This is my 3rd year shaving with a straight. About the middle of year 2 I stopped chasing the BBS and settled in for DFS. Two passes and this started to get better and better. Now with two passes I am getting very close to the BBS on my cheeks. Problem area is the neck,but that is much closer too now. Don't make it a race. Slow down and enjoy and what you'll find is that you are getting there. My stropping is much smoother, pre-shave is more fun, I notice little things more now like how slick the skin seems to be some days and how sticky the blade is others, or how much pressure it takes and the angle of the blade. I couldn't tell you if it is 31 degrees or 32 degrees but I can tell on my face when to open the angle and when to close it. As I have experimented this gets easier and more fun...