Vintage Razors Versus Recent Dovo Razors

Hey everyone,

I have been shaving with a straight for a year and a half now. I have shaved with recently manufactured Dovo straight razors and with vintage straights. While this is admittedly an almost criminal generalization, it seems to me that vintage straight razors consistently take a better edge and maintain a better edge than Dovos. I was curious if anyone else had the same opinions as me or am I completely nuts. Any thoughts would be appreciated especially since I have learned so much as a lurker, now turned B&B member.

You are not completely nuts. Dovos are perfectly fine razors, but certainly nothing special. Many vintage blades are exceptional.

Welcome to B&B, by the way!

I think both are very good and I have enjoyed many new Dovo blades in the past. My current razors are all vintage however and I doubt I would ever sell any of them. I've sold way too many great razors.

First, Dovos are very nice, quality razors. Period! But, I have wondered the same thing, whether new Dovo straight razors are as good metallurgically as more recently made (in the 1900s) vintage straight razors. Consistently, although not universally of course, it has seemed that vintage takes a better edge than new Dovos.

Take my comments with a heavy dose of doubt. Interesting question...

I've found that razors that don't shave exceptionally always in my experience have later turned out to have been damaged metallurgically (whether from corrosion, poor alloy and heat treatment, or damaged heat treatment) or have had some geometry issues that do not allow honing to bring out the best (frowns, bad bevel angle, warps, etc). Incidentally, Dovos often have frowns and otherwise need their bevel to be fixed. I've spent hours fixing those problems a new razor. I've also spent hours doing the same on vintage razors, although it's often then difficult to tell if the geometry issues came from a previous user or the factory.

Interestingly enough, I am dumping all my vintage razors, which include Dubl Duck and Boker, and sticking with my new Thiers Issards, Dovos, and Revisor razors. I haven't found any of my new stock razors to take any less of a better edge than my vintage razors. In fact, my vintage razors seem a bit more "fussy" than my new razors and that is why I prefer the new. Once I get an edge on the new stock I don't need to fuss with them as much as my old razors.

I have a new Dovo Prima Klang, and it is a nice razor. I would not say it was any better than most of my vintage German razors. If I took a blind test I would call it a good shaver, but nothing special.

legion said:

If I took a blind test I would call it a good shaver.

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NOT a good idea with a straight. Please refrain from posting pics if you follow through with this experiment.

i much prefer vintage blades. i have kept only 2 new blades and many vintage ones. one of the new ones i kept is 4 reasons unknown even 2 myself. there are a couple of vintage blade brands i prefer over the rest i have tried.

I cannot speak for Dovo, but I do have a current production Boker Edelweiss. It is an excellent razor, and takes a great edge. One thing I have noticed is that the steel in current Bokers is damn hard. Takes a lot to get it shave ready, but it holds up great once you are there.

Buster Casey said:

Hey everyone,

While this is admittedly an almost criminal generalization, it seems to me that vintage straight razors consistently take a better edge and maintain a better edge than Dovos. I was curious if anyone else had the same opinions as me or am I completely nuts.

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I'll take it one more step: I have three new Dovos and seven older ones. The older ones are, to me, much better shavers - every single one of them. However, the new Dovos are still good - they just don't get a spot on my top shelf with the atom splitters.

ladykate said:

I'll take it one more step: I have three new Dovos and seven older ones. The older ones are, to me, much better shavers - every single one of them. However, the new Dovos are still good - they just don't get a spot on my top shelf with the atom splitters.

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What are your suppositions as to why the older Dovos are better shavers?

LarryAndro said:

What are your suppositions as to why the older Dovos are better shavers?

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I don't know and anything would be a guess. So... I'll guess.

The older Dovos are very well made and very solid in every way. It seems they represent a different phase of Dovo craftsmanship than do the new Dovos. That is very relative and if I held a new one and an old one, I would say the new one was nice, too. However, the difference in shaving is noticeable. The old Dovos were NOS when I got them - I got a deal for once - and I've prepped them the same as the new ones.

