Thread: Dovo Bismarck 6/8

Hello Everybody;

This is my very first post.

I have been shaving with a parker 31R for a month now and I have not lost too much blood so I am thinking about getting a real straight razor.

What do you think about the Dovo Bismarck 6/8 for a beginner? Can I expect a better shave / experience than with the 31R?

Thanks

IMHO the Bismark blade itself is THE blade of the Gods ! For me it is everything I want in a off the shelf blade 6/8, perfect blade length to shank ratio, Shoulderless and great blance. All that said congrats on your first post, I read more than I write here, but this thread spurred me to,write. You as most use a DE daily or mainly for some time, there WILL be a learning curve. Chances are your shave will be worse before they become much better than your DE gives you. I strongly recommend watching any and all of LYNN Abrams video's especially on your first straight razor shave as the technique is different and I hope you have a strop as that is not optional, if you use a straight at minimum you need a strop to go along with it. Enjoy you journey ! There will be ups and downs but I can tell you from my seat you have an awesome razor to get you started.

I got one as one of the first few when RAD hit me hard. I have to say I have not been disappointed by it. It is a beauty and it shaves as well as any other

Hi and welcome. You can't really go wrong with a new Dovo pro honed to start with. Good luck

Welcomed and nice choice

Welcome to SRP!
There is only one way to figure out which one shaves better for you - buy them both!
Seriously though, both are good razors and you can't wrong with either one of them. Just make sure that whatever you buy is professionally hand honed.

My experience is that learning to strop was harder than learning to shave with a straight razor. It only took me 2 shaves to learn. Although the first shave wasn't very good, and rather bloody. I found that learning by putting sharp steel to my face was a pretty good motivation to tighten up on technique really fast. The 2nd and 3 shaves was some of the closest shaves I've ever had. And it just kept getting better and easier from there.

So it turned out that learning to strop was actually more costly for me. I used too much pressure because from some videos I saw on youtube, I noticed some mention "listen to the sound" to know if you are stropping correctly or not. I didn't hear the sounds that I heard on the videos, so I applied more pressure until I did hear the sounds. Well turns different strops and different blades might sound different. I ended up making micro chips around the heel part of my blade that required honing to fix. Long story short, going by feel is more more important than going by sound. You have to let the weight of the blade do the work. Not so light that the blade bounces on the strop, but not so heavy that you roll the edge.

Stropping with an X motion was tricky as well. I didn't really understand until I saw it in person. Basically, the X motion will guaranty that equal pressure will eventually be applied from the heel of the blade all the way to the toe through the entire length of the blade from each stroke. I've seen videos of people saying that if you get a huge 3 inch or 3 and a half inch wide strop, you won't need to do X motions anymore. But I don't think that is correct in my opinion. When I tried that, I felt as I was stropping, the entire length of the edge was not getting equal pressure.

Well, thats my thoughts. Keep in mind that I'm still really new, so I could be completely wrong. I'm just sharing my experiences so far. Good luck

I've actually been considering that razor for a while now. Your post reminded me and has made me consider it again. Way to go. lol

Thank you all for the feed back and the nice welcoming.

I think that the Bismarck is a thing of beauty and I am glad to hear that it is also a good piece.

I went from a 4 minute time shave with DE to a 30 minute time shave with a shavette so my morning will get even longer with a real straight razor when I add the prep time of the razor....

I am curious to know how long does it take you, experienced guys, to shave...

Thanks

Icarusflies,

Welcome to Straight Razor Place, and thank you for asking questions and listening to the answers. I share some of my thoughts with you:

You seem to focus excessively on how much time your straight razor shave will take, whereas you need to throw away the clock and concentrate on honing your skill regardless of time spent. Remember, the traditional straight razor is a completely different experience from the straight razor with replaceable blades, or the double edge razor. You, therefore, need to concentrate on a specific set of nuances for the traditional straight, including the proper method of stropping the blade.

I am not sure the Bismark 6/8 is a great idea for a beginner. Yes, of course, it's a handsome razor. I had one in the early years, and although I liked the razor, the thumb notch threw off my balance, especially when stropping. This could be a consideration for some beginners. It was for me, but it might not be for you, I don't know. Still, it is worth thinking about it.

Either way, please make sure you purchase a quality razor and strop. No, they need not be too expensive. What's more, do not buy sight unseen; rather, see what you are buying. Beyond that, please make sure to read on the subject, and watch quality videos. About 90 percent of straight razor shaving videos are not very good — in just about every way. The one set of good videos you especially should watch are these made by Lynn Abrams, because he knows everything there is to know about straight razor shaving and his videos reflect that.

The best of luck. We are delighted to have you with us.