Dovo Best Quality vs. Gold Dollar

I am a newbie, so this might be a good comparison from someone who doesn't really know what he's doing yet. :)

I purchased the Dovo shave ready about two weeks ago, and I've finally gotten to the point where I can shave my entire face with only one or two nicks. Ain't perfect, but I've got a long way to go.

For only about $75 the Dovo is a great looking razor anyone would be proud to own. I like the 5/8 size as it give me a little manuvering room around my face, and it's a little lighter than the Gold Dollar. The razor has jimps both above and under the grip which helps, and the finish is flawless. The scales are plastic, but well made, with an internal post the razor rests on when closed.

The Dovo shaves well, based on my limited experience, and easily passes a HHT after stropping.

The Gold Dollar, at least that's what it was advertised as, has absolutely no markings on it anywhere, but I trust Ken to sell a quality product. I got it to have a good backup razor, and to have something to practice honing on, even though it comes shave ready (HHT no problem) and with a 30 day edge guarantee. Advertised as a starter razor, this is great, because many newbies often ruin their razors stropping or banging them against the sink, which will probably happen within the first 30 days if not hours. (The Dovo also came with a certificate for a free honing.)

I got the Gold Dollar today, and shaved with it tonight. It's a little heavier, with jimps only on the bottom. It cuts well, and even gets those rough spots around the chin, but is not as easy for me to maneuver around those spots.

Again, the scales are made of plastic, not quite finished as well as the Dovo, and the only thing that stops the blade from dropping through is the spine of the razor, not to say the pin is lose.

The extra weight and added width should make the razor easier to strop, and I believe the design is to be forgiving to a newbie.

Once I learn to shave a little better I might see each razor as very good but just different. And, at this stage of the game I would have been very happy with just the Gold Dollar, but I'm glad I got the Dovo first.

It's fun to experiment with different soaps, brushes, aftershaves and whatnot, but it's even more of a luxury to be able to experiment with different razors.

The Gold Dollar gets a big thumbs up as a starter razor, especially when combined with the Filly strop -- incredible value. But, the Dovo beats the Gold Dollar on a lot of counts, and I consider it my first "pretty" razor, worthy of a scales upgrade. I can't say that for the Gold Dollar.

In a nutshell: The Gold Dollar is worthy of passing on to a friend who wants to try a STR8. The Dovo is worthy of passing on to your son.

Hope this helps anyone looking for a first razor.

Never tried a Gold Dollar, but I think your comparison will be helpful to anyone looking to buy their first new straight razor.

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Originally Posted by dannywonderful

Never tried a Gold Dollar, but I think your comparison will be helpful to anyone looking to buy their first new straight razor.

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Indeed it will. Now if only we could do something about those round points :soapbox:

It sounds like a very educated comparison between the two razors. I think that is awesome for a beginner. I think the Gold dollar is a perfect razor to learn how to strop and hone on. After all it was shave ready to begin with. I'm also thinking about collecting one myself. Honing is the only thing in the learning curve that has not come easy to me. I have a Dovo myself, it was my first straight razor and I love it. It's a Bergischer Lowe 5/8 spanish point with Black Buffalo horn scales. Well, take care and good luck. Oh yeah, welcome to the brotherhood.

Thanks for the insightful evaluation of these two razors.

Thanks for the kudos. I thought a comparison from another newbie might be helpful, and I had heard so much about the Gold Dollar.

Actually, one reason I got the Gold Dollar was to compare a well prepared shave ready to my Dovo, wondering if I had dulled it, being a newbie and all. Glad to say the sharpness was about equal on the two.

Also, the Gold Dollar has a curve in the blade, so I'm wondering how the thing is sharpened -- makes it a little more difficult to use the toe of the blade.

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Originally Posted by DPflaumer

Indeed it will. Now if only we could do something about those round points :soapbox:

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Agreed. Can someone identify (with pix or links) a Dremel tool that would allow for grinding the tip into a square point?

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Originally Posted by Basset

Agreed. Can someone identify (with pix or links) a Dremel tool that would allow for grinding the tip into a square point?

