Wet shaving!

LOL! I just order a bow myself. The one I had was not very good quality (my parents gave it to me long time ago). I also got a new strop (Portland Razors one) which is miles ahead of my $5 Chinese micro strop, and a new Dovo 5/8 1/2 hollow razor (pro sharpened) from The Superior Shave.

I will try them all this weekend, and give Dovo a fair shot against the GD 208.

I will also ship my other Dovo 6/8 full hollow razor to Maggard for repairs.

@dubiousmike, that razor is the sex. I love black stuff.

 

Go to try my "The Superior Shave" Dovo 5/8 half hollow blade today. I got a good reasonable shave with it. On par perhaps to my Dovo 6/8 full hollow blade. As recommended by the vendor, I did not strop on first use.

This tells me that, though I scratched and took too much metal off my Dovo 6/8 full hollow, and even have like 3 bevels there, I did a reasonable job at sharpening it in the end. So not sending it to Maggard for now. Maybe later to fix a few things I might have screwed up.

This also tells me that I have a preference for heavy blades. For the blade to be heavy, there needs to be a bit of metal on the spine. GDs definitively have way more metal on the spine than Dovos. The spine of my GD is not uniform though. Dovo spines are both uniform and are clearly well constructed.

Anyhow. I already have 4 shaves with my GD w/o need to sharpen. Will keep a tally of how many shaves the GD can do w/o sharpening to verify claims about steel quality.

 

Possible. I bought my more serious strop here:

https://www.portlandrazorco.com/

This one:

https://www.portlandrazorco.com/strops/deluxe-strop

Talking from experience, I can say their strops are top notch and will not break the bank.

And they make their own razors, all of which are 1/4 hollow (almost wedge but not quite so it's not that difficult to sharpen). 1/4 hollow is probably an optimum blade for me, but I don't have immediate plans to upgrade. That said, maybe in the future I would consider their "Siren". Their "Sprite" is smaller than most other razors, and while maneuverable, it is likely lighter than most 1/2 hollows given it's size. A full size 6/8" 1/4 hollow "Siren" seems like a good fit:

https://www.portlandrazorco.com/classic-straight-razors/the-siren

My understanding is that it comes truly "shave ready" right from the factory (unlike Dovo which I can attest is not "shave ready" from the factory for my needs.)

 

BTW. The Dovo's are not bad at all. They are great shavers. But given what I've read, I was expecting them to completely put my GD 208 to shame. They did not.

Like I said, I will continue to put all these 3 razors (+ an Equinox cheap shavette) in the rotation and see how things go over time. So far I can see exactly why the GD 208 is such a polarizing blade:

Even heavily modified for functionality, it is not w/o geometry issues and it's not that hot looking. But IMO if I can hone it, probably an ape can. And so far it does seem to retain it's edge. I would definitively recommend a shave ready GD 208 for a beginner with a $30 to $40 budget. One could go for a used blade, but I've seldom seen nice ones (like well cared Pumas or Filarmonica) go for less than that.

From a GD 208 one can go for a Dovo, if one considers the blade too heavy, or a Portland Razors, if just right or like a little more heft. One could go for a nice used one that may seem to fit the bill better, but even then I would start with a GD 208 to know what to buy even in the used market.

I've now used a 6/8" and a 5/8". The 6/8" full hollow and the 5/8" half hollow. Both Dovo. IMO I did not think there was a night and day difference. I do think the 5/8" is slightly more maneuverable, but I like the feel of the 6/8" a little more. BTW, the GD 208 is 6/8".

 

It's hard to recommend on these things, because like in audio, shave performance is sort of a subjective deal.

But my honest opinion is that a professionally shave ready GD 208 looks like shit, but does not shave like shit. My understanding is that if you buy a shave ready GD 208, they pretty much take care of the hit and miss issue. I only bought one though, and maybe I got lucky. But I doubt it. I'm not the first to say their razors are not shit.

