Very informative thread to read.. Pretty easy to see the things I'm not doing and need to do.. My Loupe is max 10x so time to order new one. Is 30x as high as I should need? Also I don't have a stone under the 4000, Is the Norton 1000 a preferred precursor to the 4000? I have a number of razors that do need bevel setting that I can't work on as they sit now... thank you RezDog