Modified Gold Dollar

I am going to interject my observations at this point. First of all I do not take pictures of every razor that has a problem. I have honed enough razors of various brands and quality to wear out around a dozen or so hones. I am seeing some of the newer Dovo entry level razors with lower quality characteristics. I have honed approximately 700 Gold Dollar razors. I have a rejection rate of about 1.7%. The primary reason for rejection is that the blade is too brittle and will continually micro-chip. I have experienced this mostly with the model 84 and occasionally with a 208. I have not experienced this problem with any of the model 200s. I chose to offer the Gold Dollar razors as my main entry level razor as it was the most economical and highest quality razor I could find. I occasionally have companies trying to promote new razors that send me unsolicited samples. (I interject at this point that I had a few Pakistani razors sent to me that will take and hold an edge. However; at this point I do not plan to introduce this line of products.) None of the samples have met the criteria of high quality and being economical as an entry level razor equal to or even close to the Gold Dollar line. I have bought a number various brands of entry level razors and likewise none in my opinion competes with the Gold Dollar line. To elaborate further about my feelings of the Gold Dollar line would violate the forum rules concerning vendors promoting themselves. I will add this, I appreciate these forums as it enables anyone the opportunity to express themselves.

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Originally Posted by Undream

Can't argue with that! Lookin' good.

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Can argue with that. Marker tests are not indicative, as once there, you have to take excess steel away from a bevel perspective. Meaning, that razor may have problems you cannot even see at that stage.

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Originally Posted by Undream

My 2c... Hydaral, I won't say that your Dovos were never warped, because, there is always the chance that they were.

However, those razors, in their current condition, are impossible to evaluate because any resemblance to their original condition has been altered by improper honing. There is no way anyone in here could determine if the blades were warped they day you pulled them out of the box based on these pictures.

Cheers!

:beer2:

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My opinion:

Razor #1 needs to be dropped from discussion, as that thing is roadkill at this point.


Razor #2 does indeed have alot of hone wear as well, but what that tells me, is that even with that much hone wear, the bevel has not been able to meet along the length of the razor.

And the fact that the hone wear is opposite on opposite sides of the razor, even with so much hone wear shows the underlying issue that still remains.

Here's three GDs I had sitting here at my desk, same test.

The flaw that can be seen here is the uneven outline at the heel of all razors. That is an outline flaw, not a warped blade flaw.

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Originally Posted by BeBerlin

I beg to differ. The honewear is so massive that there is little use in speculating. Looking at razor #1, I daresay that the problem is the honing, not the razor. Usually that kind of wear is the result of compulsive honing by people with limited experience. They do not know when to stop until they have ground down the razor. And then blame it on a warped blade.

Mind you, I am not saying that an older Dovo could not have such problems. In fact, it is pretty much an established fact that Dovo did have QA problems until about 3 years ago. And yes, razors from that period are still being sold. Which is why we recommend buying pre honed razors from a reputable source who will see such errors and deal with the manufacturer before the potential seller has to do that, one way or another.

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Isn't that exactly what has been recommended in regards to buying Gold Dollars as well?

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Originally Posted by Kenrup

I am seeing some of the newer Dovo entry level razors with lower quality characteristics.

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Fascinating. It must be a conspiracy. I have one of Germany's biggest Dovo retailers right around the corner. They have been honing and selling hundreds of Dovos, including, of course, the Best Quality ones. There were literally none of these problems.

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Originally Posted by Kenrup

I am going to interject my observations at this point. First of all I do not take pictures of every razor that has a problem. I have honed enough razors of various brands and quality to wear out around a dozen or so hones. I am seeing some of the newer Dovo entry level razors with lower quality characteristics. I have honed approximately 700 Gold Dollar razors. I have a rejection rate of about 1.7%. The primary reason for rejection is that the blade is too brittle and will continually micro-chip. I have experienced this mostly with the model 84 and occasionally with a 208. I have not experienced this problem with any of the model 200s. I chose to offer the Gold Dollar razors as my main entry level razor as it was the most economical and highest quality razor I could find. I occasionally have companies trying to promote new razors that send me unsolicited samples. (I interject at this point that I had a few Pakistani razors sent to me that will take and hold an edge. However; at this point I do not plan to introduce this line of products.) None of the samples have met the criteria of high quality and being economical as an entry level razor equal to or even close to the Gold Dollar line. I have bought a number various brands of entry level razors and likewise none in my opinion competes with the Gold Dollar line. To elaborate further about my feelings of the Gold Dollar line would violate the forum rules concerning vendors promoting themselves. I will add this, I appreciate these forums as it enables anyone the opportunity to express themselves.

