Okay, this morning I *think* I shaved.

I am still working with my Col. Conk Solingen Best Quality.

I have been honing it and honing it on my 4000 and 8000 grit stones.

The principle I think I was missing was holding the back of the razor hard against the stone at all times and tipping it up a little on the return stroke.

Kind of reminds me of using a willow branch powered lathe.

Anyway, I got to the point where the marks left by the razor on the stone showed me that the surface of the stone had flaws, so I used a 4000 grit stone to flatten the 8000 grit stone. This started showing me where my edge was not straight, so I went back to the 4000 and worked on it.

I also did the stropping correctly, i.e., never lifting the back of the razor from the strop. I did at least 100 strokes without nicking the strop--this is the real thing. It's always about technique.

Then I showered, lathered up with nice hot lather, and shaved. I cleaned it off, and NOTHING. Then I looked and realized I was using the wrong razor, the Dovo I got which I haven't worked on.

So, I re-lathered and took the Conk I have worked on so long, and scraped off all the lather. When I was finished, I definitely can see a difference. I didn't shave against the grain, but I had two days growth, and now it looks more like it did yesterday.

It hurt, and pulled, especially when I tried my chin and mustache, so I didn't push that, but it DID cut. So, I believe I can truly say the edge is better than it was when I bought it--but not quite there yet.

I'll keep working. My hope is to get to a point where scraping off the lather painlessly removes beard without making my face feel like a knee after a bicycle spill.

This kind of sharpening is definitely the next level compared to woodworking planes and chisels.