It really depends. You may get your first blade shave-ready in under an hour and it may take you a couple of weeks of frustration before you get there. A big advantage is knowing what shave-ready is. I didn't have that advantage until X generously invited me over for a honing session. Some blades were still difficult to get over the hump with slow-cutting Japanese slip-stones, but I got there eventually. Norton was a technical leap of the millenium for me.