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I have a very old Giesen & Forsthoff I found on ebay. Nice scales, maybe horn.
Why is it I can get the G&F to easily pass a HHT, while I am unable to get my new Dovo Black star to the same level.
I am using a coticule followed by linen and a clean leather strop only, no pastes or sprays.
I am really amazed how sharp the G&F honed up.
Is it me or is the steel so different?
Is the Dovo stainless? If so, this could be the difference, and it might take a little more work on it to get the same level of sharpness.
I have ran into a similar problem with new Dovo razors on many occasions. Most old razors I've hone reach a nice consistent keen edge from heel to toe that easily pass HHT. New Dovos on the other hand pass the HHT only in spots. After running into this problem on several new Dovos, I noticed the sides of the blade's back were not completely touching the hone ~ regardless of which type of honing technique I used, the hone wear pattern would skip spots on the sides of the spine. Upon closer inspection, it seemed that the symmetrical features on 'most' of the blades were not consistent ~ the bevel's width would go from wide to very thin in various places along the blade's edge, sometimes fading to virtually no bevel at all. I also noticed that every new Dovo I had this problem with was purchased on ebay.
I really don't think the steel's quality was poor on the new Dovos I had problems with. I think the real problem was a poor grind on each blade.
The Dovo is not stainless. I did get it off ebay,...hmmm. It does what you said about passing the HHT in spots.
I'll give it some more attention and see if I can get it there.
How is the shave ? :)
I figured it was an ebay Dovo. Sounds just like the new Dovos I had problems with. I've honed a couple of new Dovos that were said to have been purchased at the more reputable sites, (SRD & TSS) and had no problem getting them shave ready. After pulling an all-night honing session on the last ebay Dovo, I must admit, I gave up on it all together and hope I never see another one. Hope you have better luck than I did! :gl:
I've actually had this same issue with my dovo BQ. It's taken forever to get to a useful edge, still nowhere as keen as some of the vintages i've bought and honed in less than an hour.
It did improve after i taped the spine and worked on it with a DMT D8E, with the hopes of evening out the absolutely shoddy bevel it came with. that was quite a while ago though.
Its not that bad really. It does pull a bit.Quote:
Originally Posted by JimmyHAD
And how is it now? Shave ok?Quote:
Originally Posted by dnullify
It's been a couple of years since I got a new Dovo but at that point they were pretty good. I don't think I've ever had any serious issues getting them shave ready and I've never had to do anything really extensive.
Have they really gone downhill to that extent?
I continue to hone thousands of new Dovo's and get great shaves from them every day. I don't know why the HHT continues to come up as it's reliability for how nice a razor shaves is not credible in my opinion. I think it actually pre-disposes people that a nice shaving razor will not shave well for them.
If you cannot get a Dovo to produce a nice shave, I am sorry, but the problem is usually not the razor.
Have fun.
Lynn
Just stabbing in the dark here...but if they're coming off of e-bay are they really Dovo's? I don't have any Dovo's, so maybe there's no question. But with all of the other knock off stuff I see on e-bay (particularly in car parts--an area I have a lot more experience in), is it possible these are not Dovo's?
If nobody's had this problem with Dovo's from a reputable vendor SRD, Classic, etc. but they have this problem with the e-bay Dovo's maybe that's the problem. :shrug:
I bought mine from a local store. I'm not sure, but it might have been a shelf piece for quite a while. in any case it just isn't up to scratch with some of the vintage razors out there. I've gotten it to shave well, but it took way too much work to get there compared to others i received in worse condition. bevels were clearly uneven and slightly jagged.Quote:
Originally Posted by BigJim
In any case, like all razors once you get a shaveable edge on it, it's just fine. i did learn that i prefer a 5/8 razor over it though.
I hone a lot of Dovos and I like the edge they take and keep. Are you using magnification to see what's going on at the edge when you hone? If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say the problem is using linen after a coticule. The linen might be degrading the edge. Try using just the coticule and then shaving. If that doesn't work out, hone with the coticule and then a clean leather strop. Your shave should be fine. If I were to use linen in a lineup (and I no longer do), I'd use it before the coticule.
I did get a better shave today from the Dovo. Two layers of tape this time around.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lynn
Better yes,..still will not take an edge like that G&F. That one is so sharp it will cut you if you look at it wrong.
The Dovo,...I would have to say is disappointing. I have 6 razors and 5 of them shave better than the Dovo.
I guess after honing thousands of them you just get used to them. It is what it is.
I will try a Hart or a Thiers Issard next. No more Dovos for me
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave763
I couldn't have said it better.
Hmmmmm,
Now I hate to say I gotta disagree here,,
When I line up razors for honing, each night, I separate them in my mind by how easy they are going to be to hone...
I personally love seeing that my honing line up contains Dovo's in there, I know I am going to get a good solid edge with no muss or fuss...
I of course am talking in general here but that seems to be what you all are doing too...
I my mind newer Dovo's are the 30-06 of the razor world, good solid performers, that will never let you down...
I can't even give any advice as to which hone to go with on the Dovo's, like if you were saying a W&B I would say lean toward the Coticule, or if we were talking TI,,, I would say lean toward the Naniwa SS system.. But for me working a Dovo it doesn't much matter I am going to get a good shaving edge..
I have no solution for you, I haven't had the problem :shrug:
I will give it a try. BTW, very nice slurry stone, thank you.Quote:
Originally Posted by Howard