Thread: Opinions Welcome (and wanted!): Boker Edelweiss, Dovo All Stainless, Dovo Diamant

The boker was the best choice. i love all my bokers even the ones that are not pretty.

Dovo makes nice razors but, to me, they rate below Boker and TI... they make up for it in volume, sort of like the middling wade and butchers, not always the best blades but they made a a huge amount of them.

enjoy,
jim

Originally Posted by nathangra

I'll keep you guys updated on when I get it, what I think, pictures, etc. I imagine you're going to see a nicked, bloody face.

That's better than a nicked, bloody strop. And who has room in their shave den for a live stropping surface anyway? Especially one that becomes ill-tempered.

At least your face will heal!

Practice stropping with a butter knife--seriously--to lay in some muscle memory before you put the real blade (and the strop) at risk. It's an odd new motion, and you really want to program your flip timing. Flip too soon--->nicked strop. It's easy to do, and also easy to practice out of your system.

Congrats on a decision and enjoy your new goodies!

Best wishes

I must admit I like Bokers better than Dovos and the price differential seems to somewhat confirm my belief that Bokers are better. But Dovo wouldn't be in business if it wasn't the favorite of many shavers.

If you're beginner I really encourage you to enjoy the journey, because it isn't easy to learn but it is very rewarding once you do.

Assuming you are beginning, here are some resources I found especially helpful:

Is Straight Razor Shaving for You? - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com. This article inspired me to try and told me what I needed to start.

I'll admit patronizing the founder of this forum a little, but this was the only resource I know about that touches on all aspects of straight razor shaving. It was very helpful in getting me started and now that I know how to do it I still watch it once or twice a year for a "refresher course." World Of Straight Razor DVD - Straight Razor Place Classifieds

Here's Shaving Made Easy from 1905, a free read (downloadable for free too) that also helped a lot. http://archive.org/details/shavingmadeeasyw0020th

Finally, I watched this video probably several hundred times during my development as a straight razor shaver and as I learned I was increasingly able to reach areas of my face that I previously was unable to reach.


My routine has deviated from these mentors over time but I don't think I could have learned without something to follow. The above mentioned tools were my roadmap and each one reinforced the other in my development.

Of course forum participation also helps. And having fun!

Nathan, welcome! I'm new here as well and went thru virtually the same decision making process as you just have and ended making the very same decision. I got my Edelweise on the 12th so I've had it less than 3 weeks. In a word (or 3) "I love it!!" - period!! shaving w/ a straight is cooler than cool and by that I mean that shaving w/ one is so much fun. Yes, there is a wee bit of "edginess to it", but that just adds a touch of icing to the overall learning curve; and that is one of the things that I love about this shaving method. If you are going to be successful at it you MUST, and will, learn. Just remember to stay relaxed and focused on what you are doing at ALL times.

CalifoniaCajun's above advice and links are spot on, as is Lynn's written tutorial on "your first shave" in the beginners section of this forum. There are a couple other good forums out there, but in my opinion none match the wealth of knowledge (read collective member hands-on experience and insight), the scope, the look and feel of the actual website, and last, but certainly not lest, the camaraderie of this group of fellow wet shavers.

And as I am sure you are chomping at the bit to see more detail of your new purchase (which will arrive very quickly thanks to the SRD folks), here's a couple pics of mine. And if those are scratches in the first 2 pics, I can't see them w/ my naked eye. More likely they were just very fine oily streaks left behind when I wiped the shipping oil off w/ a soft linen cloth before taking the pics.

Syslight- Interesting take. I've read up on opinions in the Boker vs Dovo field, and both have their following for sure. I don't think one is leaps and bound better than the other (from what I read) but I'm glad you like the Bokers. The Edelweiss just seemed like the right fit to me.

roughtkype- Thank you for the advice. Butterknife makes a lot more sense than the 'pen and cap' method I've been hearing about. Serrations won't 'scratch' the strop? Anyway, I'll be sure to practice. I've sharpened knives before, but never stropped. Honestly, one of the reasons I started looking into straight razing was due to this fact. I was curious about stropping, then I found a Zwilling straight razor / strop combo... then it snowballed out of control and I'm here. (Happily)

CaliforniaCajun- Thank you for this wealth of knowledge and all of the references. I really appreciate it! Very thoughtful for you to take out some time and link me to those sites/videos and I'll be sure to check them out as my razor makes its way through the mail.

dArtagnan- That razor's a beauty. And I find your (our) story pretty fascinating. It's funny we went through the same mindset and decision process. But man, seeing those pictures, I'm glad I did. Thanks for giving me some detailed photos and for directing me to 'your first shave'. I remember seeing it before but had forgotten that it existed. Would love to read up on Lynn's advice.

