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You & me both. Or maybe our standards simply aren't as high? I don't use my Gold Dollar often, but if I do my part right with the strop and hones it does it's part on my facial hair. I think I may...

Edit - on second thought, not going to feed into this anymore lol.

Guilty as charged. But I keep responding because I keep getting email notifications.

:beer1:

So just eyeballing those stones, 1000 grit of unknown manufacture, probable synthetic yellow of unknown grit and manufacture, Belgian coticule (probably around 8K, so easily 2.5x the aforementioned...

The bottom 2 pictures on the stropping page, the darker areas toward the top and inside the stria are the coating they put on a DE razor's edge.

There's nothing controversial about stroping. See here:

https://scienceofsharp.wordpress.com/2014/08/13/what-does-stropping-do/

This shows you not only what precisely stropping does, but also...

This. It's true magnification isn't necessary. You can get by with the thumb pad test, thumb nail test, checking how the razor pops arm hair at skin level, tree topping arm hair, and HHTs. But if you...

Well, barbers most likely didn't need one - their razors are decent quality and likely shave ready or very close to. They probably didn't do a whole lot of trashed razor restoration or messing with...

Yeah, if you look in the workshop section, a lot of guys that are into that kinda thing have used Gold Dollars as blanks for some neat projects. Perhaps that's the best way to view them, an 85%...

Entry level shave ready is 8K. Which is why they need touching up, and needing a touch up is NOT 'shave ready.' And if you cut a completely new bevel on that hardware store hone, that's a good...

Some of us (like myself) were born back-assward, and have been that way ever since. We just can't help our insatiable urge to try to walk before we can crawl.

Don't hold back now, tell us how you really feel.

I can't imagine spending 2 hours sharpening a blade unless I'm making 50 bucks or so off the sale. And I can't imagine spending that much for a...

He must mean the Weiwei hones then.

Yeah, I'm still trying to figure out what the dremel was for. I use one with a cloth buffing wheel and green paste to remove what little stria is left behind after a sanding a restoration project,...

From what I've read the best way to use agate is like an Arkansas hone. Polish it, burnish it, and use it with oil.

Yea, the general concensus is that 8k and up is shave ready territory. And how you get there is of less importance than the quality of the finisher. Might be worth looking into a King 1/6 and a...

Hmm, haven't seen what the Nortons run in your neck of the woods, but I'll take your word for it. On these shores, if you pick up both Norton combination stones AND a Naniwa 12K it will cost a little...

Haha, "Snob Rocks." Amusing way to put it. I don't have any of those either, unless maybe my Norton 1K, 4K, and 8K hones count? All my other hones are naturals, and I don't think I've spent more than...

I'm curious, how is the quality of the Weiwei hone? Ive seen them around, but the price tag and general lack of reviews turned me away from them.

I've been tempted to but like 4 of those ruby red...

See here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/hones/103636-agate-greenstone-print.html

I believe this thread discusses the same type of agate as one side of your hone.

I've seen the hones you're talking about I think, like a ruby red synthetic hone on one side, glued to a natural agate backing that comes in green or white?

So here's the thing with that, I don't...

A good 1k is a good place to start. It also occurs to me that 3k to 10k is a big jump. I might suggest looking into a naniwa 5k or king 6k (Maybe a King 1k/6k combination hone?) To help bridge the...