Originally Posted by
Utopian
OK, thanks for clarifying. Sometimes people come on here and declare themselves to be experts of honing plane blades and chisels and insist they are experts at honing razors. I really couldn't tell your level of razor honing experience from your first post.
You've got lots of options above 8k. Cost can vary greatly, with Shaptons on the high end. Chrome ox on balsa, felt, linen, or even cardboard are on the low end. You can also consider a barber hone, the Chinese hone, a Naniwa Superstone 12k, a coticule, an Escher/Thuringian, a Spyderco UF, and the Shapton 16k. If you want to go the Shapton route, I'd start with just the 16k and see how that goes first. The 30k is a lot of money and several people (I've never used on) say they don't care for the edges off the 30k.
I have a question for you. Are you confident in your stropping? Have you experimented with stropping more to see if that alone improves your edge? I ask because stropping is a critical factor in shaving comfort.