When to Set a Bevel?

I have read about setting a bevel; that it's required for a new razor. What about an Ebay razor that seems to be some what sharp but definitely not sharp enough to shave with. Should I try to set a new bevel on it (w/ a 4K stone) or go to the next step? I will be using a Norton 4K/8K and a 12K China stone, as well as CrO paste. Is there a penalty for setting a bevel when there already is one?

Thanks.

Normally setting a bevel is done with ~1k stone. You could probably do it with the 4k, but it's gonna take a while. I would reset the bevel on any ebay razor just so you know it is good. In case you don't know(or anybody else reading this thread) setting the bevel involves taking the very edge from a U shape to a V shape. The only bad thing that would happen from setting a bevel when it wasn't required is removing more metal than necessary, but unless there are chips in the edge this still won't be a large amount of metal.