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You might want to shoot a PM to Seraphim. I know he does a lot of blade modification, appropriately enough for this thread, on Gold Dollars

I'm a beginner myself and also have the 5/8 best quality dovo and the ruprazor gold dollar. I actually bought each as part of a a beginner's set: the 3" black latigo vintage blades with the dovo, which I got about 3 weeks ago, and the filly with the gold dollar. I actually posted about it on B&B, but here was my assesment in sum:

• The dovo is certainly a nicer razor in many respects in terms of finish, but as a beginner I don't feel that I am at a point where I can appreciate the differences. That said, the Gold Dollar wasn't without its aesthetic problems, but as far as shaving goes, it's just as good for learning.
• For the filly, I actually found it easier to use than the 3" black latigo. Even though I'm forced to use an x-pattern, I don't feel I'm having as many issues stropping well with it. Plus, the crox on the back is good as I suspected that I my dovo was in need of a touch up after about 10 shaves or so (I think I probably damaged it stropping.) In truth, the reason I went to ruprazor was initially for the filly, but figured ordering a GD razor couldn't hurt ;)
• If I had to do it over again, I would actually still get both sets... but, if I could only chose one of them, I'd go with the gold dollar + filly.

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Originally Posted by Basset

Agreed. Can someone identify (with pix or links) a Dremel tool that would allow for grinding the tip into a square point?

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Originally Posted by DPflaumer

You might want to shoot a PM to Seraphim. I know he does a lot of blade modification, appropriately enough for this thread, on Gold Dollars

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I find it ironic that, in this thread, folks are talking about making round points into squares and there is another thread here where someone found a lotof vintage blades, but they are all square points. He doesn't like them, so we was asking about rounding them. Maybe you guys all need to arrange a trade LOL

I have a Dovo, GD and DA (the two latter being Seraphim modified.) Is the Dovo better, not really, just different. They are all good in their own right.

My first razor was the best quality, have only used it twice but that d**m thing got me hooked. I should put it back in the rotation but have been having too much fun shaving with vintage blades. I think I will use it tomorrow.

I got a Gold Dollar and did a 3 pass shave of my whole face. It was my first time using a straight and I escaped with 2 minor nicks! If If I got a decent shave with a cheap Chinese made razor I can't imagine the comfort of a higher quality razor! All in all i'd give gold dollar a good review for the starter but then again what do I know. They are however not comparable to a dovo or any other quality brand. They got me hooked and looking for an actual quality razor. For those who get stuck with them if they don't shave atleast you can learn how to hone without ruining a good razor. Take advice from other members from SRP as they have tested and used the GD and it's on the list of do not purchase. This post is IMO and not the view of SRP.

Here we are with the resurection 2009 thread on Gold Dollar razors. solitary soldier SRP has placed Gold Dollar razors on our razors to avoid listing. It is there for a good reason. We believe the GD's to be a waste of our members resources.

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Originally Posted by ziggy925

Thanks for the kudos. I thought a comparison from another newbie might be helpful, and I had heard so much about the Gold Dollar.

Actually, one reason I got the Gold Dollar was to compare a well prepared shave ready to my Dovo, wondering if I had dulled it, being a newbie and all. Glad to say the sharpness was about equal on the two.

Also, the Gold Dollar has a curve in the blade, so I'm wondering how the thing is sharpened -- makes it a little more difficult to use the toe of the blade.

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Good comparison but the GD is what it is!!!!

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Originally Posted by lz6

Here we are with the resurection 2009 thread on Gold Dollar razors. solitary soldier SRP has placed Gold Dollar razors on our razors to avoid listing. It is there for a good reason. We believe the GD's to be a waste of our members resources.

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+ 1 to lz6

It is on the list of razors to avoid for a reason.

I have two, I use them to practice honing.

IMO, there is no comparison between a GD and Dovo, other than one is a straight razor and the other is not.

Well written ziggy925. My starter razor was a GD. Once I was hooked on straight razor shaving I purchased a Dovo Bismarck. I needed a strop and I purchased the modular one from SRD. I purchased four additional GD's for bevel and honing practice. Hopefully I'll be able to give a GD to a friend and get him hooked on SR shaving. If a GD brings a new member into the fold I think it's money well spent.

