Thread: Why? Just Why?

Originally Posted by RobinK

Each time someone claims he's got razor acquisition disorder (vulgarly referred to as "RAD"), and someone with experience doesn't tell him, "you have a mental problem, go see an expert", another eBay madness is born. The antidote? Genuine research, on site, with the people who built these razors. Comme ça:

Your Filarmonica is just another Solingen export razor.

You Dubl Duck was most likely ground by apprentices, and the grinders still alive think you're not the most absorbent tampon in the box for buying it, irrespective of its price.

Your Puma is a mass produced razor ridiculed by Solingen natives.

I could go on for a long time. But you might already be getting my drift. One born every minute.

Robin I'll bet when have nothing to do you go out and put holes in little kids balloons.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Robin I'll bet when have nothing to do you go out and put holes in little kids balloons.

Nelson, thank you for doubling down on the point I just made.

For the record, I own one Filarmonica, one Dubl Duck, and two Puma razors. But I would never encourage anyone to get one, unless they had a perfectly clear understanding of what they are about to buy.

Originally Posted by RobinK

Each time someone claims he's got razor acquisition disorder (vulgarly referred to as "RAD"), and someone with experience doesn't tell him, "you have a mental problem, go see an expert", another eBay madness is born. The antidote? Genuine research, on site, with the people who built these razors. Comme ça:

Your Filarmonica is just another Solingen export razor.

You Dubl Duck was most likely ground by apprentices, and the grinders still alive think you're not the most absorbent tampon in the box for buying it, irrespective of its price.

Your Puma is a mass produced razor ridiculed by Solingen natives.

I could go on for a long time. But you might already be getting my drift. One born every minute.

Wonder what brands you go for. I for one don't have the opportunity to handle many in person. Nor the knowledge to work out what's good.

Originally Posted by Rami

Wonder what brands you go for. I for one don't have the opportunity to handle many in person. Nor the knowledge to work out what's good.

None.

And here is why.

There were very few drop forges even in the heyday of Solingen razor making. The steels are basically the same across decades. They may have become more uniform after WW2, but I doubt it. Bear in mind that Solingen was, first and foremost, just another industrial town. One renowned for its precision made weapons.

"But the razors!!!1".

Yeah, those too. And scissors. And cutlery.

But mainly weapons.

So, think. Do you honestly believe that the Reichswehr would have accepted wildly varying quality?

No?

If so, do you honestly believe that there were were wildly varying types of steel floating around?

No?

See? And that is it, really.

Some people here make a pitch for certain brands. And it might even make sense from a US perspective. Solingen razors were, and in my and my other people's opinion still are, the best razors you can get. But only a few brands were exported.

So, Dubl Duck? Yeah, great stuff. If you like dysfunctional scales prone to gassing. And so on.

There were dozens, if not hundreds, of razor makers in Solingen. Any razor to have survived the seventies and beyond is bound to be functional. Otherwise, people would have discarded of it. Think of a razor as a milking stool, or a cooking spoon, instead of a collectible. Because it used to be just that.

So, brands? Unfortunately, my review of this razor went down the proverbial drain when Ivan the Terrible nuked the review section, but it was one of a kind: Gebrüder Lutzenkirchen "Seal" 5/8 - Straight Razor Place Library. The title of the review was "The Filarmonica Killer", and I maintain that this little gem, which cost me something like €15, would outshave and Filarmonica, given the right edge. Which it had. I kinda miss it.

This is the bit I don't understand. So no makers had better QA than others. No old respected grinders vs new kids on the block. No one screwed up the heat treat and sent it out anyway. No over/under ground razors

See I can't work all this out from photos like you guys can do. So what do I do.

Originally Posted by THORandODIN

To Magpie, Yep, you can price your stuff that way, and you can also go out of business which one of my antique shops has done but then they had their straight razors at a very high price. They were asking $60.00 for a $30.00 razor and they would NOT dicker with you about the price. All their stuff was too high IMHO. So now they are unemployed and probably in debt. Better than SOME profit than NONE!!. JMHO. It comes to a point where your stuff is so high folks will not even dicker with you because people will feel like they are insulting you by offering what its really worth NOT what YOU think its worth. Btw, 1000 grit will not scratch a razor up, but 400 grit will. Oh, yea, You see all those Mirrored up razors on the E-Bay?I don't even give them them the time of day, I want some patina so I can see what the condition of the razor, I have seen too many mirrored up razors that had bad bevels and micro cracked blades. That if you didn't look VERY good you will miss it.

Glad to say, I, ME, THIS guy, didnt go out of business. Things got tight, and I just sold my Norton hone to pay the mortgage. And by asking top dollar, I seriously almost just paid a month off! As for 1k grit ebay razor cleaning? YOU know it, I Know it. MOST SELLERS dont have anything finer than 320 grit and they Dont know squat! And I agree, I wont even bid on a polished up razor.