And I have to agree. I think SRP is the best forum in this field, hands down. All things considered. Thanks a lot for the replies, guys.

I've been following this thread and finally have a moment or two to post. As a noob to straight shaving any of the blades you are considering will do a fine job for a shave. Your first razor should be one that appeals to you out of the bunch. If there is a difference in quality of shave between them you will not notice it for several months at the earliest. In straight shaving the quality of the shave is directly related to the sum of all the components. I am referring to your stropping, your shaving technique, your face prep, the honing your razor received, the shave soap/cream you will be using and the quality of lather. I may have missed one or two and the order of importance may be off a little as will different people have a different perceived value on their importance but all directly relate to the quality of your shave. Different people honing your razor and even the same person on different days can affect the edge quality. That is part of what makes this hobby so great! I would venture a guess that by the time you get proficient in your techniques you will be looking to add to your razor collection if you are persistent in your quest to use straight razors. Come a year from now you will look at your first razor with a different light. It may be your favorite razor or you will have a new favorite. Which ever it is you will have greatly improved your skills enough to make an accurate assessment of the razor. Good luck. I look forward to reading about your adventures and progress.

Originally Posted by Joed

I've been following this thread and finally have a moment or two to post. As a noob to straight shaving any of the blades you are considering will do a fine job for a shave. Your first razor should be one that appeals to you out of the bunch. If there is a difference in quality of shave between them you will not notice it for several months at the earliest. In straight shaving the quality of the shave is directly related to the sum of all the components. I am referring to your stropping, your shaving technique, your face prep, the honing your razor received, the shave soap/cream you will be using and the quality of lather. I may have missed one or two and the order of importance may be off a little as will different people have a different perceived value on their importance but all directly relate to the quality of your shave. Different people honing your razor and even the same person on different days can affect the edge quality. That is part of what makes this hobby so great! I would venture a guess that by the time you get proficient in your techniques you will be looking to add to your razor collection if you are persistent in your quest to use straight razors. Come a year from now you will look at your first razor with a different light. It may be your favorite razor or you will have a new favorite. Which ever it is you will have greatly improved your skills enough to make an accurate assessment of the razor. Good luck. I look forward to reading about your adventures and progress.

What he said!!!

Joed- So very well said. Thanks for replying and keeping an eye out on the thread. I think you said it best. I have similar thoughts, myself. That's why I was so compelled to buy via SRD. There has been a lot of praise for Lynn and his honing abilities, so that's something I think I can kind of put out of the equation (honing). I'm practicing my stropping already and am excited for the next steps. I'll be sure to keep you all posted as I go through them.

Today I purchased some sandalwood after shave balm from a little place called The Art of the Shave in Tysons (VA). Smells good enough.

You made a choice, and I wish you the best first shave! One thing to remember, turn the scales all the way around:

I have a friend who decided, after coming over for Easter, and after me talking his ear off about how great wet-shaving is, to pick up the lost art. I supplied him with a sample of soap, a DE and some blades, a Shave ready straight, and showed him how it was done. I actually took him to the shave den, lathered up and shaved. It looked like he took it all in... But...

After a couple weeks he called me up and said that he needed some help. I told him to come on a Saturday morning so we could actually go through the whole process together, and it turns out that his biggest problem was that he had the scales pointed down 90 degrees instead of 270 and they were getting in his way. Luckily he only did his cheek like I told him, otherwise I am sure he would have been all kinds of torn up! Good luck, and don't forget, Lynn also has some great stuff out on YouTube, and a great DVD for purchase. I gave my friend the DVD and told him to watch all 3 hours plus of it over the next couple weeks.

Again good luck, and enjoy the process!

Hi Nathan,

Just one quick reply--yes serrations on a table knife will probably scratch a strop.

Also, don't strop your ne blade before its first use. It will have been stropped.

Best wishes and good luck!