[Forzato]

gugi,

Thanks for the feedback.

Indeed it is a wise idea for the newbie to get his first blade pro-honed. But having a proper scope at the moment the razor is taken out of the box (for the very first time) will allow the newbie to see exactly what the edge should look like. A benchmark if you will. This honemeister prepared - near perfect edge should be carefully memorized and studied at length under the microscope - before anything comes near that edge. This is critical and often missed by the typical newbie. Skipping this step will likely add many hours to the learning curve as (we all know) one must know the destination if they are to plot a course to it.

Then and only then should the newbie try his first careful attempts at stropping... scoping the edge frequently throughout - to learn what does and does not work. If the newbie damages the edge (actually quite likely without first hand tutelage) they will typically want to advance to honing the razor themselves (or have the edge re-honed by someone skilled).

Hopefully with some stropping and shaving success under his belt, the newbie will undoubtedly want (or need) to learn how to hone. The microscope will continue to provide much needed feedback. To minimize frustration it is imperative for the newbie to use the scope throughout every phase of honing as a means of checking and confirming results. With practice the Radioshack scope is good enough to help with perfecting even final honing (i.e. Belgian coticule, diamond pastes, etc). With scope practice a superlative excellent shaving edge can be easily predicted... just as easily as a nick-causing, rash-inducing, blood-draining poor shaving edge can be witnessed - again under a proper scope.

At any point in the newbie's experience if something doesn't seem right - just carefully scope the entire edge to determine if an imperfect edge is the cause of the problem, or if indeed another factor is the culprit.

Unless you are especially lucky, have a honemeister at your disposal first hand, or are already skilled at the art of straight razors - having anything to do with straight razors and not frequently using a proper scope is kind of like driving in the dark without headlights... eventually you may get there - but the trip ain't likely to be all that pleasant (simply because you didn't know to turn on the lights).

Thanks again.