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Interesting post. I can say that I am at the opposite perspective here and having honed over 10,000 Dovo Razors, I do not find any lower quality characteristics that you would have readers believe. Actually, I challenge everyone who visits me to pick out a Dovo razor of the hundreds here in sealed boxes and find one that does not lay flat on a hone. I have seen on both the Gold Dollars I have bought and in the many I have honed, significant problems with the grind and finish. Much more so than any Dovo I have ever encountered that has not been destroyed by someones honing.

I have nothing against Gold Dollar razors and would agree with an analogy I saw indicating that these razors are like Williams Soap compared to better products. I find that they can be honed and shave. There is value in that and I have given a few to beginners for that reason.

It is interesting that the TI razors I have seen still have fit and finish problems although not as many as years past, but the grinding on a few that I have seen leaves much to be desired, in my opinion and yet you guys seem to target Dovo's only. There are several other manufacturers out there producing razors again and I think all are nice and yet it is rare that we have any comparisons or pick out one that may not be perfect or that is hard to hone.

At the end of the day, I don't see the benefit from this kind of thing and particularly to the extent that this has been driven to here. I think all points have been made a long time ago and we as vendors should not be involved in this type of discussion at all.

For me to elaborate further would also be a violation of the forum rules concerning vendors promoting themselves.

Thanks,

Lynn

Wow.... sorry for digging this back up from last month... But man this was a longggg read and only took me 3hrs to finish. Looks like i'll be buying a couple Gold Dollars next. Very informative

To me, it seems that the bottom line is simple: It doesn't matter if you're buying a Gold Dollar, Dovo, or any other brand, if you buy from a reputable vendor, particularly one who is a member of SRP, you're going to get a good, serviceable razor. That's certainly been my experience.

Guys, I'm locking this thread as I think we've pretty much covered all there is to cover on these razors.

Thanks,

Stu

Ok, don't shoot me (jet). First of all I want to state I have zero interest in either promoting or bashing the GD Razor

I've ordered a GD razor honed it up (first time I Honed a razor) and used it for several weeks.

Now what I did is put it under the microscope (100x magnification) and take some picture of the edge right after use (with stropping it).

I took the worse looking part of the edge to clearly show how bad/good it is.

This is the result.

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/6783/gdedge1.png

http://img839.imageshack.us/img839/4517/gdedge2.png

The top of the picture shows the worst and most worn part of the blade and the bottom part shows the overall state of the razor after a shave.

Now I am no expert but that looks pretty fine to me, even at the most worn part of the blade where you can clearly see blemishes on the bevel the cutting edge is still straight and fine.

Now I can only conclude that that is a good thing and I was wondering what my fellow straight shavers think of these pictures and what we can conclude by studying them.

Gr. Skyer

P.S. To give you a more complete idea I've just looked at my 1932 magnetic (great shaver) and it show similar (even slightly worse) "scratches" on the bevel after a shave....

There's very little light on the bevel so it's hard to see anything except a somewhat straight line at the edge with what looks to me like some corrugation at near the res limit of the pics (except for the microchip plainly visible in the second photo)

I don't personally get much from the photos except I think they're cool to look at :) I am used to looking at bevels in a different light for self-study with my own razors and hones

I do not trust microscope pictures ever since this thread: Same edge, same spot, same magnification, different light... - Straight Razor Place Forums

If it shaves well, that is all that matters though.

I can't see anything on the bevel either; just the "satin finish" on the razor itself. Even if I could see the bevel, I don't really know what I'm looking for anyway.

Hmmz, Didn't know these images could differ so much in different lighting. This is the same microscope Lynn uses for inspecting his edges (that is why I bought it).

I do get the point though, just wanted to see what you guys think.

@hoglahoo: What is corrugation?

if you like to show edge to rest of the people how it looks like please make pictures of the edge not the bevel.
Bevel doesn't tell whole a lot.
in the other hand lightening plays a big role on microscopic view too.
Thank you for the bevel pics. Keep it going.

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Originally Posted by TheSkyer

Ok, don't shoot me (jet). First of all I want to state I have zero interest in either promoting or bashing the GD Razor

Now I can only conclude that that is a good thing and I was wondering what my fellow straight shavers think of these pictures and what we can conclude by studying them.

P.S. To give you a more complete idea I've just looked at my 1932 magnetic (great shaver) and it show similar (even slightly worse) "scratches" on the bevel after a shave....

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When you say scratches and blemishes on the bevel, but the cutting edge is ok, what are you calling the bevel? Are you doing a double bevel, leaving blemishes on the first bevel, then finishing with a microbevel by adding tape to the spine, or are you talking about the factory bevel that isn't being completely honed due to poor grinding on the GD's? i just ask to be comprehensive, as it is now, I can't honestly see the edge very well.


