And if you do can you shave with it? I read some other forums where people have actually done this. Anyone here have any experience sharpening and/or actually using one?
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And if you do can you shave with it? I read some other forums where people have actually done this. Anyone here have any experience sharpening and/or actually using one?
use the search tool and learn all you'd want to know
Yes, you can hone them and yes you can shave with one. Dont exspect the edge to last as many shaves as a gpod razor. Plus, it might need corrected before you can honing it properly.
So, the answer is yes, but...
Here is my GD. Ive shaved with it a few times. After i customized it it looks much better but its really just to have. It dont get used any longer.
Attachment 289555
On the few GD/DA razors that I have honed, I've never had a problem getting a good long lasting edge.
That said, there are a multitude of problems with these razors. The geometry is awful IMO, requiring thinning the spine to get the acute bevel angle that I much prefer. The stabilizer is best removed or ground down, though you can hone around it with a heel leading stroke. The poor grind of the hollows is thicker near the heel resulting in a wider bevel reveal in the heel area. The grind is often warped in relation to the spine. The heat treat on the few that I've seen broken has a very large grain structure, which is surprisingly still adequate for the task at hand. The scales are laughably cheap and clunky.
Now the good. First there is something enjoyable about 'slumming' once in a while and getting a good shave from a cheap piece of crap. If you aspire to making your own razor, but have minimal tools, you get a hardened razor blank for four dollars to play with. Many people have made cool razors out of these with little more than a Dremel and some sand paper.
As others have said, the geometry can be off but I've never had a problem getting them shave ready. I use my Double Arrow (precursor of a Gold Dollar) all the time when I don't feel like getting a vintage blade from it's storage area
I have corrected the spine, heal & stabilizer then successfully honed and shaved with a few GD/DA razors in the past. The factory scales on most were a joke. The edges took some work as they seemed a bit chippy but they did hone up. The shaves were acceptable though a bit harsh, not bad enough to eliminate them from shaving with in the future but would be my last choice. If I had to choose between a GD/DA and a DE I'd pick the DE.
Bluesman got it right. I've broken several myself. It's quite satisfying.
A beginner can use one for learning honing and such, but they are pretty crappy. The grinding issues Bluesman described can make them more difficult to hone.
Things will shave, but not nicely, IMO.
Something copied, and not very well.
No personality and biting steel at best. YMMV
You know, you can put an edge on a spoon and shave with it if you so desire. But I have to ask why oh why in the hell you would do that? Kind of like the GD razor - same question....
I found the angle of the edge when honed was very steep. If my memory is correct, it was around 24 degrees. If I would have reground the spine on mine it would have come out better for shaving. But like what was said above, you can make many things shave. But will it be a great shave? No. And the scales are a joke!
Better pic of mine...
Attachment 289595
I never bothered playing around with them. They do have a following. Here is why I never bothered. You buy a $4 Razor, then spend three hours fixing it before you can hone it and in the end you have a $4 Razor. I bought new razors to learn to hone n, but they were Solingen razors. Why? Because I wanted to learn how to hone not correct poorly made razors. All my new razor survived just fine too.
This question always remind me of a thread once where there was a poll asking about how you determine what a good quality razor is (I believe gssixgun made that thread, but I can't recall 100%, so my bad if I'm wrong)
Something along the lines of:
a) how easy / hard it is to hone; how it behaves on the stones or b) how it shaves
Both are important, BUT for me how easy / hard it is to hone is vital in how I value a quality razor
A poorly made razor with bad geometry that is a PITA to hone = a shitty razor in my book, a razor where I have to correct the geometry is a poorly made one imo
EVEN a gold dollar takes an edge and can be made shave ready and pretty much everything else I've held in my hands took a good edge and could be made shave ready
even-though this is a vital part because all we do is SHAVE in the end, it doesn't tell me about the true overall quality of the blade (it does tell me that the steel is adequate and capable),
not many will say a Gold Dollar is a good quality razor all around, scales / poor geometry n'at
As with anything else with life, to each his own, but I cba to bother with them, I'll enjoy my Sheffields, Solingen and Eskilstuna razors
Ain't nobody got time for gold dollahz
If YOU wanna practice on them and see if you can get em to shave well, that's cool in my book too!
