Wow - congratulations on the first attempt.

I was also puzzled after my first shave last week, but it's getting better. Seems like you have pretty good idea what may have been the problems. I think the lather definitely needs to be thicker (you can see Lynn's on the DVD). My first few shaves were with pretty thin lather too, but I wasn't even sure this was a problem. As far as dulling the edge - I was afraid I did that as well, but it turned out I didn't. You say you were very careful with the pressure, so I'm inclined to think you didn't either. I found that having a bit of momentum is quite useful, and in my case it is mandatory for the tougher beard on the chin.

Good idea about switching to a real hook

Keep posted what you find and what works for you