Thread: Expensive vs Reasonable

Originally Posted by bkvisler

i feel like you could get a great razor for alot less from a antique store or something and bring it back to life or employ the help of one of the restorers/honemiesters on this forum. +1 on the classifieds here too.

I'm about to pontificate. Get the abridged version by skipping to the 'SUMMARY'.

While this is, one one hand, true... it has a definite caveat. I've got a heap of razors I'm working on, and as I add skills and find new things that need doing I am perpetually buying tools, consumables, etc. Restoration is definitely not a economy tool- it is a hobby of its own, and needs to be approached as such. (Granted, with a blade in damn good shape, as can sometimes be found, you might do pretty well with a hone and some MAAS, but you'd still be cheaper buying from the classifieds.)

Beyond that, Some of these razors are cheating *&@%s. They look not-too-rough, but as soon as you put any pressure on them they split edge to spine because those pits are too deep, or you discover troubles with the temper, or that the edge is like Havarti.

Now, I would love to send Glen or Max or so a razor to work on, but that is an outlay too... totally worth it, as far as I've seen... but also expensive.


SUMMARY: Shell out $100 or so on the classifieds here and you can land yourself pretty much any style, shape, maker you want...most likely shave ready and shipping included.

Thanks everybody for the good thoughts.

Mano, based on the info I've gathered don't go ebay route and if you must make sure the seller is close to 100%. The pictures don't do blades justice they maybe cracks on scale or even blade that aren't in picture.

Being ebay member myself I know how that can happen and it has to a lot of people.

Simply, if you go the cheaper route you'll most likely end up paying for it in the end.

I picked up a couple used ones from Classifieds to practice on:
Torrey Razor Co 5/8 Hollow ground and Boker King Cutter 5/8 Square point.

There are many great members here who'll provide exceptional advice and are trustworthy and I'm glad I joined :beer:

I was thinking about your post and you would be well off to get another Dovo or TI if you don't want to spend too much but want a great shaver, in my opinion. Maybe a SS blade this time--Dovo's SS razors hold a very sharp edge much like the carbon blades, yet you get a little bit more mileage out of them as far as re-honing is concerned. Other than that, I would explore the classifieds regularly.

I read that Dovo's most popular blade is the SS blade with the Micarta scales and zebra pattern in the steel. This was the first razor I ever purchased and I still love it. Good price for a new razor that is an all around great shaver and very attractive as well. Rasage Poulin also has some cool limited edition TI razors that you may want to look at. They are more unique in some respects than most of the ones that you find on the popular sites. Also, Straight Razor Designs is now carrying a Boker with bone scales that is a great price. I heard that it's a very nice razor, but I have not owned one personally. Hope this extra info. helps!

For what it's worth, I have several Dovos. My cheapest "best quality" ($69.99) is by far my favorite.

+1 on the Dovo Best. For the bang-for-the buck, it is an excellent razor.

Best regards

Russ