To answer your question, I don't think anything can be concluded from the pictures other than I don't see any major chips. I may see a small chip near the bottom of the pic, but it's hard to tell.

The lighting isn't really giving a good look at the edge. Regardless, we still wouldn't be able to tell how smooth a shaver it is. My edges after a BBW look nice and straight with no blemishes, but it isn't as smooth a shaving edge as my coticule produces. (call me crazy, but the coticule actually looks like a bit less polished under magnification, but what can I say... it works MUCH better).


Oh yeah, forgot to ask... are you saying that after shaving with your magnetic the bevel has scratches on it? Are these scratches not there pre-shaving?

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Originally Posted by hi_bud_gl

if you like to show edge to rest of the people how it looks like please make pictures of the edge not the bevel.
Bevel doesn't tell whole a lot.
in the other hand lightening plays a big role on microscopic view too.
Thank you for the bevel pics. Keep it going.

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This is a good as the pics get. My microscope doesn't go any further than a 100x and the lighting conditions are provided by a build in light source. Can't make those pics clearer as they are...... It was a hassle to just take the pics in the first place, took me a good 15 minutes to line up the camera with microscope and get a steady shot.

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Originally Posted by TheSkyer

@hoglahoo: What is corrugation?

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It's the pattern of irregularity in the bevel extending to the edge that makes the edge look like it has teeth - sort of like striations that protrude against the edge, forming a sort of bumpy edge instead of a fine, straight edge. But the resolution of the photo is not quite enough to convince me that's the case, maybe it's just the fuzzy focus at that narrow scope

PS There's nothing wrong with the photo - it's just not quite suited to extended study imo. You might try angling the bevel differently under the scope to get a different view as well just for kicks

I've never owned or shaved with a Gold Dollar. From everything I've read, it seems to me that the issue with them is not the quality of the steel or their ability to hold an edge. The issue seems to be more with poor manufacturing resulting in poor fitting scales, uneven grinds, bent tangs, etc...

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Originally Posted by Del1r1um

When you say scratches and blemishes on the bevel, but the cutting edge is ok, what are you calling the bevel? Are you doing a double bevel, leaving blemishes on the first bevel, then finishing with a microbevel by adding tape to the spine, or are you talking about the factory bevel that isn't being completely honed due to poor grinding on the GD's? i just ask to be comprehensive, as it is now, I can't honestly see the edge very well.


To answer your question, I don't think anything can be concluded from the pictures other than I don't see any major chips. The lighting isn't really giving a good look at the edge. Regardless, we still wouldn't be able to tell how smooth a shaver it is. My edges after a BBW look nice and straight with no blemishes, but it isn't as smooth a shaving edge as my coticule produces. (call me crazy, but the coticule actually looks like a bit less polished under magnification, but what can I say... it works MUCH better).


Oh yeah, forgot to ask... are you saying that after shaving with your magnetic the bevel has scratches on it? Are these scratches not there pre-shaving?

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Just a single bevel started on a BBW followed by a coticule and finished on a green and red pasted paddle strop...

As for the magnetic, I haven't looked at it pre shave. When I got it it was shave ready so I never took the time to hone it up myself, I am guessing that would remove most of the scratches on the bevel.

Whasup bud! I know its been a long minute since Ive been seen in this parts,but still alive(somewhat).I actually own and shave daily with a GD.Whilst it does hold true that you get what you pay for,considering the low price tag,the GD holds its own.Using tips from SRP I learned how to hone a straight.Surprisingly enough I took another tip from a Great Outdoors type of guy.He told me to try a Smiths Tri-Hone which contains two diffferent textures of Arkansas natural stone and one carborundum.The results were outstanding and under forty bucks!

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Originally Posted by Chopkins

Whasup bud! I know its been a long minute since Ive been seen in this parts,but still alive(somewhat).I actually own and shave daily with a GD.Whilst it does hold true that you get what you pay for,considering the low price tag,the GD holds its own.Using tips from SRP I learned how to hone a straight.Surprisingly enough I took another tip from a Great Outdoors type of guy.He told me to try a Smiths Tri-Hone which contains two diffferent textures of Arkansas natural stone and one carborundum.The results were outstanding and under forty bucks!

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yup those tri hones are awesome. Spyderco even makes one with 5 grids ;)

Are you guys saying this hone to sharpen razors???????????

Attachment 46637


Cabela's -- Tri-Hone Knife Sharpener

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

Are you guys saying this hone to sharpen razors???????????

Attachment 46637


Cabela's -- Tri-Hone Knife Sharpener

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Are you saying that's not a razor?

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Originally Posted by Utopian

Are you saying that's not a razor?

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:rofl2::rofl2::rofl2: He's your problem now Glen!...... and you are welcome to him!

