What are your opinions of the quality of Dovo straights? How good are they compared to a well respected brand of straights such as Boker? What is your opinion of the Dovo Inox? I have two of them.
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What are your opinions of the quality of Dovo straights? How good are they compared to a well respected brand of straights such as Boker? What is your opinion of the Dovo Inox? I have two of them.
They are actually quite good, once they are honed.
Some of the more veteran guys around here could probably give you more insight....
But.. They are still making razors and are a respected brand.
I do not think lynn/don,classicshaving,etc... would sell them if they were junk. Especially since Lynn hones probably hundreds of them a week.
But...I think a more fair comparison to a vintage boker, would be a vintage dovo.
Lots of reviews on the site to read through. I'm guessing you are happy with your Inox if you have two of them?
Read through these and try to draw your own conclusion. Or go buy them all and decide :)
Razor Review Archives - Straight Razor Place Forums
Razor Reviews - Straight Razor Place Forums
Don't know why it never ocurred to me that there would be a review section on this forum. Will consult that section now.
In short a Dovo is a very good razor. Are they perfect no but what is. They do need to sharpened before use which is a small thing to me.
I think if you talk to owners of Dovos they'll say the same thing.
I own two carbon steel Dovos and I am pleased with their performance and quality. They both give me an excellent BBS shave every time out and they take an edge well. Most new Dovos will be sold prehoned and shave ready by the seller. The Dovo line seems to have a razor for everyone and have only gotten better.
The vintage razors that have had nice characteristics seem to have been integrated into the Dovo line up.
I see Bokers are selling brand new from Knifecenter.com It would be interesting to see how the new Bokers compare to the old bokers. This is the comparison that I want read about.
Pabster
I have a couple of Dovos (and a fair number of Bokers and W&B, etc), and think that while the fit and finish of the scales usually are of fair quality, their carbon steel blades are top notch. They hold the edge as long as any of the old masters, and have not had any problems honing them up.
I have no experience with the INOX though, so I can't comment on that.
Mark
I own a number of Dovos and love them all, from the low end to the high end, they are easy to hone and I enjoy getting these in the mail from members. They shave well and are no harder to maintain than any other razor I own, have used or honed.
As far as how well they shave goes there is no reason to be concerned. They are great shavers. I think in general vintage razors are better than current factory offerings but they still do the job very well.
I gotta say, I was impressed with the dovo I have, and the one I moved on.
I didn't buy either new, but I'm keeping one and use it often. One of the things I like about it is the fact that they are available right now, I think if you're going on holiday or something, and you want to take a straight - taking one that is easily replaced makes a lot of sense.
They do feel different to vintage razors, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing, just different.
Kelly they are indeed easy to hone and shave like a champ. The steel they use is very good. I know some people have said that all new razors need honing which I repeated in an other thread but there are exceptions and that would be the older NOS razors and most Dovos but not all.
I thought all dovos needed honing because the factory didn't get them shaving sharp?
I bought a stainless that was shave ready. I was a bit surprised.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregs656
To greg656 and gunner777. I have had one new Dovo I bought shave great right out of the box, thus far it has been the exception.
I have two new razors, one Dovo and one Edwin Jagger that is a rebranded Dovo and gregs makes a good point about them being replaceable. I have two vintage razors so far and I wouldn't take them with me if I was travelling, I'd take the two I knew I could replace easily.
I quite like a couple of the current Dovo range and may well buy one of them before too long, but vintage blades have character which appeals to me greatly.
well, that's interesting.
It's kinda been hammered into me on here that all new razors need honing, and I think I would still give advice to that effect.
My favorite blade right now is a DoVo Stainless Ivory Micarta 5/8 Round. A real Gem
To add to all the great posts above,
Comparing a new dovo to a vintage boker is unfair to the new dovo as previously stated. Sometimes it is true about the past being better. In our case, the past was better because everyone used to shave with a straight back then, or grew a beard. Today we have Mach 10s. :biggrin:
The new dovo compared to every other new razor out there is: it holds its own and holds it well. However, its only really compared to two companies. TI & the new Bokers/Wacker. But the new Bokers are pretty recent and Wacker is almost a custom shop so... Compared to the TI, my dinky Dovo performed very well. It liked it, it wasn't pretty so I traded it up, but it worked. Its a good razor, is my one sentence summary.
Has anyone beside me tried out the new Revisors? Or do we continue to deny their existence?
How about this, I will match my new Revisor here: 6/8 and the factory edge against my Fritz Bracht or my Dorko.
Neat blade !
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregs656
I dont blame you, even though I own an exception to the rule, I still tell people to get them honed. 1 out of 100,000 is not good odds.
@Pyment One of these days I gotta get me one!
Well the Revisor "edged" out the Dovo. I don't know if that is a comment on the Revisor and the factory edge or if it is a comment on my poor honing on the Fritz Bracht. The Revisor blade is heavier and I just like the feel and balance better. So, this may boil down to personal preference.
I have a New Old Stock Dovo from about 30 years ago that sat around as a blank until it was decided to make it into something to feed the growing market.
I also have a new recently made Dovo blade that represents one of Dovo's best sellers. Both are Carbon Steel Blades and were never used until I purchased them.
Both shave well, but have a different shaving feel and are slightly different in holding their edge. In a few weeks I will do a more detailed review on both and post it on SRP.
Pabster
I got a Cmon Cadillac which is a dovo with a different stamp on it. And it was definitely not shave ready. After it was sharpened, it is great. The down side is that I don't like the scales, and the pin is WAY too loose.
I am making an ignorant comment here, but that sure looks alot like a Dovo Bismarck, without the gold/fancy stuff.:confused:Quote:
Originally Posted by Pyment
Compared to used razors, they tend to be quite pricey.
I have both at home. I never thought to compare them side by side. I remember the heft being significantly different. both are 6/8 shoulderless designs. But the line from the spine to the upper and lower parts of the tang appear different. IRRC the top of the spine on the Revisor is not rounded the same.Quote:
Originally Posted by Seraphim
jb,Quote:
Originally Posted by jbcohen
I have a DOVO 6/8 Special and think it is a really nice razor. The fake turtle scales are as good looking as scales get in my never-has-been-real-humble opinion. I like the heft of the razor and am finally coming to realize that the thickness of the shank is tactily important to me: within reason, the thicker more, the better more. I honed it myself and it shaves the way my face likes it - it's hard to better that.
Also in the collection is a Renaissance SS, which is a work in progress as I need to work on the edge more to get it to the point where my face is thrilled by its attentions.
So, DOVO straights? I think they are fine razors. Were I starting all over again would I get another 6/8 Special? In a heartbeat. A Renaissance? Probably, but the jury is still out, although there is another member here somewhere who thinks that razor is absolutely the bees' knees.
good luck, good shaving
ps, the reason the jury is deliberating in such lengthy fashion on the Renaissance is that I have another SS razor which is presently much dearer in my affections. It's a Friodur 7/8 square point NOS re-grind/new-grind. And I don't particularly care for that point shape, but this razor shaves like a dream. It is becoming more and more difficult to rotate the rotation. Sic semper with them what's fickle? Something like that :tu
I love my Renaissance. It just fits my face.
The Bismarck and the Revisor are definitely not the same razor. The Revisor has jimps on the top of the tang and a the thumb notch is more gradual than the Bismarck. I was correct that the Revisor is a thicker heavier blade by 1-2 mm. The Bismarck is more of a French point.
I wasn't even aware of these. These are nice looking blades, especially the 8/8! Interesting site too.
That's going to be my next blade. Pretty fancy blade and scales for the price. Modern art, IMO.Quote:
Originally Posted by JohnnyCakeDC