Thread: Modified Gold Dollar

How does that equate to "full hollow" "half hollow" "quarter grind" etc?

Originally Posted by mainaman

Yeah I am aware that easy gos a long way but my GD was not on the same page with me.

Well, at least you can say you won the argument!

Originally Posted by matt321

How does that equate to "full hollow" "half hollow" "quarter grind" etc?

I rate them as full hollow. They give quite a *ping* when plinked. But , they also do have a beefy spine.

Thank you, Seraphim, for sharing this. The more I learn about Gold Dollar razors, the more I like them. And the price can't be beat.

Hey Seraphim, was that lopped on purpose?
The first time heard about the Gold Dollar was mention about a year or so ago I did some research and they didn't get very good reviews. Lately though I've been reading a lot of good praises about them on SRP and B&B. A lot has been said about them being very good beginners razors. I've been str8 shaving for a year and have some nice vintage razors but since the price was right ($14 BIN + $2.00 shipping) I ordered a GD 100 about an hour ago from Mr.Parko, you can't hardly beat that for a new razor.

Originally Posted by DoughBoy68

Hey Seraphim, was that lopped on purpose?
The first time heard about the Gold Dollar was mention about a year or so ago I did some research and they didn't get very good reviews. Lately though I've been reading a lot of good praises about them on SRP and B&B. A lot has been said about them being very good beginners razors. I've been str8 shaving for a year and have some nice vintage razors but since the price was right ($14 BIN + $2.00 shipping) I ordered a GD 100 about an hour ago from Mr.Parko, you can't hardly beat that for a new razor.

I lop alot of my razors on purpose...

Well then, lop away! I checked out some of your work and you have some talent there, I'm very impressed. What you do with a Dremel is amazing. I do good just to do some minor buffing with one. Keep up the good work!

I finally had a chance to play with a pair of these - a member was kind enough to send me two to play with in exchange for honing them. I don't remember the model number - they were in dark green/sparkley scales and had some sort of a wash on the blade.

I have to say, I was wholly unimpressed. The scales were fine - cheep plastic. The "wash" or whatever it was on the blade had color that bled off onto the blade, and there was a poorly applied clearcoat of some type. I suppose that will help keep the design on the blade, but it was poorly done and ugly. The grind was ok - heals weren't great and the stock bevel's were uneven.

They honed up ease enough, and while they did shave, I couldn't get great edges on them. Maybe I didn't spend enough time trying or maybe I'm not as good at honing as I thought, but I just couldn't get them to shave as well as the vintage blades I've had come my way. I'm not sure how well they hold their edges, because I didn't shave much with either.

IMO, even if you're not sure if straight razors are for you, I think you're better off getting a $30 shave ready vintage razor off the classifieds than one of these. If you want to learn to hone, shoot someone a PM and ask for a workhorse with the bevel set. If you want to practice modding razors, maybe these are a place to start, but you should have enough knowledge and experience to pick up cheap, vintage razors off ebay that will cost the same or less and end up better shavers. Maybe others see the value in these razors, but compared to the alternatives, I don't. They're not terrible razors, but there is better out there for the same money.

I would highly recommend spending plenty of time on your bevel setting hone with Gold Dollars.

And use light pressure, as they are a large blade, and are decently hollow, and thus can easily deflect the actual cutting edge up away from the hone when too much pressure is applied (holli, I seem to recall you have a fondness for wedgey blades, which can handle alot of force on the hones).

I used to also have a dickens of a time getting them to come around, until I figured that part out.

Really, remember you are honing a inexpensive razor, so why hold back when using the 1k stone? Have at it until you can cleave arm hairs easily 2-3mm above skin level, and then progress from there.

The truly difficult issue is that the heels of these razors are poorly ground, and are too thick to let you hone them along with the rest of the bevel. Some modifications are helpful before trying to hone the heel especially.
See this thread for help in that department.


I agree with your assesment that, although they are inexpensive, they are so quirky as to not be a great first-time honing experience.

If you still have the razors, give them another go, starting with really setting the bevel.