The Heirloom Combination that arrived in my mailbox on Monday from Tony Miller's workshop has already revived two straight razors: a 4/8 Wostenholm and a whopper of a 7/8 Wade & Butcher meatchopper. Both razors had clean edges; otherwise, I'd have been forced to start them on a stone (which I have yet to purchase).

The 4/8 required a bit of effort to stay flat, as it is so light that it wanted to skate off the leather a little. The monster W&B presented no problems at all.

The pasted paddle strop, which I ordered with 3.0-, 1.0, and 0.50-micron abrasives, did an excellent job. Slow, controlled strokes using the weight of the razor only were all I needed to make these razors ready for shaving. All told, I was able to go to the sink with some clean, bright, shiny, and sharp edges. Not bad for a first-timer!

The Heirloom Combination paddle is a fine tool. I'm glad I bought it.