50 shaves and my opinions on 4 razor brands.

[DMA]

Hi All,
i just wanted to give you a relatively new shavers opinion of the various razors I have.
The Dovo masters shaves well but doesn't set my world alight, it seems to be a bit tricky to control and doesn't inspire confidence, it feels a bit 'springy' on the whiskers and even on a second pass just feels ordinary.
The Theirs-Issard Sparticus is marginally better, and doesn't have the springy juddery feel of the Dovo when going over a two day growth of whiskers.
My Ralf Aust is another step up in a quality feel to the shave, it has a feel that does make me feel more comfortable and more confident, whilst providing an excellent result after the second pass.
Finally, my Mastro Livi Grifetto, is in a class of its own. It has a good weight to it and inspires confidence with its grind and general feel. There is no suggestion of it wanting to jump on tough whiskers, and just glides across my face with good feedback and the edge really is very sharp and firm.
After two passes it shaves as close as the others after three, and going round tricky parts on the chin is a breeze.
I struggle to get the quality after 3 passes with the Dovo that I can get with the Grifetto after 2.
These are just my thoughts and experiences and I would much rather have 2 Grifetto's than any 5 other razors that I've tried so far. The reason I say that is because the ML's are a bit pricey but you get what you pay for in this world.
I wonder has anyone else got opinions of their regular razors and which do you prefer out of your collections, not so much from the aesthetic point, but from the pure joy of using it to give the best results.
I know I am very inexperienced when compared to the long time SR users but I am definitely feeling a difference between the Brand’s.

[Daniele]

I still maintain that my gold dollar 208 shaves better than a thiers issard Spartacus, both honed by the same guy.

You do not get what you pay for.
I will next be moving on to customs but I'm not hoping for much tbh...I appreciate the craftsmanship and beauty but for quality of shave I really do not feel that cost of a blade reflects the quality of the shave it gives.

[Grazor]

Haven't tried any new production razors. If you don't mind used blades try a vintage razor. Too many good ones to list. Try the classifieds here.

[BobH]

It could be that the edges on the Dovo and TI are not quite there as far as shave ready goes. That could explain the juddery feel while shaving.

Bob

[Daniele]

It's also possible that the grifetto is a different size and grind that you prefer.
Maybe getting a vintage blade of the same dimensions and grind honed properly you could make a better comparison.

I have a few dozen blades ranging in age from 1850 to 1980 and from different countries ie Germany, England, America, France ..pretty much all of them are made from the same Sheffield silver steel and differ in size and grind.

The dovos now use inferior Swedish steel by comparison and I don't know what ML uses.
I would absolutely piss laughing if it was Chinese steel though.

[BobH]

The dovos now use inferior Swedish steel by comparison and I don't know what ML uses.
I would absolutely piss laughing if it was Chinese steel though.

It is news to me that Swedish steel is considered inferior now. There are any number of vintage Solingen SRs made with it.

Bob

[MattCB]

The dovos now use inferior Swedish steel by comparison ...

At the risk of sounding like an ass, may I ask where this opinion comes from and what you are basing it off of? Pretty bold statement.

[DMA]

I think you've hit the nail on the head Onimaru, with regard to weight and stiffness on the ML.
As you say the actual shave is just part of the whole ritual of prep, lathering and post shave pampering. It's the whole package that makes it such a pleasurable experience.

[sharptonn]

I Knew it! I just knew it!

Bruce

[Daniele]

Swedish steel of today vs Sheffield silver steel from the 1950s, you're gonna tell me that they're equal in quality?
Fair enough..I've always been told otherwise.