How hard is honing to learn really? I ask because last Sunday down in Houston I got a Fromm 72R from Mr Allman. The thing needed some work, but I figured that for a razor to learn to hone on it may be a good candidate. Now it already had a bevel but it was wavy. Heel and toe on one side were definitely smaller then on the other or in the middle. So after I lapped my hones today, I figured screw it I'll give it a shot and see what happens.

The razor would cut hair against the grain on my arm before I started on the hones, but it was hit and miss on cutting the hairs. It might cut 1 in 20. Now I didnt touch the bevel because I dont have a 1k stone yet, but I started on the 4k and worked up to the Chinese 12K. I had some troubles in the areas where the bevel was "wonky" but the rest of the blade seemed pretty good.

At this point I feel it best to mention that last night I watched the videos on YouTube from Lynn and Glen about honing, and Im figuring thats what has helped me quite a bit.

Once I finished up on the 12K, I wiped the blade down and ran it across my arm. This time it took the majority of the hairs with it. I decided that since I needed a shave anyway I would use the Fromm and see how it worked. I made it all the way through a 2-pass shave with no pulling or tugging really and no more irritation than I normally get (I have a sensitive neck area).

So could it be a fluke that I didnt screw the blade up on my first time putting steel to stone?