Originally Posted by
DoughBoy68
I like the edges finished/polished with natural hones better than synthetics but I do use synthetics for bevel creation and sharpening. Depending on the blade & condition for bevel creation/correction I use either a Chosera 1k, Naniwa 2K Green Brick or Norton 1k or 4k. For sharpening I use Norton 4k/8k, Welsh Slate (Dragon Tongue, Yellow Lake) or Naniwa Green Brick. For polishing I use Coticule, Chinese, Welsh Slate (DT, YL) or Translucent Arkansas. I use slurry on all but the Arkansas and Chinese.
The Norton 4k/8k is a workhorse; you can set/correct bevels on the 4k which will take a little longer that using a 1k then move up to the 8k before using a Coticule.
You may have noticed I use some of the hones for more than one procedure, that's because of varying blade conditions and metal composition; what works on one blade may not work on another. It does help to have a variety of hones if you are going to buy/restore/sell razors because of dealing with different types of razors but not if you are just going to maintain your own razors. Hope this helps.........