Gold Dollar

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10
Hello Evebody,

I have seen the brand Gold Dollar mentioned a few time, some negative and some people recommending that they are brought from a certain vender that has done work to the razor, which I am thinking of doing.
  • How often do you think these would need honing?
  • How often would you need to hone (is that the right word?) a higher quality blade?
Basically wondering if it would be a false economy in the long run.

This would be my first SR, so I think I will go down the cheaper route as I expect some damage while I learn techniques. I can always upgrade at a later date.
 
A Properly Honed Gold Dollar is Like any Other SR..They Hold an Edge for Months with the Correct Stropping & Maybe a Touch Up on Pastes Now & Again..I have Honed a Number of them & they Take a Nice Shaving Edge..A Vintage SR is Far More Balanced in the Hand & Far Nicer Shavers..Gold Dollars are Unbalanced in the Hand & Quite Heavy & a Bit OverSized..:)

Billy
 
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I would go vintage too tbh as far better steel. If you want something decently honed and that does the job I would try whipped dog razors in Texas. The guy specializes in selling straights to newbies, is a nice guy and will make sure you are ok. Get his sight unseen in s 5/8 or 6/8 round tip and you will get a functional Sollingen blade for about £35. Post is only 2 bucks and he "helps" with duty.

http://www.whippeddog.com/

There is also a guy called Pete who sells handmade strops who normally has a range of vintage razors for around £50 who is great to deal with too. If you must buy a gold dollar pay a bit more and pay a bit more from a guy called Billy in Cornwall who prepares them properly.
 
I would go vintage too tbh as far better steel. If you want something decently honed and that does the job I would try whipped dog razors in Texas. The guy specializes in selling straights to newbies, is a nice guy and will make sure you are ok. Get his sight unseen in s 5/8 or 6/8 round tip and you will get a functional Sollingen blade for about £35. Post is only 2 bucks and he "helps" with duty.

http://www.whippeddog.com/

There is also a guy called Pete who sells handmade strops who normally has a range of vintage razors for around £50 who is great to deal with too. If you must buy a gold dollar pay a bit more and pay a bit more from a guy called Billy in Cornwall who prepares them properly.
Whipped Dog in Texas..Mugs Away..This is the UK..His Razors are Rock Bottom Shave Ready or Not..Hell a Gold Dollar is Luxury Compared to some of His Stuff..o_O

Billy
 
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Whipped Dog in Texas..Mugs Away..This is the UK..His Razors are Rock Bottom Shave Ready or Not..Hell a Gold Dollar is Luxury Compared to some of His Stuff..o_O

Billy
Horses for courses, my good man. :) Some people have had very good razors which have provided them with very decent shaves, from what I can tell.

To be honest, you can't go wrong with a first SR as long as it is truly shave-ready. Billyji1's Gold Dollar's are, though they could have a more finished finish, if you like. I don't have any experience of Whipped Dog razors but it seems they are the equivalent of the properly done Gold Dollar's over here. If you know you're going to stick with an SR for a little while, no harm spending the extra money on something nicer. You'll probably enjoy it more, it'll be more comfortable to use and if you didn't take to it you'd be able to recoup almost all of your expenditure. :)

I'm now up to 5 SRs in 5 months and I'd say all of mine I favour over the Gold Dollar, in terms of feel/balance etc. Can still get a good shave out of the GD, however! :)
 
  • How often do you think these would need honing?
  • How often would you need to hone (is that the right word?) a higher quality blade?
Honing wouldn't need to be done very often, every few months at the least.
Honing doesn't really depend on how much you spend on the blade. If you get a decent strop, and learn to strop correctly, you can maintain your edge for those few months without any issues. You may need to have a blade re-honed if you drop it or ding it against a tap (trust me, I've done both).

Don't trick yourself into thinking you will just buy 1 razor and be done with it... the spending is contagious...
 
I would go vintage too tbh as far better steel. If you want something decently honed and that does the job I would try whipped dog razors in Texas. The guy specializes in selling straights to newbies, is a nice guy and will make sure you are ok. Get his sight unseen in s 5/8 or 6/8 round tip and you will get a functional Sollingen blade for about £35. Post is only 2 bucks and he "helps" with duty.

http://www.whippeddog.com/

There is also a guy called Pete who sells handmade strops who normally has a range of vintage razors for around £50 who is great to deal with too. If you must buy a gold dollar pay a bit more and pay a bit more from a guy called Billy in Cornwall who prepares them properly.

It's not a must for a gold dollar, just thought a cheaper way with start shaving with a SR.

Do you know if Pete has a website or his user name on here?
 
Honing wouldn't need to be done very often, every few months at the least.
Honing doesn't really depend on how much you spend on the blade. If you get a decent strop, and learn to strop correctly, you can maintain your edge for those few months without any issues. You may need to have a blade re-honed if you drop it or ding it against a tap (trust me, I've done both).

Don't trick yourself into thinking you will just buy 1 razor and be done with it... the spending is contagious...

Thanks for the honing numbers. I'm thinking of getting two now, so I can send one to be honed by someone who knows what they are doing while I have a go with the other!
 
I believe this is his - http://peters-eaters.co.uk

He's the chap who does paddle strops on eBay as well. I'd say don't worry too much about the intricacies at this stage. When you're starting you don't want something crap and we won't allow you to get something crap!

This is what I'm weighting up. I don't want to spend to much, but don't want to buy anything that will put me off.
 
This is what I'm weighting up. I don't want to spend to much, but don't want to buy anything that will put me off.
The gold dollar won't and neither will the whipped dog from what I've heard :) other option is to email billyji and ask what other razors he has for a beginner :)
 
Unfortunately in my humble opinion there isn't a beginners SR. If it is honed and really shave ready it will do as much damaged to your face as anything else if you take it for granted. A shave ready blade is just that. I'm a snob too and a Gold Dollar isn't for me. A nice Solingen or Sheffield 5/8ths round point will do you and they are no dearer than a GD. They have history to them I often wonder when shaving who owned mine, what he did, etc. All part of the fun of owning a vintage blade.
 
Unfortunately in my humble opinion there isn't a beginners SR. If it is honed and really shave ready it will do as much damaged to your face as anything else if you take it for granted. A shave ready blade is just that. I'm a snob too and a Gold Dollar isn't for me. A nice Solingen or Sheffield 5/8ths round point will do you and they are no dearer than a GD. They have history to them I often wonder when shaving who owned mine, what he did, etc. All part of the fun of owning a vintage blade.
Slit someones throat with it:D
 
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