Thread: Gold Dollar or Kriegar?

I have never used a straight razor and am wondering what would be better, or maybe one of each?

Kriegar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

Gold Dollar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

I would choose neither. If I have a choice I would click the classifieds button at the top of this page and find a razor that is not only able to be honed, but is actually shave ready. While of the two choices some of the GD can be made shaveable it takes a lot of work in most cases and is not worth the time; Kriegar isn't really even a razor, more of a razor shaped object.

deighingeal is on the money. Gold Dollars can be put right but unless you have the skills to do it yourself you're going to have to pay for the skills of others. The classifieds or other reputable places will probably afford you better and cheaper options.

Originally Posted by mjparks89

I have never used a straight razor and am wondering what would be better, or maybe one of each?

Kriegar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

Gold Dollar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

You have chosen the worst. If you add Tomohawk razor you will get a "champion's list of razors". Never buy one of these three, under any conditions. I also vote for classifieds or probably eBay.

Kriegar just outright suck. GDs can be good beginner razors, but new they come with issues which could/ would spoil the experience for beginners. There are people who buy them, fix them and sell them, but I don't know if the place you linked to does.

There are many other brands that will shave well. The problem as a beginner is recognizing them.
A safe bet is buying from the classifieds here. You can rely on getting a quality razor there.

If you want to buy from another place, then dovo, boker or thiers issard are the best (and only) brands which still make new razors of high quality steel. If you are interested in more vintage razors, then anything made in solingen or sheffield is a safe bet as well. There are many other possibilities as well, but these are the big ones to start with.

Plenty of good razors are available from other places and other manufacturers, but that also requires a bit of knowledge on the part of the buyer to know what to look for and how to recognize warning flags. Sticking to a 'known good' brand for a first razor is a good idea because it is safe, and you'll have a known quantity to compare with later on.

Another good reason to buy a razor from the classifieds is that you'll have an affordable blade with a known good edge. The thing with razors is: if the person selling them does not use them himself, they don't know whether it is sharp enough to shave with or not. Any razor with any type of edge is 'sharp' compared to e.g. a pocket knife. Sharp enough to shave with is something else entirely, and unless the person is a shaver, they don't know the difference.

Thank you everyone, I am off to the classifieds.

I have corrected a Gold Dollar and like it but I was only able to do so as I have worked on vintage razors so I now know (roughly) what I'm doing. You would be well advised finding a shave ready vintage razor. I don't live on your side of the Atlantic so have no personal experience of retailers there but I have heard good things about Whipped Dog Straight Razor Sales

Indeed, I went down that path, thinking about trying to learn. Well, the first lesson was not to buy cheap razors. Lesson learned...

Originally Posted by mjparks89

I have never used a straight razor and am wondering what would be better, or maybe one of each?

Kriegar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

Gold Dollar Straight Razor | Vintage Straight Razors

I do not know anything abut the Kriegar but the Gold Dollar will need
the serious attention of a honemaster to set it right nine times out of ten.
So do factor in the price of honing...

When you have learned to hone a razor correctly and have the
full kit of hones to take a dull badly finished razor to shave
ready you might find the Gold Dollar a worthy challenge
and an education. I bought a GD on a whim but did not
expect all the work it took.

If you check out the Classified section on this forum you may find
a darn good vintage blade that has been correctly sharpened
and is shave ready.

Shop for a while before you jump in...

IIRC one or two vendors sell shave ready Gold Dollars. This means the Gold Dollar steel quality is OK for razors. Gold Dollars are hit and miss though, IIRC again, you have to buy a few to end up with one or two that will shave. Kriegar, Zeepk, Venus etc will never take an edge.