U.S. Navy circa 1850-1860

[karlej]

A big heavy 8/8 Wostenholm wedge. I restored this some time ago but I made the wedge from lead. I wanted the blade deep into the scales so the wedge was very heavy which made the balance poor. I recently made up this faux ivory and brass wedge. The blade originally came to me with replacement white plastic scales that looked like something from the 1950's. The new scales are horn and my best guess at what they might have looked like. The vintage type brass collars just add to the look. Maas was all I used on the blade so as not to damage the etching. After this project was finished I found some articles on using a tumbler to clean up an etched blade. May give it a try on future etched blades. I usually shave with 6/8 hollow grinds so this razor provides a really novel shave.