Quote:
Originally Posted by hothotpot
That'll depend on the toughness of your beard, what your stropping is like and how well you look after the razor, as well as how well the razor holds its edge.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hothotpot
That'll depend on the toughness of your beard, what your stropping is like and how well you look after the razor, as well as how well the razor holds its edge.
Assume me as a newbie sir.
It all depends on your stropping technique. Poor stropping technique can ruin an edge the first time it's done.Quote:
Originally Posted by hothotpot
I read the claims that the 200 is stainless steel. I handle a large volume of the GDs and done some comparison checks. I don't see the 200 as SS. Where is the reference that says that they are? Don't get me wrong. If they are SS, their price makes them a incredible find. I do handle many stainless steel razors from customers. I also have a few in my rotation. I just don't see that the 200 is stainless.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenrup
I also have my questions in regards to this.
I have two of the GD 800 series, which is undoubtably stainless, and also cost 10x what the carbon blades did from the factory.
I had two of the 200 series, and they did not strike me as being stainless. But I sold them before the claims surfaced that they may be, so i could not investigate any further.
stainless is not magnetic that would be the best way to tell
Quote:
Originally Posted by Seraphim
what about the selective brand of razors? sorry to hijack
I'll see if I can find it, but there were two sources. One was in a Google search, and the other was in one of the posts on this forum. Someone had correspondence with the Gold Dollar factory, and they listed each razor and in that list it said that the 200, 300, and 800 were the stainless models. Also, it said that the 800 was made with Japanese steel which is why it is significantly more expensive than the 200 and 300.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenrup
If it is not magnetic that would tell if it is stainless, but if it is magnetic it could still be. Some stainless steels are magnetic, and others are not. I'll check my GD200 with a magnet when I get home today.Quote:
Originally Posted by ShawnWmDavis
From the GD website:
Quote:
Razor
Mdoel:74
material: alloy
Quote:
Razor
Model:200
material: alloy
So, according to their own website (and the correspondance I had with the factory) the model 800 is the stainless model. The 200 and basic 74 model are both regular HC ("alloy") steel.Quote:
Razor
Model:800
material: stainless steel
I'd love to hear more from folks who have one though.
not sure but if there stainless there still magnetic steel
I found the post with the info from Gold Dollar. Here is a link to the page with the discussion about the "new info" about the the 200, and 300 models. And a screenshot showing the message:
Some stainless are magnetic and some are not it depends of witch alloy
the easiest way to verify for stainless is to buy a bottle of gun blue (around $5)
when applied to steel it will stain it black if it is stailess it will not stain
according to that test my GD200 is stainless
I tested my GD200 with a magnet and it is magnetic. As far as I can tell that just means that it's not Austenitic Stainless. If it is stainless it could still be Ferritic, or Martensitic.
I don't have any gun blue around, so I won't test it that way. I would assume that if one GD200 tested to be stainless with gun blue, then all of them will.
I just ran a test with Perma-Blue on the 200 and used a Dovo model 61 INOX for comparison. The 200 took the blue and the INOX did not. Both the 200 and the INOX will hold a magnet, however; the magnet did not have as strong a pull on the INOX.Quote:
Originally Posted by jerryjtr
I had not thought of gun bluing as a test for stainless. Good lead.
[IMG]http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i...sSteelTest.jpg[/IMG]
learn something new everyday, now how do you remove the gun blue lol
Now I'm curious. I'll see if I can find some gun blue, and try it on my razor. It sounds like we have at least one GD200 that tests positive, and one that tests negative.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenrup
I just did a bit of research about blueing, and stainless, as well as test's for stainless steel. Apparently some stainless steels can be blued. There are many different kinds of stainless steel, and some will stain more than others. There are different tests for stainless steel, and some of the tests involve staining the steel and looking at what color is produced. It looks like the magnetic quality of the steel has to do with the iron content, and the non blueing has to do with the Chromium content. So if you have a steel with a low Chromium, and high Iron mix you could potentially have stainless steel that will take blueing.
I'm not exactly sure what this all means, but it is safe to say that if the GD is stainless it isn't of the same quality as the Dovo. The steel in the Dovo is clearly a higher grade metal than what is in the GD. From this page I would say the Dovo must be 440, and I might guess that the GD might be 410 or 416.
Hey all,
So I have read a bunch of searched material about the Gold Dollar razors. It seems to me, and believe me this is a HUGELY UNINFORMED opinion, that China has figured out a way of doing the same thing at a fraction of the cost. People praise them for being a good blade, but how good can a blade be for 20 bucks? Should I pick one up, sight unseen? It is a 200 model from mystery razor. Would getting it shipped up to Canada be a problemo?
My question is this: has anyone owned one for an extended time? Do these inexpensive razors have any drawbacks or do they wear out quickly? Generally I go by the rule that if it looks too good to be true it probably is.
Has anyone ordered through mystic razor before? Am I getting the real thing here? From the pictures the blade looks completely unmarked. Is there any way to be sure that what I am getting is indeed the fabled gold dollar?
Finally, just tell me outright! :
Should I buy it?
Thanks for the help guys
I find a lot of money in a straight is in the quality of the scales...Gold Dollar's a good blade with garbage scales.
I have one and it's been a great learning blade - I don't shave with the scales (I use the sharp end ;) ) and don't care how she looks (I'll re-scale when I get to that level).
$20 you can't go wrong!
Wait I gotta do my Wifes whole epitaph---- hehehe
Jesus, Mary, & Joseph, God All Mighty, Praise be to Allah, rub a Buddha (she hits them all)
Please all the Gods in heaven spare us from yet another GD/DA thread.... :aargh:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ar-razors.html
There are well over 300 posts in that one...
