Thread: DOVO Bismarck

I am thinking of trying a straight, and was wondering if $50 was a good deal for a new DOVO Bismarck.

http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/st...il.html?s=G142

I have never dealt with this place before, and I'm hoping this isn't a bait-and-switch (notice the brief write-up says "Bizmark). or could be a spelling error.

Thanks.

Hi, be aware that this razor will not be shave ready and as such may well put you off straight shaving.

It is brand new and will be factory honed but not ready to shave with.

I would suggest you contact someone on this forum for a shave ready razor. Joe Chandler has some beauties for sale at the moment well within your budget and will be ready to shave with.

You will also need a strop etc...to keep the edge true (not sharp).

Have a good look around here for info and advice first.

I hope it works out for you, shaving with a straight is one of lifes great pleasures.

Gary

I suggest you learn the popular makes, nab one one on eBay dirt cheap and then hire one of the many members who just love to hone razors for the new guys.

Fifteen to twenty bucks, all told. Boo yeah!

I suggest that you contact one of the guys.

Mr. Lynn Abrams, the founder of this forum
his email address is [email protected]

or Bill Ellis another member [email protected]
Bill also has a web site www.billysblades.com
Right now he has sold most but I believe he may be
adding some more in the near future. Email and ask
him

or Joe Chandler [email protected]
Joe typically has razors for sale.

I have bought razors from all 3 and have been very
satisfied with all of them.

The razors all come shave ready.

For a strop contact Tony Miller www.thewellshavedgentleman
Tony sells excellent strops. He also has kits, which includes
in addition to the strop, a shave ready razor. Do check him
out as well.

Hope this helps and good luck.

Terry

I was looking at that razor for my first last year as well, but ended up getting a shave ready one from a member here and some eBay razors for practice. One of them is still in my permamnent collection.

I have a used Dubl Duck which needs a home, PM me if you're interested.

X

Now that's cheap. I got mine for $80 shipped, but it was honed by Tony Miller, so it was more than worth it for a couple of reasons:
1) Most of these places would have charged me $15 to ship it to canada
2) Having a blade honed by Tony told me I was on the right track with my own work
3) I didn't have to bother with honing another blade
In any case, I love the Bismarck. It's an excellent blade and very well balanced. Aesthetically it's very nice even with that ugly gold plating. Its steel/shape/grind are very similar to my Satinedge, which is also a superb shaver and I just got another similar blade. $50 for a Bismarck -- you can't go wrong. Get it!

A number of guys have bought razors from the Knifecenter and the only complaint was slow service. The Dovo Bismark has a very good reputation.

Ilija,
The Knifecenter Bismarck is a different beast than what you bought from me. Dovo makes at least three different razors that carry the Bismarck name.
The most popular is the red or black model with faux MOP inlays and gold washed blade. These are around $100 at Classic. Second is the White Bone Handle with gold washed blade and a square point like you got from me. It too retails for $100 before sharpening. Last is the basic black entry level razor that simply has Bismarck on the handle, this is a $60 or so retail razor which knifecenter discounts to $49. Completely different direction from the fancy models we usually associate with the Bismarck name. Nice razor, nice price but not a steal.

Tony

THanks Tony, that is exactly the type of info I was looking for. I kind of figured it was "too good to be true", after hearing all the good comments about Bismarcks.

And thank you to every one else for the advice on where to go. I was actually planning on buying a shave ready razor from someone here, I was simply wondering whether I stumbled on one of those too-good-to-be-true sales.

And Xman, how much are you looking to get for the Dubl Duck? (Whoops, my eyes skipped part of the sentence. I'll PM you when I get home).

Some of these stright razor company names are funny like Dubl Duck and Dorko(not that they aren't good razors) .

Thanks all. Glad to find a good centralized friendly information center like this.

Colin

Thanks for the info Tony. I was taking a break while doing a rush project for the boss-man, so I didn't have the time to take a look at the link. I'm glad you caught me before I mislead poor Colin.