Kamisori and taping - also, muting the point

[yohannrjm]

I mostly use and hone regular western-style razors, and I only tape the spine if absolutely necessary (full wedge, for eg.).

I also have a few Kamisori, and have been wondering about them, re: taping the 'spine' and muting the point.

A) Taping the spine.
I am quite adept at getting a really sharp, smooth edge on these razors using an ~10:1 ratio on the non-stamped (omote?) vs. stamped (ura?) sides.

When honing without taping the spine, even on fine hones, the non -stamped side gets worn at two points - the bevel, and the 'spine' end (actually the high point of the non-stamped side, not the true spine). See Max's Norio in the Kamisori pic thread for what I mean.
Most vintage razors come with significant wear in these areas. With my previously used razors I have had no problems - I just hone away on my Asagi or Kiita without worrying about the visible wear.
Since almost all the work is done on very fine grit hones, this area of wear is really a polishing zone, but it does look different from the rest of the razor.

However, I've got a couple of new razors now, and was wondering what to do about them.
I've looked at most of the pics of Kamisori on this site to see the extent of the visible wear on the non-stamped side (this is hard, as most people only post pics of the stamped side). For almost all the new razors (Iwasakis, Kanetakes, etc.) there doesn't seem to be much wear at all near the spine.

So, my questions are:
1) Do people tape the spines of their new Kamisori when honing?
2) Would this cause a noticable difference in the shaving angle and ability of the razor?

B) Muting the point
I'm guessing this will be a personal thing.

Again, my used razors tend to have the point muted, while the new ones come with a wicked point.
I've already scratched myself a couple of times with the point on these razors. I've been loath to mute them, as they are a major part of the form of the razor.
Still, if they scratch me, I think they should go.

So, do you just learn to deal with the point, or do you generally mute the points?