How old is this DOVO?

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08-30-2010, 01:12 PM
Leon

How old is this DOVO?

Hi gents,

I grabbed this one last week for restoration. It should be pretty recent, but I don't have great knowledge of DOVO manufacturing dates.
I know that old DOVOS have Fritz Bracht engraved in the back of the shank until mid-80's. Recent DOVOs have the etching on the shank made by laser, so this razor falls in between those two phases - 90's, early 2000's?

Any hints?

http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/8088/sam0332x.jpg

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/1812/sam0333f.jpg

http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/3586/sam0334i.jpg
08-30-2010, 01:32 PM
Scipio

Steve at the Invisible Edge sells them exactly like that, but with goldwash, so Im guessing its a modern day one - maybe a few years old as the goldwash has faded. The pinning on that one's pivot looks alot better than Dovo's modern pinning though, so maybe a fair few years old?
08-30-2010, 01:49 PM
ScottGoodman

I would guess in the 80's-90's...
08-30-2010, 02:04 PM
Leon

My guess was that too, probably from the 90's...

Thanks gents.
08-30-2010, 02:59 PM
Scipio

How does it shave?
08-30-2010, 03:57 PM
Leon

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scipio

How does it shave?

I'll only use it after restoring it and honing it.
It will be interesting to have a post-Fritz Bracht Dovo to compare to my Fritz Bracht-era Dovo.
08-30-2010, 06:35 PM
altshaver

That is definitely a Dovo "Special" minus the gold wash. The shank stamp definitely dates the razor though. I think it could be as late as the early 2000's to whenever Dovo first started making that particular razor. I have read about a shaver that had a "Special" in the 70's, too.

Offtopic:
I really hate the new laser etching, printing, or whatever Dovo is doing with their new razors. I have read that TI is going to do this in the future as well. :(
08-30-2010, 07:18 PM
Scipio

Quote:

Originally Posted by altshaver

Offtopic:
I really hate the new laser etching, printing, or whatever Dovo is doing with their new razors. I have read that TI is going to do this in the future as well. :(

So do I. It's cheap looking and tacky. Dovo's evolved from stopping the production of 7/8s and 8/8s to only making 5/8 and 6/8s, now becoming too lazy to bother stamping the steel!
08-30-2010, 10:07 PM
manah

Leon, here you can find the same model 1516 of DOVO, that was made in 2006. The tangs are different. So, I think your razor was made in 90's.
08-30-2010, 11:01 PM
Scipio

The one in the OP has a third pin, and the peening is done properly, not like modern Dovos.
08-30-2010, 11:08 PM
altshaver

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scipio

The one in the OP has a third pin, and the peening is done properly, not like modern Dovos.

Ah, yeah, I didn't notice that. That would push it back some. I still think it is possible for it to be in the early 2000's as I have seen some vendors with old pictures showing shank stamps and the third pin. Given the condition, though, it probably is a little older. I don't think we'll be able to know this one's age without more info from the previous owner.
08-30-2010, 11:41 PM
manah

One more important thing is pins. The Leon's razor has the old DOVO pins. My razor(2006) has new pins.
08-31-2010, 01:35 AM
gugi

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leon

I know that old DOVOS have Fritz Bracht engraved in the back of the shank until mid-80's.

I'd like to see a reference on this, if it was done through the 80s it certainly was not on all dovo razors. I have had Dovos from the 60s and the 70s without FB stamping.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leon

Recent DOVOs have the etching on the shank made by laser, so this razor falls in between those two phases - 90's, early 2000's?

I bought a brand new tortoise special from classicshaving.com in the first half of 2008 and it had a regular stamp, not laser etching.
I wish I have time to look for the pictures (I sold it later on), but I'd say the pins on it were the new style.
08-31-2010, 10:16 AM
Leon

Quote:

Originally Posted by gugi

I'd like to see a reference on this, if it was done through the 80s it certainly was not on all dovo razors. I have had Dovos from the 60s and the 70s without FB stamping.

Well, a while ago, I got a box of NOS Dovos from the early 80s, straight from a cutlery warehouse. They have Fritz Bracht in the back of the shank. I sold all of them, except one for myself, and the original box that contained all the razor, of course :)
The person who sold me these, worked as an official Dovo importer and said these were on the shelves through many years and never got sold. Getting a more exact year of manufacturing is impossible, since they were gotten in the early 80s, but who knows when they were made in Germany?

Sorry for the lousy pic with the weird lightning

http://vintagescent.com/images/large..._FB_68_LRG.jpg