Item Description
Let's take a look at the GD, shall we?
The QC from the factory is a bit lax, so the outline will vary from piece to piece, all are about 13/16 to 7/8 width:
Tip outline, and edge outline vary.
The biggest issue is usually that the heel of the razor is difficult to make contact with the hone due to that extremely large heel stabilizer and thick shoulder on the spine bevel. Some bulk removal of material is usually required to get that sorted out.
Outline is one thing, the next is the tang of the razor. 8 out of ten of them will have a tang that is not in-line with the body of the blade. This isn't really an issue unless you plan on re-scaling them.
Which leads us to the scales.....
CHEAP, lightweight plastic scales, more often than not come very loose. Some simple re-peening tightens them up, no problem. They are then at least serviceable for protecting the blade.
That's the ugly bits about these razors.
Let's take a look at the grind:
Here's a cross section from a diced up GD:
Hollow, but not full hollow or singing by any means. Nice thick spine adds some heft.
Here is where it falls on the grind chart:
It is my opinion that this is one of the highlights of these razors, as I have never had a warped blade yet (sample size~50 so far).
Marker test shows good contact except for smile at toe and heel. This is fresh out of the box:
With this one you can see the issue with the edge at the heel:
So, how about the edge?
Well, when they come off the assembly line in Shanghai, they look something like this (all scope pics at ~400x):
None too pretty! I wouldn't let that thing near my face!
But, after some time on the hones, these razors hone up quite fine. Here is the finished edge on the very same razor as pictured above, finished to 0.1um diamond lapping film.
Nope, I don't shave with pics, but I do like to find out empirically what is going on, not simply going on my own opinion. I like shaving with very sharp razors.
Here is a shot of a HHT hair cleaved by the edge shown above:
The hair cleaved without any *ping* or *pop*, nice, silent cut-in-two HHT. Nice clean cut. Does the same to the whiskers on your face
My review:
Hard to assign numerical values to this razor. At first glance, I'd give the razor a 1 for craftsmanship, because, let's face it, it's not very refined AT ALL.
Yet, they did get the important bits right- the grind has always been well done, and as mentioned, I have never had a warped blade yet. Important part #2 is that they can indeed hone up as well as most any other razor if you take the time to do so. Once honed, I have recieved many a close and comfortable shave from these razors.
You can buy them on EBay for ~$13 or so. Just be aware that they come with lots of warts and faults at that price point. None of which cannot be overcome, but be prepared to invest some sweat equity in getting it in good shaving shape. So how do you assign a "value" rating in that regard? Sure, $13 sounds like the deal of the decade, yet you will also need some proper tools (hones, hammers, buzzsaws, etc.
) to get it into top notch shape. So is that a good deal, or not? You will have to decide that for yourself.
I have been more than happy with the GDs I have used.
The QC from the factory is a bit lax, so the outline will vary from piece to piece, all are about 13/16 to 7/8 width:
Tip outline, and edge outline vary.
The biggest issue is usually that the heel of the razor is difficult to make contact with the hone due to that extremely large heel stabilizer and thick shoulder on the spine bevel. Some bulk removal of material is usually required to get that sorted out.
Outline is one thing, the next is the tang of the razor. 8 out of ten of them will have a tang that is not in-line with the body of the blade. This isn't really an issue unless you plan on re-scaling them.
Which leads us to the scales.....
CHEAP, lightweight plastic scales, more often than not come very loose. Some simple re-peening tightens them up, no problem. They are then at least serviceable for protecting the blade.
That's the ugly bits about these razors.
Let's take a look at the grind:
Here's a cross section from a diced up GD:
Hollow, but not full hollow or singing by any means. Nice thick spine adds some heft.
Here is where it falls on the grind chart:
It is my opinion that this is one of the highlights of these razors, as I have never had a warped blade yet (sample size~50 so far).
Marker test shows good contact except for smile at toe and heel. This is fresh out of the box:
With this one you can see the issue with the edge at the heel:
So, how about the edge?
Well, when they come off the assembly line in Shanghai, they look something like this (all scope pics at ~400x):
None too pretty! I wouldn't let that thing near my face!
But, after some time on the hones, these razors hone up quite fine. Here is the finished edge on the very same razor as pictured above, finished to 0.1um diamond lapping film.
Nope, I don't shave with pics, but I do like to find out empirically what is going on, not simply going on my own opinion. I like shaving with very sharp razors.
Here is a shot of a HHT hair cleaved by the edge shown above:
The hair cleaved without any *ping* or *pop*, nice, silent cut-in-two HHT. Nice clean cut. Does the same to the whiskers on your face
My review:
Hard to assign numerical values to this razor. At first glance, I'd give the razor a 1 for craftsmanship, because, let's face it, it's not very refined AT ALL.
Yet, they did get the important bits right- the grind has always been well done, and as mentioned, I have never had a warped blade yet. Important part #2 is that they can indeed hone up as well as most any other razor if you take the time to do so. Once honed, I have recieved many a close and comfortable shave from these razors.
You can buy them on EBay for ~$13 or so. Just be aware that they come with lots of warts and faults at that price point. None of which cannot be overcome, but be prepared to invest some sweat equity in getting it in good shaving shape. So how do you assign a "value" rating in that regard? Sure, $13 sounds like the deal of the decade, yet you will also need some proper tools (hones, hammers, buzzsaws, etc.
) to get it into top notch shape. So is that a good deal, or not? You will have to decide that for yourself.I have been more than happy with the GDs I have used.
