I'm experimenting, I prefer to do a few and add more than too many. It's my first time with that stone, and my second successfull attempt at honing so I might try your numbers of strokes.
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If it worked well for you, then that's exactly how it's supposed to be done.
Sounds like an excellent approach. I see a lot of posts here where guys have a razor that's allegedly 'pulling' or 'tugging',which generates long stories about stropping and paste and bevel setting and pyramids and a plethora of tests and opinions and sometimes even conflict.
If more people took a more minimalist approach like you did and did the minimum number of strokes it'd save a lot of heart ache.
Having said that, those that hone razors for a fee would suffer a downturn in business equal to the GFC. :rock:
BTW, my standard touch up approach is 20 on the Shapton 16k for my Swedish razors and 10 for the others. However, I did 40 on the Shapton for the J A Hellberg (Swedish; harder steel) the other day and now it's scary sharp...
Sounds like a great job, adding tape you essentially made a micro secondary bevel.
This is essentially the unicot method for coticule honing.
Once you take you must always tape unless you go back and set the bevel again
i used the tape because it says so on the hart site http://www.hartsteel.com/honing.html
At Hart Steel, we use one layer of electrical tape, to protect the spine, while honing. The tape is placed lengthwise on the spine and then folded over the sides. The tape is optional, but we like it.
A common honing progression looks like this:
4000 Norton – 10 laps
8000 Norton – 20 laps
16,000 Shapton, or 12,000 Chinese – 20 laps
Classic Green Paste on Balsa Hone – 20 laps