Thread: My new Dovo Gentleman

Originally Posted by Phrank

Very nice - one question, has the razor been professionally honed?

Many company's will say a razor is "shave ready" from the factory, and while sharp, they are seldom at the point where you will get a comfortable, or more appropriately, an "encouraging" shave from them. If you're going to take this fun journey, having a shave ready blade is simply a must.

It is. The company/gentleman I ordered it from hones and readys each shaver prior to shipping.

Originally Posted by Michael70

It is. The company/gentleman I ordered it from hones and readys each shaver prior to shipping.

You are, "Go!" for blast off...take your time, I remember exactly where you are, the anticipation/fear is fun...my son actually said to me, "You're not actually going to shave with that are you?!?!?"

Now, I can't imagine shaving any other way...

For fear of getting an answer I would rather not hear, how do you know that the razor is sharp if you haven't used it yet?
by that I am saying that I hope you haven't been "testing" the edge on stuff.

Originally Posted by edhewitt

For fear of getting an answer I would rather not hear, how do you know that the razor is sharp if you haven't used it yet?
by that I am saying that I hope you haven't been "testing" the edge on stuff.

If you mean testing on paper; cloth; or wood sticks that will be a big no......LOL! I have only gently placed my thumb against the blade to get an inkling of just how sharp it feels and it is rather sharp I can tell. Now the only thing I hope is the placed purchased as they hone them to ready for the first shave was done I assume correctly. I am new to this so not sure I will know until ready time.

I am awaiting some soaps ordered; a decent brush (badger hair); and a soap bowl before even attempting to use. I have Dovo red/black paste and two dedicated leather strops for each paste and a linen strop for prepping the blade from what I read and the suggestion of the gentleman/owner of the business I bought the razor from.

So hopefully this journey begins soon and a new world opens to shaving!

That's good news. There are a few threads detailing how someone has tested their new razor for sharpness that were sure-fire ways to ensure it would be somewhere between dull and blunt by the time that they used it.
I don't know much about the Dovo pastes, were you advised to use them daily? If not do you have a clean leather strop for daily use?

Whilst you are awaiting your supplies you could grab a butter knife or similar and a strip of fabric/ belt etc and practice your stropping technique, stropping badly will most likely damage your edge so a bit of prior practice will be worthwhile. This forum has a videos section. I can personally recommend afdavis' and jimbo's videos but i am sure there are many others.

Now you can S.L.A.M.!!!

If it is shave ready, you should be good to go! Now the countdown begins. I hope you get a good comfortable & smooth shave on your first shave.

Originally Posted by engine46

If it is shave ready, you should be good to go! Now the countdown begins. I hope you get a good comfortable & smooth shave on your first shave.

Me as well my friend. I think I will just start by shaving the the down trod of my sideburn area on both sides to start and hope I don't filet my skin off first! Then from there maybe start adding a few other areas until I am full facing it.

I'll just play a little devils advocate. Lots of places say shave ready. I hope it is. It's a beautiful razor and will give you lifetimes of service. If your first shave is not great the normal response will be your technique. You won't truely be able to tell if it is you or the razor. Try adding where you are in the US and see if there is a member nearby that can help you along this amazing journey.

Jim

Originally Posted by Michael70

Me as well my friend. I think I will just start by shaving the the down trod of my sideburn area on both sides to start and hope I don't filet my skin off first! Then from there maybe start adding a few other areas until I am full facing it.

I usually check them on my arm hair, then my sideburns. If it gets my sideburns w/o any hair left, it is usually good to go.