, and 8k, but I am trying to decide whether to get a 10k now or jump right to the 13k...

Thoughts?