I've never owned a GD but from what i've read they are inconsistent in quality and though they can be made to shave fairly descent you are probably taking a chance on buying one to learn to hone on. honing is hard enough to learn without fighting a poor quality razor JMHO.

tintin: the GD's are not heirloom razors you would hand down to a family member. The steel is good enough to hold and edge and pass the hht test. If I can PIF one to a potential new straight razor shaver it's a win win for our fraternity. I have the Shapton glass stones and I follow Lynn's youtube Shapton honing video. With practice it's a skill most shavers can acquire. The GD's are inexpensive and fit the bill for this training exercise.

I have 3 of them. One shave ready that I've shaved with a few times. It does ok and I take it on trips so if lost or stolen no biggie. The other two are for honing practice. I also have maybe ten ebay vintage blades once I start to get an idea of what I'm doing honing wise. (They are also to be refurbished and sold eventually)

With all due respect, the OP of this thread acknowledged his inexperience and had used his GD once at the time of posting.

I have no doubt you can get a GD to shave, and maybe even shave well. I've honed a couple of them over the years and they were OK. What I'm more interested in is the average time between rehones, or even bevel sets.

Everyone gets very gung-ho about the fact they can get these things to shave. I've heard very little over the past 5 years about living with one day in, day out. There's more to a razor than just the few shaves post-hone. It's also about how that edge holds up over time and the medium to long-term maintenance requirements.

We know the good brands keep up over time. GD info in this regard isn't, as far as I can tell, as readily available.

There is a reason they are cheap, and it is not just to do with the scales. The steel might tap-dance along the line of shaveability, but I'm prepared to bet my reputation (whatever it is...) that it isn't much better quality-wise than that.

James.

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Originally Posted by Jimbo

What I'm more interested in is the average time between rehones, or even bevel sets.

Everyone gets very gung-ho about the fact they can get these things to shave. I've heard very little over the past 5 years about living with one day in, day out. There's more to a razor than just the few shaves post-hone. It's also about how that edge holds up over time and the medium to long-term maintenance requirements.

We know the good brands keep up over time. GD info in this regard isn't, as far as I can tell, as readily available.

There is a reason they are cheap, and it is not just to do with the scales. The steel might tap-dance along the line of shaveability, but I'm prepared to bet my reputation (whatever it is...) that it isn't much better quality-wise than that.

James.

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There is a guy on another razor site who committed to a year with the same GD. He is well on his way to completing his commitment. The maintenance is no different than other razors.

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Originally Posted by bluesman7

There is a guy on another razor site who committed to a year with the same GD. He is well on his way to completing his commitment. The maintenance is no different than other razors.

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Well, that may be your opinion, but the two I have, if I was to use them to shave, wouldn't make it more than three or four shaves before they'd have to hit the Nani 12k, minimum for a refresh. That, in addition to their inconsistent geometry makes them very tricky to even get an even bevel.

And as soon as your taking a blade to the stones frequently, you're constantly reducing the metal available on the blade, and as you use more of the metal, the geometry will change.

My other blades, most over a year old, have been honed once, and never needed anything more than good stropping and some crox now and then.

GDs are great to practice honing on for the very reason they are so inconsistent in their geometry, hone 10 different GDs, and you'll be better prepared to tackle a blade with similar issues.

To use as a go-to razor, wouldn't even think of it and why? You can get real steel, a nice vintage blade, for $20.00 or less to practice on and then have a consistent, usable razor.

edited to add:

This is a $12.00 razor I grabbed almost a year ago, sent it out to get honed, it's one of my favorite blades now.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...lemans-den.jpg

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Originally Posted by Phrank

Well, that may be your opinion, but the two I have, if I was to use them to shave, wouldn't make it more than three or four shaves before they'd have to hit the Nani 12k, minimum for a refresh. That, in addition to their inconsistent geometry makes them very tricky to even get an even bevel.

And as soon as your taking a blade to the stones frequently, you're constantly reducing the metal available on the blade, and as you use more of the metal, the geometry will change.

