First and foremost-Don't Give Up! Honing a razor is an art-not a science. We could never be able to give a honing "recipe" that will work for all razors-plus honing takes practice-ALOT of practice.

I would strongly suggest that you get a pre-honed razor, by a known "honemeister" that you can use as a "Standard" to compare you honing efforts to.

Things like magnification-to observe the edge as you hone can be a great help. Every razor is different and its these very slight differences that can make or break getting a good,comfortable shave.

Personally, I prefer a Carbon Steel razor-stainless can be problematic to hone-especially for novices. That said, your technique could still be an issue as well. I cannot go against the grain in certain areas of my face-even with a SCARY SHARP blade.

It sounds like you have a good foundation, the Tony Miller strop is ESSENTIAL. Diamond pastes can be a wonderful tool-but can also create VERY irritating edges.

To answer your question-YES, you can and should be able to get the best BBS shave with a Str8 that will rival your DE. Don't give up-honing isn't an easy skill- and a razor that isn't READY won't give you a good shave.