One of the problems I had when starting out was that I never had a razor that was truly shave-ready to use as a reference of what a good edge feels like. The ones I bough as shave-ready tugged and were not comfortable, and if I was not as stubborn of nature as I am, I would have given up and continued to use shavettes.From Bulgaria.
I have a few days off, and if I find time, I will hone up a Gold Dollar 66 and send it to you, no charge. You can then decide if it's worth the investment to make your own balsa strops.
PM me your address if you are interested.