I'm open to all kinds of advice - seriously. I have some built-in biases though. As a long-time woodworker and sharpener.there ain't much in my shop that I can't hone to "smooth as a baby's ass" sharpness. I've been putting a mirror-sharp edge on my planes and chisels since the '80s.

One thing I've learned since I took on this str8 shaving thing, though, is that my face is not a hunk of wood. Wood doesn't complain. If I can shear material from the face of a board without tearing out chunks, all is well.

I've been getting pretty good 2 pass shaves for a few weeks now (I'm about 9 weeks into this adventure), and the skin irritation has been quite manageable. I haven't been getting any closer than my Schick 2-blade cartridge, though, and that is my benchmark.

I know I'm not going to surpass my cartridge results unless I can do clean ATG passes. I'm still committed to getting there, but it seems like I still have a few weeks/months to go.

Cheers,
Ian