Well, I am in the middle of my first straight razor shave and it is going so badly, that I am actually interrupting it to post here. I have been using a DE razor for the last couple of days to transition from shaving with an electric. The DE shave was a truly marvelous experience compared to what I'm going through now. I took the time to prep using a steamed towel and prepared a good lather to apply to my face. I'm sure I'm in the ballpark of the proper 30 degree angle, but the razor is doing an extremely poor job getting through my day's growth. Unlike the DE, the straight is making a "ripping" sound as it goes over my face. I bought my new Dovo razor from an advertiser on this forum and paid extra to have the blade "honed to perfection". A sticker affixed to the razor's box even states that the razor does not need to be stropped prior to first use. I got through my cheeks, but I cannot get the razor to cut through my chin hairs no matter what angle or what direction I try. The blade just grabs into the hairs. I am seriously beginning to doubt if the blade was actually honed. As it stands now, I am extremely disappointed and out a substantial amount of money. This is not what I expected.