Pre Flop Raise - How Much?

In your opinion is altering the amount of your PFR depending on your hand strength a good or bad thing?

In FR games I have used 4xbb at lower stakes /3.5xbb at 200NL/3xbb at 400NL (+ 1bb per limper) whatever hand I am raising with.

In MTTs I like to raise whatever seems to be getting isolation at the earlier levels (often 3xbb), then 2.5xbb during the mid stages once stealing becomes profitable, and often down to 2xbb once I am down to the last few tables and the blinds are massive (although I am usually having a beer and watching TV once the tournie gets to this stage ). If my stack size allows it I will increase these amounts as required by situation to force out multiple limpers or if moved to a table where small raises are getting no respect...

HOH advises varying raise size according to hand strength (e.g QQ/JJ/TT from EP @ 4xbb but varying this between 3bb - 5bb for deception.) I have read similar advice elsewhere in reference to cash games.

Far be it from me to disagree with Harrington and others that know 1000x more about the game than I do but but isn't it more deceptive to keep PFR's constant so that you are giving away no information at all??

Also if you raise your vulnerable hands bigger, then you are increasing the pot size/putting more of your stack at risk with weaker holdings. I understand that the idea is that your chips are at less risk because of the decreased chance of callers, but unless the stacks are very short what hand would a villain in LP fold to a 4xbb raise that he would have called a 3xbb raise with?

Deception is best IMO. You can acheive deception both by keeping your raises constant (adjusting for number of limpers, of course), or by varying your raises with all hands, including trash.

If you raise your big hands big and your junk hands small, you will become exploitable.

I'd say use a consistent approach. Or maybe it would be better to say a consistent range. That being said, you have to account for the texture of your table. If a 5bb raise sends everyone running for the hills every time, you may need to adjust your range down to get action.
I read something once, I think it was by Phil Gordon, that talked about "negotiation poker". Basically, the gist of it was that your bets say something about your hand. Our goal should be to have control over what the bets are saying. I've been trying to find the article or book or whatever but no luck so far. I'll post it if I find it.

I vary my raise size based on how I want the pot to turn out. If I have a calling station acting after me with a marginal hand I am more likely to raise small. If I have someone that calls a lot preflop but folds if he does not hit the board, then I will put in a big raise, hope to isolate him and take down the pot on the flop. It is all dependant on the situation.

harrington knew more about the game 20 years ago than i will ever learn.

that said, i cannot stand varying your raise pf. to me, the deception is in the fact the raise does NOT change. but who am i? nobody.

however, i find lately i do it a bit, too. in a 6max game when the 4X is folding everyone off, i will drop to 3X with stuff i want to see action with. stuff like ATs, 9Ts from the button when folded to. stuff like that. stuff i want to keep position on, but want action to hit a more disguised monster, but also the kind of stuff i dont mind the blinds folding off to.

however, i dont vary my power hands much, if ever. AK, AA still come in big. as does QTo when the table folds to me. i dont want a flop with QTo, and if i get one, i want some big time initiative to cbet with.