My other blades, most over a year old, have been honed once, and never needed anything more than good stropping and some crox now and then.

GDs are great to practice honing on for the very reason they are so inconsistent in their geometry, hone 10 different GDs, and you'll be better prepared to tackle a blade with similar issues.

To use as a go-to razor, wouldn't even think of it and why? You can get real steel, a nice vintage blade, for $20.00 or less to practice on and then have a consistent, usable razor.

edited to add:

This is a $12.00 razor I grabbed almost a year ago, sent it out to get honed, it's one of my favorite blades now.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...lemans-den.jpg

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Nice razor Phrank!!!

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Originally Posted by Phrank

Well, that may be your opinion, but the two I have, if I was to use them to shave, wouldn't make it more than three or four shaves before they'd have to hit the Nani 12k, minimum for a refresh.My other blades, most over a year old, have been honed once, and never needed anything more than good stropping and some crox now and then.
]

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My Double Arrow, arguably identical to Gold Dollars, has 35 shaves and counting on just clean strops. My GD behaved the same before I PIFed it to a new straight enthusiast.

It is not my "opinion" that another shaver has committed to a year of GD shaves to show that the razor is viable, it is a fact that he is actually doing it.

Do GDs and DAs have geometry issues?(ret) Absolutely. Will they be passed down and treasured by relatives? No, they are cheap junk. But the vast majority of them are capable of holding a great edge. The last statement, of course, is my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Phrank

Well, that may be your opinion, but the two I have, if I was to use them to shave, wouldn't make it more than three or four shaves before they'd have to hit the Nani 12k, minimum for a refresh. That, in addition to their inconsistent geometry makes them very tricky to even get an even bevel.

And as soon as your taking a blade to the stones frequently, you're constantly reducing the metal available on the blade, and as you use more of the metal, the geometry will change.

My other blades, most over a year old, have been honed once, and never needed anything more than good stropping and some crox now and then.

GDs are great to practice honing on for the very reason they are so inconsistent in their geometry, hone 10 different GDs, and you'll be better prepared to tackle a blade with similar issues.

To use as a go-to razor, wouldn't even think of it and why? You can get real steel, a nice vintage blade, for $20.00 or less to practice on and then have a consistent, usable razor.

edited to add:

This is a $12.00 razor I grabbed almost a year ago, sent it out to get honed, it's one of my favorite blades now.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...lemans-den.jpg

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Phrank: That's a mighty fine razor you acquired for twelve dollars.

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Originally Posted by feltspanky

Phrank: That's a mighty fine razor you acquired for twelve dollars.

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I agree, I then found two other French framebacks, both Duveres Freres #19, for under $20.00 each...one turned out like the one in the pic...the other one I busted out on, frown was too far gone and there was a crack in the heel...win some, lose some...but they are among my favorite blades.

Going to get a well deserved "off topic" penalty soon....:p

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Originally Posted by Phrank

I agree, I then found two other French framebacks, both Duveres Freres #19, for under $20.00 each...one turned out like the one in the pic...the other one I busted out on, frown was too far gone and there was a crack in the heel...win some, lose some...but they are among my favorite blades.

Going to get a well deserved "off topic" penalty soon....:p

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I prefer yours to the Gold Dollars, Phrank.

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Originally Posted by AlanII

I prefer yours to the Gold Dollars, Phrank.

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I'll agree with that!

GD razors suck. I would go with whipped dog, his razors are of good quality and are shave ready.

Off topic would be a very nice change at this point Phrank. Please do.

So while I think GD's have a purpose in providing geometrically challenged razors to learn to hone on, I only really even learned the phrase, "geometrically challenged" from reading one of several dozen threads here on GD's, and realizing that you could use them to practice honing on.

Having said that, there are in fact plenty of old threads that go into detail about these blades, and some great discussions on what you can do with them. Most by members far more versed in the intricacies and art of honing than I am.

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Originally Posted by lz6

Off topic would be a very nice change at this point Phrank. Please do.

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Be careful what you ask for Bob,,, Sharptonn hears this & it would be like chumming a swimming pool full of Great White sharks,,, :D