Since you have no experience with straights, I do not recommend you take a dive into a more expensive razor. Nor do I recommend you go the shavette route. I did that and while I learned to shave with a shavette, it was not easy. A shavette is a different animal, because the DE blades that go in them are way sharper than any real straight razor. They do not forgive mistakes and pressure should be less than a straight or a DE, but may be effective over a wider range of attack angles. I have a heavier shavette currently, and will give it a test drive soon. But given the sharpness of the blades, I feel handling of these types of razors is a little different.

If the GD does not inspire you confidence, you can always buy a Dovo 5/8" half hollow from "The Superior Shave". The dude is well regarded (even in SRP if I understand correctly), and I can tell you his Dovo that came to me was indeed shave ready. I think that razor, pro honed by him, and new costs around $73 or $78. It's twice a GD 208 though. But you do get a good brand new blade that looks way nicer than a GD 208. Shaving performance aside, you do get what you pay for in terms of finish and quality.

It's your call. I did both + hone my own Dovo as well. I don't share SRP's paranoia about the GD 208 (modified). I just understand where they are coming from, because I've used it and compared it with 2 Dovos.

Take your time in your decision. But don't be afraid.

 

For the Dovo option, given GD give you the creeps, this is exactly what I bought (shave ready):

http://www.thesuperiorshave.com/straight_razors_dovo_best_quality_101581.html

It's currently $73. It took a while to get to me (like 1 or 2 weeks I think). But it came to me safe and sound. Their tracking deal is shit, and I think they know it. I was about to call them to see what's up. But didn't have to. Product was in the mail.

Like I said, this is not a used product. It's brand new. And it's hand honed well.

BTW, for Dovos I actually like half hollow for another reason (unless we are talking Bismark): They come with a single stabilizer instead of two. Full hollow almost always come with two stabilizers. This makes sharpening a little harder IMO if you start getting close to the first stabilizer. This happened to me with my full hollow 6/8" Dovo. Bismark does not seem to come with stabilizers (or shoulders) and it is a 6/8" full hollow. But it's $149 shave ready. A Dovo Bismark is very nice though.

 

To hone I use this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013G4SD9G

It's a small stone though, and I use a cheap 1000 grit to set bevels. I don't think you need to worry about setting bevels if it comes shave ready. Because it's a small stone, you would have to do cross passes with the razor. But it's not hard IMO.

Alternatively you can buy these:

https://www.amazon.com/Norton-Japanese-Style-Combination-Waterstone-8-Inch/dp/B0006NFDPI/

It's what most every random dude recommends. But it's not $9.

In a way that's one of the reasons I got the GD. I learned to hone using the $9 Chinese stone with the GD.

(BTW, I see you mentioned some dude hones with a 20k grit. LOL! a 10k grit stone doesn't even absorb water. It's like a piece of polished marble. I can only imagine a 20k grit. One uses the 10k to polish, remove crap and smooth the blade. That said I have not reason to doubt that Etsy dude offers quality products. I honestly don't know and would have to do some research on his work.)

 

Naniwa stones do come up often. There are those Norton ones I mentioned, and also some diamond ones that may not require water and do the job faster and cleaner. May cost a little extra.

If you practice with a GD, at least you know those razors should be able to get sharp, and if you ruin it in your honing adventures, it is not such a big loss.

 

Here is a link to Jim Rion's website @JK47 mentioned above:

http://easternsmooth.com/category/tags/iwasaki.html

Here is a link to SRP honing guide with Norton stones. IME it also applies to the cheap Chinese stone I got. It works:

http://straightrazorplace.com/srpwiki/index.php/Pyramid_honing_guide
http://strazors.com/uploads/images/articles/Norton_Pyramid_Honing_Guide.pdf

And here is what Lynn (SRP forum main dude) has to say about honing:

http://straightrazorplace.com/srpwiki/index.php/Lynn_Abrams_On_Honing
http://straightrazorplace.com/honing/31802-honing-tips-lynn.html

Here is some somewhat independent discussion (outside of SRP) about pyramid honing which maybe a great read about it's pro's and con's:

http://www.asharperrazor.com/debunk...ghoning-the-secret-they-dont-want-you-to-know

Along with some encouragement from Lynn:

http://straightrazorplace.com/honing/96134-message-new-folks-wanting-start-honing.html

My opinion?

