Thanks for the comments. Unusually for me, I finished this one on a Japanese stone but then decided to try a couple of pasted strops - first a Mastro Live CrOx followed by black and red paste from years ago. After a final stropping on linen, roo, and horse butt, I ended up with a very comfortable shave. Don't ask me what made the difference - other than the fact that the razor was sharp to start with.