Unless buying a reasonable number of razors that need to be honed from bevel up I can't see the need for a whole lot of stones. You probably already have a 1k equivalent and possibly a 3/4/5k equivalent stone. If so get the 8k and learn that first. That said if you buy shave ready razors a 12k and pasted strop are going to be all that you need unless you damage one. I would suggest that you start with the refresh first and that will give you time to learn to shave and do more research