Thread: Help

I have been looking for stones but don’t know enough about anything to buy yet.

I strongly suggest that you spend time rather than money by checking out the"Library" and look through the massive information in threads of the past, and throughout the years. Keep it simple, as the stone collection can be a serious cash drain. And, not everyone is destined to be a great razor honer for fun or cash.
JMO
~Richard

+1 on Richards advice.

A little up front info for you: A lot of beginners think because they are going to start shaving with a straight razor they need tons of hones to maintain them when nothing could be further from the truth. If you start out with a shave ready straight razor and all you are going to do is shave with a straight razor all you really need is a linen/leather strop for stropping before shaving and a barber hone or a hone in the 10k-12k grit range for occasional touch ups to maintain your razor for years.

The only time you should even consider buying a lot of hones is if you plan on going into restoring straight razors. Hones are expensive and unless you plan to restore and sell straight razors it isn't very cost effective buying a bunch of hones. You can spend hundreds on hones and would have to sell a lot of razors to get your money back. Also, there is a huge learning curve honing straight razors, its serious business but a lot of fun just like the rest of this sport/hobby.

All good advice above. Especially from Richard.
If you read the library content on hones and honing you'll be able to form much more specific questions that will help you out much more than asking what stones need to be purchased.
Almost every person here that hones has a different preferred setup from brand-name synthetic progressions, to mix and matching different synthetics and grits, to going with synthetics and finishing with a natural, and finally the all-natural progressions that some love.
There's so much to learn and I would recommend getting the reading done on the library and other threads before purchasing.
In addition, there may be a mentor in your area that would be willing to help you understand the differences in stones and honing if you're a more hands-on learner.
Good luck!!!

All great advice, I started almost 3 years ago and thought I had to have every stone I could get my hands on and as stated that’s far from true on what’s needed, currently I have a full progression ( 1, 4,8, 12k synthetics ) and then a few naturals ( JNAT’s and Coticule ) the Coti sits unused unless I feel like playing and the one JNAT sits unused most of the time so most of the time after a correct bevel has been set and the edge taken thru my full progression I can easily refresh and maintain with just my Nakayama Kiita with a mist of slurry and have even set the bevel on a 4K with slurry and went straight to the JNAT and finished it and been quite happy so before you rush out and spend lots of $$$$ on stones do some reading and ask lots of questions and also have a good edge from someone that can hone to reference your edges to and yours. And you can always start off with a finisher like a 12k to maintain the edge as it along with stropping will keep an edge going for a long time

I highly recommend you connect up with a honing mentor in your area or attend a local meet-up prior to venturing down the path of edge maintenance on your own. This will get you started into honing properly while avoiding various pitfalls. Personally, I found the hands-on honing tutelage I received to be incredibly invaluable.