Thread: Buy a new razor?

I really like straight razors and i can see it becoming a long time hobby/ collectible for me. I have narrowed it down to a few razors from dovo that are both under my budget.
Dovo Pearlex 5/8 Straight Razor
Dovo Black Star 5/8 Straight Razor w/Pakkawood Scales
Dovo Astrale 5/8 Straight Razor
which one do you guys like the most?

Originally Posted by kcarlisle

Dovo probably has the widest selection for the price range you are talking about. My second razor I bought a few years ago was a DOVO Bismark 6/8 from SRD and I love it. What made me settle on it is my first razor was a 5/8 and I wanted to try a wider blade. However, that was many razors ago and now my most difficult decision every day is deciding which one to shave with. LOL! For me, it's become a favorite hobby and I got into re-storing old razors. Not to mention what great conversational pieces they make. Currently, I'm making a case with a glass door to hang on the wall in the bathroom to display my razors in. If you get into honing your own razors, you will really get the fever for more than one razor.

Isn't the bathroom a bad place to store them because of the higher humidity?

Can someone tell me how quickly the gold finish on razors like the bismark and pearlex wears off? assuming shaving and stropping every other day.

Well you've already got some experience straight shaving and plenty of practice. For a $200 budget you will find some very nice, high quality razors and plenty to choose from. Just go for whatever one appeals to you the most! Don't worry about grinds and blade sizes, as you already have plenty of practice. Shop around and buy the one you most admire and want to see in your own hands. Enjoy!

I did not read any other responses. I just wanted to post up and tell you what *I* did not so long ago when I faced the same question.

I bought a wonderful new razor. It gave me perspective on what a modern steel that is masterfully ground and honed can do. Not to say that a vintage is not also masterfully ground and honed, but many of them come with variations instilled from previous users (perhaps a muted square point, or a slightly greater smile, or something else)...and that is not to say that there are any hard fast rules on how much smile a razor ought to have...but I wanted to try something new and "more perfect".

It was a WONDERFUL experience that I am very glad I tried.

However, I have since de-volved back to my vintage razors that I am honing myself to learn that aspect of the hobby...and my very expensive new razor sits in the drawer...but I will always have it to enjoy.

My advice is to take your time and decide exactly what calls to you and buy it. You will enjoy it daily...and it is very nice to have other razors to rotate through in order to stretch the time between honing even further.

there is no wrong answer here....just the right answer for you!

Have fun!

Hey, Nuns.

You ask about the longevity of goldwash. The short answer is that it disappears faster than a $20 on a date. If there are waterspots or worse on it, removal is unlikely. Stropping will start wearing shankwash away within a few days. I should acknowledge I strop alot, so the minimal stropper might take 1-2 wks to see the fade.

A possible alternative - and far more cost effective approach might be to look up user that are nearby or not too far away and see if they're willing to let you try a few different blades. 'Just Sunday I had the pleasure of meeting a newer member for just such a session. We wound up spending all the time in restoration of a few of his edges and then honing, so no time was left for testing. That'll happen in another session. He went away w/ 3 blades honed to a dramatically higher level than he was used to, and an invite to return to try a bunch of blades. If you have a similar member around - it would let you try different sizes, grinds, steels without spending a wad to discover your favorite kinds of blades.

Originally Posted by KenWeir

Isn't the bathroom a bad place to store them because of the higher humidity?

KenWeir,

I've kept my razors in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom for the last 3 years and haven't had any problems with them rusting. However, I'm very particular how I dry off a razor before I put it up. Also, my bathroom is air conditioned and that helps. The reason I say that is I lived in an older house where the bathroom was not connected to the air conditioned part of the house and it had a window unit that was turned on only when the bathroom was in use.

Originally Posted by nunsbythebundle

I really like straight razors and i can see it becoming a long time hobby/ collectible for me. I have narrowed it down to a few razors from dovo that are both under my budget.
Dovo Pearlex 5/8 Straight Razor
Dovo Black Star 5/8 Straight Razor w/Pakkawood Scales
Dovo Astrale 5/8 Straight Razor
which one do you guys like the most?

For me, it would be between the Pearlex or the Astrale. I can't make up my mind which one I like better. I like the blade on the Pearlex and the scale on the Astrale.

As far as your quesiton about the gold wearing off the blades, I think the gold in the hollow of the blade will stay fine for years to come because it never comes in contact with your strop, but I could see the gold on the spine and tang of the Pearlex wearing off from stropping and handling. I have a few razors with gold on the blades that I'll look at when I get home and I'll let you know how well they have stood up. I've had both razors for about 3 years.

Originally Posted by nunsbythebundle

Can someone tell me how quickly the gold finish on razors like the bismark and pearlex wears off? assuming shaving and stropping every other day.

I just checked both of my razors with gold on the hollow of the blades, the tangs & spines and they are fine. The only gold I can see worn off is on the side of the spine from coming in contact with hones. One of them is the DOVO Bismark which has gold all the way down the spine. I've probably shaved with it about 50 times. As you can tell, the majority of my shaves come from the vintage razors.