Gentlemen-

I'd like to get some opinions on how you keep your shave ready razors in good order. I realize that there probably is no "best answer", but I'd like to hear your thoughts are on a few ideas I'm looking into.

Barber Hones--I've read that Utopian maintained a few razors for many years with only a barber hone and had good results. If one takes that route, is there ever a time when the razor will need to go back to a full set of hones-or can one keep going with this routine indefinitely? This method appeals to me--I have two nice barber hones already (a Case Choice 132 and a Diamond King) and they seem to work well--but I'm a novice honer and wonder if I should go for something better.

Coticules and Thuringians--

If one is just maintaining the edge with these stones, would you just use water and a few laps as you would with a barber hone? Or do natural stones require more laps than barber hones to achieve well maintained edges. Is lather on natural stones needed or ever used?

Naniwa 12k--

This seems to be a popular way to go--I don't have this stone, but I'm open to buying one if this is truly a better way to go. I have the Naniwa 3/8 and the barber hones and have been working with those. Would my edges be better maintained by this stone? If I can achieve noticeably better results with the Nani 12K I'll pick one up...

Looking forward to your comments and thanks in advance--everyone's posts on SRD have been a big help in getting started!

Marty E.