clyde72 said:
TJ, please don't attempt to learn to hone and straight shave at the same time.
As Eric stated above, it is best to have a honemeister hone one of them for you so you can concentrate on learning how to use the razor and develop a good stropping technique.
If you attempt to learn both at the same time you will constantly be wondering if is you, the razor, or the honing.
IMHO
This is a very wise, very typical recommendation but....
I learned to to both at the same time. I had 1 or 2 properly honed razors as my daily driver and go to but I started working on blades almost as soon as I bought my first 3 razors. It was part necessity and part curiosity. I had one razor (a Genco Master Barber) that had a geometry flaw in the heel so I went to the honemiesters over at B&B and showed a photo and asked how/if I should be fixing this issue. I got dozens of people providing feed back, ranging from “toss it, it’s got a frown” to “use a dremal to ...” . Then they all started going back and forth amongst themselves as to whether the edge needed to be bread knifed or if it could be ... The point being, there are dozens of “correct” or workable answers and finding the right one for YOU depends on your willingness to take chances, learn new things and leverage what skills you already have. me? I was too stupid to know better so I dove in with both feet. I also picked up a couple gold dollars and started modifying them. Sure, I ran into some big issues but nothing that couldn’t be overcome with some patience and help from others.
Your (TJ) set up looks like it will cover your needs for quite some time. You may end up wanting a better finisher but absent a natural finishing stone I imagin some very low grit (1micron and less) lapping film and/or diamond pasted balsa (0.5/0.25/0.10 micron...0.10micron is great) will take you far. As has been shared already, some of the “tests” you would commonly use to prove keenness may not prove the true nature of the edge. You have to remember, you are learning to hone AND perform/read those tests. I agree, you should have at least one known shave ready traditional straight on hand to compare to, the Weck and feather blades will always feel different from a honed straight.
I say, grab a straight razor with no obvious geometrical issues and start honing. Maybe start by beginning at you 4K and work up. For your first attempts DONT kill the edge unless it was terrible to begin with, this will alllow you to work through the progression and see if your basic technique is SO far off you are killing the edge somewhere along the way. If you do kill the edge, do so very lightly so you aren’t creating new problems then run a sharpie marker along the edge (both sides) so you can see where and how your hones are touching the blade.
If you really want to get all the benefit you can, find a learning buddy here on TSC and send razors back and forth so you can test and critique each other. Keep refining your shaving skills with the shavettes but start working in traditional straights so you get a feel for what they can do and how they feel doing it.
My philosophy when it comes to all things traditional shaving is there is nothing you shouldn’t try. Know that you have friends here to help you when you get stuck or bail you out when you totally screw up.