To set the bevel I do not use pyramid or some crazy magical stone made out of blood diamonds. I use a cheap 1000 grit stone only. No pressure. Some dudes at SRP recommended 30 minutes. That works, but it's excessive. That's what caused too much loss of metal in my 6/8" Dovo. If I was to do it again. I would go 1 to 2.5 minutes intervals and check the bevel. It should be uniform along the blade, and do more passes or less passes along some areas depending on this. Don't do more than 10 minutes. I do passes relatively quick. Two passes a second or two.

Then move on to the pyramid method using 4000 grit and 8000 grit. Or 3000 grit and 10000 grit. Or whatever.

Unlike Lynn, I strongly recommend one uses tape (like Gorilla tape) along the spine. This also from experience. Portland Razors do this and I think they get criticized at SRP for it. Doing this will protect the spine which does go to shit-land if you do not do so.

 

So, just finished using an Equinox shavette with the last DE blade from Van Der Hagen (an overpriced blade that I know works). Here is the shavette in question:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IJSJQRS/

I bought it minus the Derby or whatever razors they bundle together. I don't trust Derby DE blades and not 100% sure about Sharp.

Best straight razor shave I ever had.

The reason I gave the shavette another try is that by using real straight razors, I found that the sharper the straight razor, the better the results. A shavette uses DE blades which, based on my safety razor use experience, are way sharper. This results sometimes in the lack of "feedback" on cartridges, safety razors and shavettes. "Feedback" here is the raspy noise the blade makes as it mows down hair. So, based on what I've learned, my condemnation of shavettes started to make less sense to me.

Well, I stand corrected, that shavette gave me the easiest, closest shave a straight razor type has ever given me. Here are some of the reason why I feel my previous shavette experience was utter complete shit:

1) The shavette I used before was too light and a bit unstable. This shavette has good weight to it. Perhaps too much on the scales (I prefer more weight on the blade), but it works out. The blade region is heavy enough IMO.

2) The overpriced Van Der Hagen blades may indeed be overpriced. But they are definitively not shit. They are plenty sharp. I'm not sure about the Derby's. From memory they did not go through my mustache and chin with these ease. But the problem may have to do more with reason 3) below.

3) Probably the most important reason: I have better muscle memory and technique than when I started. I cannot emphasize this enough. A great shave with any piece of equipment will likely be more a function of skill honing, than blade honing.

Also, since I tried a new brush I had in storage for years, it goes to say that a new brush will shed more hairs and smell weird the first times one goes through it. This is normal, and one should not be discourage by it. Eventually the hair shedding and smell goes away with use.

 

Young Indian barber giving a full professional no non-sense Indian style service w a shavette:



Hopefully he is going to school too. But he definitively has something to fall back.

I've seen several videos of different kinds of barber services around the world. Some young folk do happen to show up in Asian countries and even the US. But this video provides a view of a complete shave service Indian style which I have come to appreciate. Again, the age and skills of the barber are impressive IMO.

Note he is not using a brush w soap or cream. I believe he is using a can which Massimo (the customer) does not seem to appreciate, but as time goes by it is fairly clear this kid knows what he is doing. Proly not Barbasol, so @Psalmanazar may not fully like. But close me thinks.

I believe all tools used in this shave are as cheap as they can get. But there is no question in my mind this was as professional a service as one can get.

 

So I weighted all my straight razors:

Dovo 5/8" half hollow: 41.4 grams (listed 42 grams @ The Superior Shave)
Dovo 6/8" full hollow: 53.2 grams (listed 57 grams @ The Superior Shave)
GD 208 6/8" full hollow: 56 grams
Equinox Shavette: 59 grams