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[RyanXIII]

Greetings,

I would just like to say hello to everyone out there and introduce myself. My name is Ryan and i am a 26 year old from Canada. I have been wet shaving with a straight razor for roughly 3 months but have had the urge almost my entire life.

When I first started, my biggest mistake was choosing a razor that could not cut through butter on a good day (Kreigar razor from Ebay) I tried once of twice with that and pretty much shelved the idea until I could get a decent razor.

Recently I was at the local antique store and was able to take the majority of their stock off their hands and picked up 4 razors and two pure badger hair brushes for $70.00. This is where my question lies. I was wondering if the razors I purchased are of any value as well as if anyone could guess when they would be from.

At this moment I do not have any photos so I will try to describe to the best of my ability. Pics will soon follow.

The first is a Boker King Cutter. The handle is a yellow plastic with a faint almost woodgrain type marking. The blade is in very good condition, King Cutter logo in gold. There is very littler tarnishing on the blade.
I am attaching a photo for reference, it is not the razor I have. The one I have has the exact same box as the one in the picture but the box is in near mint condition, the lable stating the info is still intact and 100% legible, the box leather is in very good condition. Basically the complete opposite of the picture below in quality.

The second is a Joseph Rodgers & Sons No.2 Star & Cross Razor. I did some research into this one and read a few articles pertaining to versions made of a lesser grade steel that dropped the 'd' in Rodgers. This razor has the original spelling. The shank has a star and cross as well as 'Joseph Rodgers & Sons Cutlers To Their Majesties, No.6 Norfolk Street Shefield'
The handle is black plastic with some minor chipping. The blade itself has some tarnishing but it is nothing severe. All it needs is some polish and other than the small chips in the handle, it would look good as new. No chips or gouges taken out of the cutting edge what so ever. There was unfortunatly no box for this one.

The third is one I couldnt find any info on what so ever. It is an Edward Sons & Co 'Gentlemen's Favorite'
Black handle, exceptional condition. The blade is very clean, one small nick on the cutting edge but nothing that cannot be repaired. Out of all the razors this one seems to be the most hollow ground. The box that came with this one looks brand new, the guy at the antique store figures by the looks of it it may have only been used a few times and been dropped and never used again.

The fourth one I cannot remember the name off the top of my head (My Brother is polishing them all) but i do know it was forged and ground in Solligen and looks to be very old. The handle is broken (purchased for the blade only) The blade is severely tarnished but nothing a little work wont fix.


We currently own a clothing store that specializes in having a wide variety of items. One thing we are getting ready to sell is shaving razors as well as accessories. We want to get the younger generations interested in the luxury that is a good wet shave.

I apologize for my long winded first post but any feedback on the razors would be amazing.
If anyone makes any soaps/creams, sells razors in bulk orders or anything along those lines drop me a line. We want to have a nice selection for our customers.

Thank you

-Ryan

[Agamemnon]

Oh, goody! I'm the first to welcome you to SRP! Looks to me you got your money's worth as both Boker and Rodgers are good quality blades. I recommend you send at least the Boker out to be honed so you can experience a properly honed blade; that will give you a benchmark for when you start to do your own honing.

Kurt
P.S. Do I need to warn you about RAD?

[RyanXIII]

thank you very much for the welcome and the response. I am seriously considering getting both the Boker and Joseph Rodgers honed by someone who knows exactly what they are doing. My brother is a machinist/tool and die maker so he works with lots of metals but his expertise in sharpening lies pretty much only in knife blades.

As for RAD, the warning has come too late. I have the antique dealer pretty much holding any razor that comes in as I have some items he is very interested in so there are some sweet trades hopefully in the near future. Its quite an addiction thats for sure. First it was instruments, now its razors.

I just remembered that at my parents house, I have a small shaving kit. Its an old safety razor thats in a metal case. The razor itself is just a large wedge blade with a small flip bar in front of it. The kit is intact and dated 1941 and in immaculate condition. The only downfall is the previous owner engraved their name on the case and needless to say it wasnt top shelf penmanship

[netsurfr]

Hi there Ryan -
Welcome to SRP!!!
I think you have made a wise decision to get your razors honed by a honemeister to begin your adventure. You won't be sorry. You will also have a good reference for what the blade should feel like once you start honing. Remember when you are stropping that the edge is delicate and you don't want to put any pressure on it while stropping. Just let the weight of the razor do the work while you keep the strop tight.