Thread: New here, help school a noob. (With pictures!)

Hello All,

My name is Ryan. I'm new to SRP. I'm 26 and I love; cars, firearms, technology, beautiful women, and of course a good shave.

The back story: I work in a technology based environment with a bunch of 20 somethings. The kind that sit at their computers all day and have never touched a woman, you know the type. It didn't surprise me to find out that almost none of them have never used a razor that wasn't electric. Anyway, finding this out got me talking with another co-worker about how cool it would be to go back to using straight razors to shave daily. Something about it just seems very nostalgic, more of an art if you will. We both discussed and agreed we should buy a couple straight razors and learn how to properly shave with them. Fast forward to today.

My grand father is 91 years old. Recentley, he lost his wife of 70 years and he himself has taken quite ill. I went to his house today to checkup on him. My birthday was a few days ago, but despite his age he is as sharp as a tack. He insisted on giving me money for my birthday which I have refused for some years now, I hate being given gifts.

Now you have to understand, my grandpa is what I would call a hard@$$. He doesn't take any crap from anyone and he isn't much of a talker. My whole time growing up the only thing he would discuss was his garden and the weather. But now that he has taken ill, he has been talking a lot and about pretty much everything. So when the topic of my birthday came up he insisted I take a gift.

His story goes that while he was in the service (Germany) his father passed away. When he finally arrived home everyone in the family had taken any valuables his father had amassed, the only thing left was a sealed can of mixed nuts (which he still has) and this straight razor. These were the only two possessions he had to remember his father by. It has sat in his basement in a tea-cup for 30+ years. Seeing how he is no longer able to walk, he best explained where it was and how to find it. After about an hour of searching I came across the old tea-cup he said it would be in. Needless to say, I was a little bit taken back when he insisted I take it for my birthday.

Here is where you come in: I know absolutely nothing about straight razors. Here is what I've been able to piece together. Its a thistle-cut co razor. It came in a Boker box, which from the trade mark seems to date in the 1869-1900 era. Besides that, I know nothing. I would like the know the age range of the razor and a little history about the thistle company, as I haven't been able to turn up much. Boker, on the other hand, seems to have tons of information out there. I don't care about the monetary value of the razor. Preferably I would like to restore the razor if possible. I plan on cruising the forum here and reading a little more information about the straight razor world. Thank you for reading. Below are some pictures I have taken.

I haven't attempted to clean the blade yet, but from what I can see it says Damascus blade and had a picture of a camel on it. The tail has "1525" engraved on it.

CLIFFS: New guy. Grandpa gave me a razor. I want to know more about it. Pics below.