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Originally Posted by Utopian

Are you saying that's not a razor?

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'At's not a razor... THIS is a razor

THIS is a razor

http://www.moderngent.com/media/quintippio.jpg

Can we get back on topic?

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Originally Posted by Utopian

Are you saying that's not a razor?

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Originally Posted by nun2sharp

:rofl2::rofl2::rofl2: He's your problem now Glen!...... and you are welcome to him!

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Kelly you can not do that to me..

";"";" No way, ain't happening..

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Originally Posted by TheSkyer

Can we get back on topic?

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:roflmao
OK, yeah, sorry, let's get back on the topic, which was criticizing your images. :D
Are you certain that the magnification is 100X? It doesn't really look like it to me. Of course the bevel would have been more apparent if the lighting were different but still the edge itself does look like it held up quite well. As others have said, perhaps begrudgingly, the steel is pretty good. The problem is that the steel is too often formed into an awful misshapen mess.

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Originally Posted by Utopian

:roflmao
OK, yeah, sorry, let's get back on the topic, which was criticizing your images. :D
Are you certain that the magnification is 100X? It doesn't really look like it to me. Of course the bevel would have been more apparent if the lighting were different but still the edge itself does look like it held up quite well. As others have said, perhaps begrudgingly, the steel is pretty good. The problem is that the steel is too often formed into an awful misshapen mess.

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I am positive its 100X

If I had only known :confused: Never too late though, Now if I can get my naniwas, nortons, shaptons, coticules and eschers in the classifieds and sell them before everyone finds out .... all I needed all along was the Smiths Tri-Hone!! :y

Jimmy, don't kid us. It's not about need, and I would not doubt if you own half a dozen of the tri-hones already

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Originally Posted by hoglahoo

Jimmy, don't kid us. It's not about need, and I would not doubt if you own half a dozen of the tri-hones already

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Shhh Lee, I've managed to keep it secret up until now. :nono:

So I says to da Doctah,

Doc, I needs a hone that will be infallible and get me ovah da rough times don't cha know. He tinks for a moment and then reaches into dem big pokets and pulls out a Tri-Doomahokey Dokey Smokey....... I says Doc, Shirley you jest as dat ting looks like a sputneek. It's beeger dan your heed!! He says don't ever call him Shirley again and charges me $200 bucks for the visit.

Some thangs that ya hears is just amazin!!!!

A feller the other day was a tellin' me that some razah called a Zeepka was just as good as a any custom razor on the planet unless it came from them fallin' sky thingies and it only costes a buck three eighty. Yep and it takes a Zeepkameistah to even put an edge on one. I need to get me one and try it out.

You just is nevah too ol' ta keeps on loinin' don't cha know........

By the way, my microscope is different. It has a red light that says Done on it and it comes on when the razor is properly honed............

OK, now where was we.......

Have fun,

Lynn

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Originally Posted by Lynn

By the way, my microscope is different. It has a red light that says Done on it and it comes on when the razor is properly honed............

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Ha! I knew you were holding out on us.

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Originally Posted by Lynn

By the way, my microscope is different. It has a red light that says Done on it and it comes on when the razor is properly honed............

Lynn

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Oh Jesus!!!!! that was funny, BTW where did you buy that one????????? :idea:

For all of you naysayers out there... I have just honed a razor on the tri-hone, and taken a picture under 100x magnification... the results are amazing... BBS all day long, and here is your proof

Attachment 46649

Oh wowsah. Do you also use dis puttah?

http://top10kid.com/wp-content/uploa...caddyshack.jpg

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Originally Posted by Lynn

So I says to da Doctah,

Doc, I needs a hone that will be infallible and get me ovah da rough times don't cha know. He tinks for a moment and then reaches into dem big pokets and pulls out a Tri-Doomahokey Dokey Smokey....... I says Doc, Shirley you jest as dat ting looks like a sputneek. It's beeger dan your heed!! He says don't ever call him Shirley again and charges me $200 bucks for the visit.

Some thangs that ya hears is just amazin!!!!

A feller the other day was a tellin' me that some razah called a Zeepka was just as good as a any custom razor on the planet unless it came from them fallin' sky thingies and it only costes a buck three eighty. Yep and it takes a Zeepkameistah to even put an edge on one. I need to get me one and try it out.

You just is nevah too ol' ta keeps on loinin' don't cha know........

By the way, my microscope is different. It has a red light that says Done on it and it comes on when the razor is properly honed............

OK, now where was we.......

Have fun,

Lynn

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[QUOTE=Del1r1um;634653]For all of you naysayers out there... I have just honed a razor on the tri-hone, and taken a picture under 100x magnification... the results are amazing... BBS all day long, and here is your proof



Sorry Dave but that looks more like 1000x to me :)