That was a wonderful and interesting post. Thank you!

Quote Originally Posted by AFDavis11 View Post
I prefer the 4/8K alone. If a 220 or 1K is easily available I'll use them if need be. But, the 4K is generally more than enough to get the work done, if you take the time to discern exactly what work needs to be done. The only time I use a 1K is when I've given up. After giving up, so to say, I will hone down the razor (including the spine) and set a new bevel. It is always my last resort. Generally I find though that careful attention to the razors geometry is better than "an attack of the hones". When I look at a razor I usually realize that there already is a bevel. I don't really need to "put on a new bevel". That little triangular shaped section along the tip. That's the bevel! What I really need to do isn't to "put on a new bevel", it's really to get the hone onto the bevel. This is an entirely new concept in honing, but it's the way I think.

This process, especially with a 4K can often take longer than "setting a new bevel", but I prefer to deal with the problem more from an academic view, rather than a tearing away at metal view. If there is a way to get contact with the bevel without tearing into the spine and making a new bevel, I'll use that approach.

After the 4/8K I usually transition to a barber hone, so that takes me to three. Instead of the big heavy 8K, I prefer the small barber hone. It fits better on the sink. The Norton looks kind of clunky next to the sink.

Again, 4K alone takes a long time, but I'm not willing to damage a razor of mine simply out of impatience.

I've discovered a lot of Ebay specials that really had decent bevels, they were just "honed" by stropping alone. Tearing away the spine, and even "bevel setting" weren't even required. Wanna talk about using minimal stones? Try finding out that the bevels were set just fine all along!