If you see yourself as a budding honemeister then the path is clear. Get a plain hanging strop with a linen component and then plan on getting a Norton 4K/8K later followed by a Coticule and maybe even a Norton 1K down the road. Of course there are other hone options like the DMTs and Spydercos but the Norton is the standard. Also don't say controversial referring to hones versus pastes. There is nothing conroversial about it. Just two different methods for the short term. Some prefer one and others prefer the other but eventually everyone needs the hone.