You the man. Ill go ask on another forum I suppose. Just thought that there might be more to it than the search feature showed me.Quote:
Originally Posted by gssixgun
I've honed a couple of "Gold Dollars" for some customers for the first time last week.
Here are my impressions.
- The pivot pin is too loose;
- The gap between the toe of the blade and the wedge in the scales is too wide. The size of the scales are slightly bigger than it should;
- Grinding was fairly achieved;
- The final polishing was poor. Scratches are visible along the blade, specially in the shank and the finish is not mirror;
- The etching on the blade is poorly made. You can run your thumb across the etching and feel it has a rough substance on top of the blade. After the shave, by cleaning the blade, the etching began to dilute.
- The shave itself. The steel is fairly decent and can provide a shave from beginning to end, but I don't know for how many shaves the edge will remain sharp.
Conclusion: Cheap? Yes, but you get what you pay for.
It's not that nobody wants you to talk about it... just more that it's been a topic that has had TONS of discussion here. Click on the link Glen posted and you'll be reading for a day or two about people's opinions on Gold Dollar/Double Arrow razors (this is what they used to be branded, and may be a reason for not finding as much info through a search).Quote:
Originally Posted by Old67
Good luck
Heh, you don't even really need to do a search. Your post is at the top of a page that includes posts entitled, 'Gold Dollar Razors' (317 Replies), 'Where are the Gold Dollar razors sold' (33 Replies) and 'Gold Dollar' (4 Replies). There's just a lot of posts about that particular brand at the moment and I think that's what Glen was light-heartedly referring too. As to whether you should go for it, well, it's your choice really, they're so cheap that, for a new razor, you'd have to be unlucky to go really wrong. Can't really say as I haven't got one, I go vintage, often even cheaper, maybe my bad, who knows?Quote:
Originally Posted by Old67
Quote:
Originally Posted by Old67
Fabled Gold Dollars come marked and unmarked. I doubt the Chinese have started making fake knock-off copies of their $1.47 razors...
I'm with Glen - I can't imagine anything will be said here that has not been said in at least two other threads. Glen isn't being a smartass or trying to shut you down; it's just a pretty tired subject at this point.
I agree with Leon - they are cheap, grinding is... so so, fit and finish is poor, the whatever it is they put on the blade is poor, the final grind/finish is poor. They give an ok shave, but I don't know how long they'll hold an edge cause I've never shaved more than maybe three times with the same one.
My overall thoughts - I think you are better off buying something shave ready off the classifieds than getting a GD, even if you get a shave ready GD. But there is no "final word" - in the end it's personal preference.
Yeah, there is no such thing as a "final word" on anything shave related. If there were, there would be no need whatsoever for a forum (with multiple sub-forums) to sling the BS about what most guys simply do with a Mach 3 in 5 minutes without giving it a second thought.
Those poor bastards!
One more final word from me:
You can either go out and drop $20 on a Gold Dollar and see how it shaves (it will need to be honed first of all, they come finished off on 400 grit sandpaper from the factory....).
Or, you can go the Ebay and drop $600 on a Filarmonica, and see how it shaves (you'll still need to et this one honed too, most likely, as they are NOS).
Or get a razor somewhere in between.
Or all of the above! Which is what most of us here aspire to.:)
[QUOTE= I don't shave with the scales (I use the sharp end ;) )
[I]Doh![/I] :gaah: No wonder I can't get BBS!
I'll use gun blue remover. :rock:Quote:
Originally Posted by ShawnWmDavis
440 comes in 440A, 440B, and 440C.Quote:
Originally Posted by dancraig
440C is the good stuff.
Show some respect! A previous poster wrote:Quote:
Originally Posted by hothotpot
He is not Sir Charge-a-lot, he is Sir Rup-a-lot, Knight in shining Razors! I had some razors honed and briefly discussed some of my honing woes (short story: can hone well (a natural) but faulty equipment) and he freely gave good advice and support to me. He's a stand-up guy.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slartifartblast
440C was made specialy for kitchen knives
it contains 18% cr = good stain resitance
and it also has good hardenability
440A, 440B are not so goog a steel for knives and are less expensive than 440C
because of all that knives makers stamp 440C when this is what they have
if you have a knife stamped 440 only you can be sure it's not 440C
What is the result Ken of GD 200?Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenrup
ruprazor might be more then some places but you get what you pay for, i have no experience with him or GD's but atleast his are shave ready as soo as you get em.
ya gotta pay to play i can buy alot of cheap knives online but would i trust my life to one in the wilderness, not so much.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Old67
Don't be offended by the banter. It's not directed at you. :mace:
Feel free to ask any serious question, and yours seems fair enough. I have been here at SRP a while and these folks will go to extreme effort to help you and answer questions. Just hang in there and you will see for yourself.
If you want a razor you can experiment and learn with the Gold Dollar is fine. In my opinion it will serve you well as a good shaver. They are cheap because they are churned out by the factory with little concern for fit and finish. They can be had for chump change so you can't go too far wrong.
There are folks in this hobby that have shed blood to create the perfect custom razors and vintage restorations. Many of us have spent hundreds on beautiful razors that are near perfect examples of craftsmanship. So don't be surprised that we aren't all in love with these mass produced Gold Dollar razors.
throw down the 13.50 shipping inc. and you will get a razor you can hone and get a pretty darn good shave out of, trust me!!
Read the other threads, but IMO, they are cheap, but can give a decent shave. Maybe not as good as other razors, but for the price, it's very good.
The guy you mentioned selling them on ebay is a member here. He bought a bunch a while back and members here bought some from him. After that he decided to sell them himself like that. I can't answer to his honing ability as I hone my own.
Let us know what you think if you get one!
I haven't done it yet but I have had lots of experience with bluing and removing bluing. Plus it won't stand up to a buffer.Quote:
Originally Posted by hothotpot