[Seraphim]

Review from a relative newbie (~3 months experience), so take it for what it is.

I just recieved this brand spanking new Dovo Renaissance this past Friday.


Initial impressions were quite positive! My first ever straight was a Friodur 7/8 (I have two of those now!), so I like my blades with some beef to them---this one doesn't dissapoint either, feels quite substantial, yet balances very nicely.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I am not a fan of light colored scales. However, these scales are really much nicer than I expected. With the nickel bolsters they look real sharp in person. For better or for worse, depending on your preference, the light scales seem to accent the spine etching and crossed swords motif, and really bring those elements to your attention. I'm planning on a re-scale at some point down the line (dark wood, like walnut or cherry), but after seeing it up close, that can wait a bit.



I did, however buff off the "Solignen" black crest that had originally been on the scales, as I felt that was too much a of a distraction to the overall beauty of the razor (actually that was the very first thing I did when I got the razor).

Overall the blade is simple and elegant, with a gentle roundpoint and very slack heel. The actual cutting edge is relatively short. The rounded toe and heel make for relaxed shaving. If you have a goatee or other precision shaving requirements, I imagine this may be a drawback, but for clean shaven gentlemen this razor is a peach!

The quality drawbacks: There were a couple of uneven grindings on the front of the roundpoint. Nothing to get too worked up about, but for perfectionists (I fear I may be one....) it may irk you. The other dissapointment was that the bottom jimps are merely undulations, and lack any sort of serrated "bite" for sure handed grip during heavy lather whisker battling.


OK, so I gave it a quick hone on 6um and 3um diamond lapping film on glass. Honed real easy & fast, no surprises and very straight forward. I could tell the edge was really nice already. It had a lighter HHT cut feel than either of my two 7/8 Friodurs. I was pretty excited to try this edge for an actual shave!

Finished the edge on 1.0um diamond hanging strop and Crome Ox hanging strop followed just for the coup de grace, by some Wall Street Journal newsprint (Full page black jewellry ad on Friday, nice and carbonny!) .

Latigo stropping had some great draw, I could just feel that the edge was very nice. HHT test would have made a Ninja assasin teary eyed with joy.

Ready to shave:


The maiden shave was on two days' growth with a new tub of Valobra almond with a shot of KMF shave cream for super lather goodness.

In a word: Smooth! It felt markedly smoother than the Friodurs, and I think even smoother than my vintage LeGrelot (that had previously been the keenest edged razor in my modest rotation). Really surprisingly nice shave.

I had originally purchsed this as a backup for the Friodurs & as a travel razor. Turns out it is now head of the rotation.

A hearty recommendation for this razor. I'm thinking to even buy a second one I like this one so much!

[Mike_ratliff]

Thanks for the review. Very nicely done

[mrbhagwan]

Originally Posted by Seraphim

I had originally purchsed this as a backup for the Friodurs & as a travel razor. Turns out it is now head of the rotation.

A hearty recommendation for this razor. I'm thinking to even buy a second one I like this one so much!

Hearty indeed! I know how much you were wanting those Friodurs, Seraphim.

It makes me want to think a little longer about adding another big Dovo to my repertoire.

[Seraphim]

Well one more thing I like about it-- is it's stainless steel.

For me, that's a big plus, so I don't have to get all obsessive about drying off every little droplet (OK, so I pretty much do this anyhow, even with my stainless razors...), but it's nice to know that if I miss a spot it doesn't mean that I'll later have to polish it out.

[AFDavis11]

My feelings are about the same. I personally like the way mine looks. Weight and balance are really good as you note.

[Seraphim]

This is day three of using the Renaissance. I have been going for BBS each day (first day was 3-pass BBS on two days growth, last two days were 2-pass XTG, ATG) and the razor is holding up its' end of the bargain. No irritation to speak of, still a nice smooth shave.

I do have to say that I did also recently start using different shave soaps (Valobra for the first shave, Tabac for the last two), so there is a chance that that may also help with the smoothness factor? I had previously been using TOBS soap, which is no slouch either.

