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So if AOS razors are made by TI and dove are they any less quality? They have a TI for a $130. Also are they shave ready. If not could I make them shave ready with balsa and past or would I need a stone. I would like to be able to walk in a store and see and hold the razor before I buy it. I have a red imp that I shave with now bought from lerry that is my starter ready to buy a nice razor now that I'm getting the hang of shaving down.
AOS razors are good quality, but are not sold "Shave Ready" by the standards on this forum. I speak from experience as my first razor was from AOS...then I bought my first "Shave Ready" razor from SRD. I would recommend buying a razor from Straight Razor Designs if you are looking for a shave ready razor. I bought my first razor from AOS and it took me many months of learning to hone to get it "shave ready" to our standards. If you want to learn to hone and go that route, you will need a stone (I started with a Norton 4k/8k combo). Check and see if there is a meet-up in your area coming up or a senior member close by to help you with learning to hone. Best of luck! :beer1:
The razors are fine. As far as I know, they are the same quality as their comparable counterparts directly from TI or Dovo although probably a bit pricier. As far as their shave readiness goes, I would assume that you will need to send them out for initial honing, regardless of what AOS claims.
It is certainly preferable to be able to examine the razor you are considering buying, but not always practical unless you are located near one of a very few Vendors. Since all it takes is a little waiting and a very reasonable amount of money to send your razor out to someone like Lynn I wouldn't hesitate to buy something with the intent of getting it honed post purchase.
I don't know if the AOS-branded razors are any different from the manufacturers' other stock, but I'm put off by the fact that AOS needs to overlabel them. I realize it's no different from all the past razors from German factories labeled with the names of American hardware stores or barbers supply houses, but with AOS it seems overly fashion conscious. It's like saying "Look, I could afford to pay extra for this because I bought it at a store in a fancy mall." If I'm going to dig deep for a new TI I really don't want someone else to splash their own logo on it.
:soapbox:
All that said, it's a good idea to go handle the razors. I got my hands on one of TI's current $500 flagship razors a couple of months ago, and discovered that the scales and overall balance were really uncomfortable for me. What a relief That was, 'cause otherwise the temptation was eating at me.
In our modest mall there's a knife shop that sells a few Dovos and maybe some Bokers too. You might try places like that.
I would guess that the AOS blades are not shave ready, and may even require a bevel reset before proper honing. That's going to be true of almost any factory edge, regardless of brand. I've yet to hear of an AOS store staffed by anyone who actually understands honing. The fact that they don't carry hones says to me that they're not really serious about their straight razor users. They've got some nice creams and soaps and such, but their target hardware customer is the guy who wants a luxurious handle for his disposable cartridges.
That all said, the knife store in our mall doesn't sell any hones finer than 4k, except the SpydercoUF. They don't really understand razor honing either, but at least they know what it is they don't understand.
In my opinion, you'd do best to go handle the goodies at AOS, buy some nice soaps or creams to thank them for their trouble, then order something from Straight Razor Designs, The Superior Shave (he carries lots of TIs), or other dedicated vendor who knows what it means to provide a shave-ready blade.
They are just as good as any other TI or DOVO, but i really would much rather have a DOVO or TI with out their boutique brand all over it. Their products are fine but they are just TOO OVER PRICED and seem to boast the fact that they are a high end luxury brand that only executives can afford . I think you would do better getting a razor here (classifieds) or on sites such as SRD or classic shaving, but if you have your eye on one of their (AOS) blades get Lynn or any other of SRP's wonderful vendors to hone it for you. =] just my 2cents.
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