The Dovo Astrale is a 5/8", half round, hollow blade, hand crafted of high carbon steel in Solingen Germany. The razor is offered with genuine black ebony wooden scales and comes with a 24k gold etching on the hollow grind. A blank engraving plate on the wooden scales adds a nice touch. Like most Dovo razors that are sold as 5/8, I measured the width to be 11/16 which is always a nice bonus.
At times I find the fit and finish somewhat lacking and I wish the QC in general was a bit more stringent especially for a German company where perfection is a way of life. Floppy scales, uneven grinds, slightly frowned or wavy edges, mis-aligned and slanted scales... In that regard Boker is stepping up their game and are starting to show more consistency in their razor line-up. Dovo on the other hand is starting to lag behind. It used to be the other way round the past few years. If I were in charge of QC 30 to 40% would not get through my inspection and that says a lot from a guy with German roots. The only reason I can think of is Dovo mass producing and just getting them out the door as fast as they can to keep up demand. Nonetheless it does do the job for what it was intended and that is give you a nice, clean shave. Comes in a blue metal storage box. They are nice razors for beginners or seasoned straight razor users.
Dovo razors come standard with a factory edge but are nowhere near a true professionally honed razor's edge. Having honed thousands of factory send Dovo razors I advise you to either purchase the razor from a reputable store that sells the razor as 'shave ready' or you can order a honing service straight from my web site to have it professionally honed/sharpened especially if you are starting out with your first straight razor shave.
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