I've been hesitant to post this, but I'd really like the opinion of you gents.

I recently purchased a Boker from SRD. (fyi, with the current combo deal, you can get a 2" strop for $10 above the price of the Boker alone, and it comes with lifetime honing until 12/31. what a deal!)

I was super excited to see what a razor sharpened by Lynn would feel like. This is only my second "shave ready" razor and I wanted to compare it to the Bengal I bought from the classifieds here. The Bengal shaves as well as can be expected in the hands of a beginner, but I always had a lingering question about just how sharp it was. The Boker was to be my reference point.

Well I shaved with it on Saturday for the first time and it didn't seem better then the Bengal. I'm sure my expectation were a little inflated, but I was a little disappointed with the Boker. I didn't strop it before use. I figured with my limited stropping experience my poor technique might do more damage then good. It pulled pretty bad. It wouldn't pass the HHT or pop arm hairs (the Bengal won't do either also FWIW). On Monday, I shaved with it again along with the Bengal to compare them side by side. This time I stropped the Boker. It definitely shaved better this time, but I wasn't sure if stropping improved the edge or if I just got better using the razor (the Boker is a full hollow while the Bengal is not as hollow). I've decided they are both about the same in terms of sharpness.

Based on what I read here, I hold Lynn and SRD in very very high regard. Was I expecting too much? I hate to sound like I'm disparaging Lynn or SRD. Honestly I don't know enough to judge them positively or negatively lol I realize that we're all human, so perhaps my Boker was honed on a "bad day" or something. Maybe it's actually as good as it gets and I have unrealistic notions of what "sharp" is.

I'm happy with the razor all in all and will be purchasing another from SRD before the "Priceless Offer" runs out, so I'm not trying to be negative towards them at all. I'm just trying to gain a more informed perspective with the help of the more experienced members here. Is my Boker sharp enough or do I just need to continue improving my technique?

Thanks for your input gentlemen