I don't think the lather is what is doing it though, as the edge had a certain feel coming off the hones that was different than the other razors. I just mention the change in soaps in the light of full disclosure (as a side note: Valobra and Tabac are very, very nice, rich and unique shave soaps! Also highly recommended).

Next week is again the Friodur's turn in the rotation (I rotate weekly so as to gain a full feel for each of my razors), so we'll see give The Champ a chance to defend it's title atop the stainless shave stable (isn't this nonsense fun?!)

[SIB]

i just bought the very same one a few weeks ago, i havnt even honed it yet, matter of fact hasnt even left the box.
I bought it just in case these ones ever dispaear, i think they are gorgeous razors and i am very glad you liked it so much, i guess i did te right thing...
be well.

[Seraphim]

HONE IT AND USE IT!!!!

End of message...

[poona]

Welshwarrior has one of these which he received from CS recently and it looks a lovely razor close up. Real nice and curvy.

I must add, he honed it up very nicely and says it's giving awesome shaves.

Could be a future purchase, if I cut down my rotation.

[icedog]

Thanks Seraphim for the great review. Now where may I find one and how much should I expect to spend?

[Ockham]

@ Icedog: you can find one at Classic Shaving for little less than 160 bucks... RAD Incoming !

@ Seraphin: Thank you very much for the review... I just received mine today and was wondering... how did you buff off the "Solignen" black crest on the scales without damaging them ? I would like to get rid of it too, but don't want to damage the scales...

I am looking forward to shave with this beauty tomorrow morning...

[Seraphim]

Sand off the "Solignen" with 600 (or preferebly higher) grit, then use some polish & elbow grease to restore the plastic back to shiny goodness.

Day 4 in a row BBS shave-- razor still going strong! After stropping it up last night it still had superfine HHT results (like the HHT clip in Mike Ratliff's signature). Really a fantastic edge

The whiskers are starting to have low morale and whimper when the Dovo comes out in the morning!

[Seraphim]

OK, so the Renaissance's week in the rotation was finished up this morning. Same great shave as the last 5 days of BBS goodness. Really enjoyed this razor.

I was going to go back to the freshly re-honed Friodur next week to compare the stainless steel feel, but it has been bumped by another new contender: LeGrelot 1/4 grind

Ah well, these are the sacrifices we all must make....

I will say again how easy the Renaissance was to hone. Took me about 5 minutes and that put a fantastic edge on it even before going to the pastes. The LeGrelot I have worked on on and off for the past couple of days, and is now rounding into top form. That is what is to be expected, but the Renaissance just really surprised me with it's honing ease. It also seems to have nice edge retention, as the HHT at the end of the week is a light as it was at the beginning, and the shave is close and smooth.

In conclusion: I look forward to the next time the Renaissance comes around the rotation!

[Trudo1]

What type of polish did you use after you sanded away the black script on the scales ?
I think the razor is a little over embelished and I want to do that to mine.

Thanks Troy--trudo1

[Seraphim]

Maas type polish worked fine for me. How do you like the razor? (since we're here in the reviews ssection...)

[Trudo1]

Thanks for asking, I am somewhat of an newbie ( thats an understatement )
The razor is with Lynn right now, I love the retro look of it and can't wait to sand
off the the lettering on the scales. I'm not an novice to wet shaving, thre years of great shave
many trinkets collected along the way but I have to really give this a go!!


Cheers, Troy

[Seraphim]

I found another pic that I forgot to post in my original review. It shows the tip pretty well:

[Seraphim]

Just finished up week #2 with the Renaissance.

Awesome razor. Edge retention seems to be very good so far. With daily stropping it is still very keen. No real loss of performance so far.

[razorrandy]

Thanks for the great pics. I have wanted one for a while. The pics on C.S. are kind of poor but your pics are top shelf. I know what my next razor purchase will be.


Way to go.

[coachmike]

Thanks for a great review and for getting me thinking about owning one of those.....LOL