I'm sure there is a chance there were changes in steel or in process and small changes can make a huge difference - perhaps that is what I'm seeing. My sample size is small but not insignificant to me. Again, the differences are easily noticed but both styles are good - I'm not knocking new Dovos as much as saying the older 7 that I have are superb.

IN GENERAL, I would say that a typical vintage blade is a better razor than a new Dovo. Certainly, a vintage will likely be a much better value for the money. A vintage razor might be $7 or $8 on ebay, or a shave-ready one from whippeddog might be $21, or a fully restored blade of a famous and desireable maker might be more than an entry level Dovo. Which brings up another point... the premium Dovos are better razors than their entry level "Best" grade. I have had three Bests, and only one, which I recently acquired used, I consider a decent razor that hones up nicely and shaves well. They often have issues, more so than most new razors from big name manufacturers. This last one was quite docile and honed up with little fuss, and shaves okay, though not as good as my modified Gold Dollars or most of my vintage razors.

Myself, I won't buy a new Dovo. Others like them. I don't, though I do admit I like the profile of the Bismarck. For the money, you can get a whole bouquet of whippeddogs from Larry that are sent to you absolutely ready to shave, or other vintage blades that might require honing.

My first was a Dovo and I still love it in the daily rotation. The vintage are quickly edging their way in though. I find that the grinds on the vintage will determine the level of the love factor. Am working my way into the near to full wedge.

ladykate said:

I'll take it one more step: I have three new Dovos and seven older ones. The older ones are, to me, much better shavers - every single one of them. However, the new Dovos are still good - they just don't get a spot on my top shelf with the atom splitters.

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I agree -

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/196786-Dovo-box-change?p=3831661#post3831661

Great White Shavealo said:

Interestingly enough, I am dumping all my vintage razors, which include Dubl Duck and Boker, and sticking with my new Thiers Issards, Dovos, and Revisor razors. I haven't found any of my new stock razors to take any less of a better edge than my vintage razors. In fact, my vintage razors seem a bit more "fussy" than my new razors and that is why I prefer the new. Once I get an edge on the new stock I don't need to fuss with them as much as my old razors.

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Let me know if you need a buyer for your Bokers

Grips said:

Let me know if you need a buyer for your Bokers

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I have gotten a couple PMs about my vintage stock and I have sold all but one of them, my Boker Red Injun 101 R.P. If you are interested in it, send me a PM. Sometime tomorrow I will be taking some pics of it and can share them privately.

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On topic... I recently purchased a Dovo "Special" and it is a damn fine shaver! I think some might be drifting along into some sort of "razor repristination movement" where older is supposedly better. I have no doubt that the romanticism involved in shaving with a vintage blade is pretty cool, but that doesn't make for a great shaving blade over modern razors. So far, my experience is that a soundly honed modern blade is just as good, if not better, than any vintage blade I have owned. In fact, I would probably only go to vintage Wade and Butcher blades of 7/8 size or better, before I would go to a modern Thiers Issard, for example. There are some pretty good contemporary forgings out there... look at Revisor for an example. I wouldn't go all bonkers for vintage. You would be surprised what new forgings are like, if you try them.

Comes down to metallurgy. Different alloy compositions yield different edge qualities. I would be very surprised if the DOVO factory (or any other modern razor factory) is using the same steel as the vintage models from 100+ years ago. I think realistically the newer alloys are a product of modern factories trying to compete with cheaper steels. If they can produce a razor with a more cost effective alloy, then they can price their razors more competitively and still make optimal profits.

That being said, I've noticed that the shaving quality of a razor was due more to honing quality and less to alloy quality. YMMV

That being said, I've noticed that the shaving quality of a razor was due more to honing quality and less to alloy quality. YMMV[/QUOTE]

That is part of the reason I made this post. I had my dovo professionally honed and couldn't get a good shave. Like using a Dorco in a DE. But when it came time to use my vintage straights I always get a CCS and my neck does not feel irritated. So I thought maybe my Dovo was a lemon and couldn't take and maintain a good edge.