Hi to everybody!
This is my first post after months just reading the forum and some days as member.. OK, and one month shaving with my first razor. After 15 years growing my beard (since from I was 16! ..growing and cutting a bit sometime), I decided to reshape my beard with "ancient" mutton chops and bought my first razor: a straight DOVO Bismarck 5/8 spike point with handle in bone. Very nice and not so difficult to use. Yes.. true: just one short cut in one month (12 cuts/year?.. eheh!).

I have a small yellow coticule from classicshaving.com, that I use without slurry because I have no bout stone. During this first month I learned to stop, hone, shave, polishing an old blade from ebay, etc..

Today I had my first "serious" honing session with slurry included! I grew a milky slurry with sanding paper #1200 and made 200 laps on my Bismarck. It was shave ready when I bought it from StraightRazorDesigns, but I thing that it was not so ready.. and I never could achieve a good result without slurry during 4-5 honing sessions. OK, after 200 laps on the yellow coticule it was still impossible to pass the HHT (the only one I can perform now). I made 4 laps on the hone in "contrary motion" (like if using the strop) and then 100 laps with slurry + 100 laps with more water (let's say 6 drops every 10 laps).

After stropping (60 laps) I could difficultly pass the HHT, only if moving the hair very fast and "with some angle" (30° like if shaving). I think the blade is shave ready for me (I never had problems during this first month shaving), but I think that I could do something better.

Suggestions? The yellow Coticule is my only hone. Should I buy a BBW () or just to learn to use in the proper way my yellow?

[sorry for my bad english and for the boring description.. it is just my first message!!]
Thanks!