That's just my opinion, ymmv
Tristan are you leaving out American made blades from your list? I can testify that Torrey and Geneva are pretty nice pieces and Clauss is solid as well. If you dont have any, maybe its time to get some more.Quote:
Originally Posted by TristanLudlow
You are correct kind sir!Quote:
Originally Posted by MrZ
Yes they'll take a good edge and can shave very well indeed, but I've found them to be a bit more sensitive to the hone than other brands. Also, as the model numbers go up, they get a bit better finished and considerably less 'meaty' than the 66.
Basically they're just a crudely made 6/8-13/16 half hollow. I maintain a number of high graded mostly 208s as test razors, and if they couldn't take a great edge, I could not use them for what I do. My high graded razors are those that don't require honing 'gymnastics'. They keep the wear off better razors when doing the initial tests of Japanese stones, matching tomonagura, etc.
Bluesman7 pretty much said it all, but maybe some things to note. They're all pretty much the same within a model number, so for example, I can hone 2 different 208's on the same stone with different tomo and test them side-by-side during one shave. The variance between razors, soaps, lathering, is minimized or eliminated. It would be much harder to find matched razors for testing outside of Gold Dollars, and if I had a set of matched Solingen I wouldn't want to use them for this kind of testing, it would be kind of abusing them and they'd be too valuable.
When I do air travel with a straight, there's usually a Gold Dollar or two in the checked baggage along with a couple of user grade mainstream razors. I don't have to worry about them and I can give them as gifts (or punishment :roflmao) or get an edge critique if the occasion arises.
The scales are arguably the worst part. I've re-scaled a couple with 'donor' scales that I have lying around and the difference is pretty large! They actually become more pleasant to use, though I doubt that I'd reach for one if I weren't testing something.
The stabilizer has always been a sticking point, but not all models (like the 208) have one. I just hone around it. If you're learning to hone, you should learn not to run any stabilizer up on the hone, and if you run a 66 stabilizer up on the stone, it will let you know.
I would not recommend a factory Gold Dollar to someone beginning to hone unless the seller knows what your doing and has also high graded one for you. You need to be learning how to set a bevel and identify a set/unset bevel, remove striae evenly along the bevel, and not trying just to get the bevel to hit the hone, deal with warped or bent blades, or the other problems you find with them.
They're also good stock for teaching yourself razor modding, thinning, smoothing, polishing, re-scaling, etc. Some people can make works of art out of one though the labor is prohibitive from a non-hobby standpoint.
Finally, a factory Dollar just isn't much fun to shave with. It's chunky, clunky, and isn't very pretty so there's really no reason to reach for one unless you have a specific reason to reach for one, or maybe two!
Hope this helps.
Cheers, Steve
The discussion that never ends
I think it was put perfectly many years ago and I haven't seen it described more succinctly nor better in the last 9 or so years
"If Wal-Mart sold a Straight razor it would be a Gold Dollar"
That single statement which was coined by Jimmy ??? says it all
Be careful what you mention Glen.... lol.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/GBS-Shavi...p-Le/107946369
Cheers, Steve
That about figures Steve
I would save my money and get a Chinese ZY razor they are sharpened by seriously over worked 67 years old MASTER SHIFU...............lol
I have a Double Arrow that is one of my best shavers! Got it in a lot of 6 straights & it shaved great from day one!Quote:
Originally Posted by rodb
Slawman
There is an annual competition on another site that is going on right now — the 2018 Gold Dollar Mod Competition.
It’s really more like a dare — make art out of crap. I am entered into the novice class. You can read prior year competition threads to see the kind of work the guys do on these razors.
I’ve got to say that it has been a great learning experience. It has given me confidence to do more substantial work on my restorations. I did however trash my first blade.
I just finished my entry but haven’t posted final pictures yet. It shaves really well. But, it was a ton of work, and I removed a lot of steel.
This. You have to really want to do the work. Here’s mine.Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve56
Attachment 291062
That’s a great looking razor!Quote:
Originally Posted by MrHouston
i don’t care. I liked my Gold Dollar. Who cares? Whatever turns your crank whether that is naturals or synthetics, Sheffield or German, Arko or MDC, boar or badger. Whatever. It is just hair removal, after all. :rofl2: Have fun!
That’s one of the best GD’s I have ever seen.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gasman
Gold dollar contests! Who knew? :D
LMGTFY .... 88 pages should tell you somethingQuote:
Originally Posted by DaninTx
https://straightrazorpalace.com/razo...lars-best.html
