I've wanted to start learning how to hone, and after much research, I opted for a set of Naniwa SS in the 5K, 8K, and 12K from SRD. I didn't get a bevel setting stone because the majority of my razors have all had a bevel professionally set within the recent past. I also got some CrOx paste for a strop. I've watched about as many videos and read as many wiki's as I can on the how-to part of things.

My question is where to start? I really don't know that I'm proficient enough with the various tests to tell what kind of shape the edge is in. Is it better to start high (12K) with a few light strokes, test, and then work back down? Or, is it better to just drop down to the 5K and work up with a pyramid for example? My goal is that I don't want to screw up the bevel, so I want to avoid that if at all possible.

Last, I also have some old razors that I can practice on, but I think they'd have to have a bevel set. Will the Naniwa 5K work for that using a circle method akin to what Lynn uses?

Any advice is appreciated, but especially that which is simple enough for this noob to understand and possibly pull off! lol Thanks fellas!