Bengall Razor - Any info?

[ngat4146]

Hi Everyone,

I was going through some old family heirlooms when I came across a straight razor. I know absolutely nothing about razors and was wondering if anyone would be able to tell me a little about the particular type I have.

On the blade is marked "Full Concave Bengall Razor". There appears to be some kind of makers mark on the piece between the blade and the handle which reads "T.R. Cadman & Sons, Sheffield, Engla". It came in a box (I assume the original) which is marked on one side with "The "4.2.3" Full Hollow Ground Razor, Sheffield" and a stylized inscription "Nonrusta".

Photo attached. It looks to be in pretty bad shape. Is there anything I can/should do to preserve this heirloom for future generations?

Cheers!
Nick

[dward]

I have a nice Bengall 5/8 round point that is quite a sweet shaver.

What you do for preserving for future generations will depend a lot on what your intentions are for the razor. If you plan to get it to shave ready condition, then you are going to want to get it polished and honed. If you are looking to put it on the shelf as an investment, I would do as much as you can to clean the blade, then get some oil on it to prevent rusting.

Also, your question may be better addressed in the Workshop forum.

[jszabo]

there are several people on this site that do full restorations if you were wanting to get it in mint condition

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[ChrisL]

Welcome!

As already stated, much would depend on what the intent of your preservation is; display? Shaving? We're a forum of members that in large part shave with these vintage razors. There are only a handful of us that purely collect and do not use straight razors.

If you're looking to display and pass on the razor for that purpose only, then you can take great care and rub the blade with Maas or Flitz brand polish available at hardware stores (be careful, the blade is delicate and the edge extremely sharp) and it will look significantly better.

I hope that helps.

Chris L

"Nonrusta".

[gssixgun]

From a restorers point of view that doesn't look to bad from the pics...
I would let one of us look at that up close and personal and see if it can be brought back to shaving condition...
From what I can see the only questionable aspect is the steel itself and whether it will hold an edge, or if it is swiss cheese (below the surface rust) ....
Other than that it is all just a lot of elbow grease and time...

BTW Bengall's are fantastically smooth shavers when they are up and running right...

[Kenrup]

I love Bengals too. I'm currently making a matched set of scales for two Bengals.