Thread: The Famous/Infamous Norton 4/8 "JaNorton 2012"

I'm of the opinion that circles will become a much easier stroke than you currently find them to be. One thing to help balance the razor in your hand to avoid the tilting of the blade is to use your pinky to hold up the scales. This will allow you to control the razor really well when you get the hang of it, and the blade rocking will be fixed.

Regarding the back and forth stroke, I find it completely worthless. Unless you have a mathematically flat stone and a razor with perfect geometry, a straight back and forth stroke will leave part of the razor behind at minimum and completely unhoned at worst. An X stroke will make up for any slight imperfections in the hone's surface, and it will ensure that your entire bevel gets worked (same is true for circles).