Thread: Bengall's Band of Brothers

I do believe that nearly all my razors are Bengal or just marked Cadman, we don't seem to get much variety down under, I guess being only lately still a member of the British Empire this is to be expected. I found another unused Bengal in the local antique store for the princely sum of $48.00 Aust. Bengal name inset on the scales.


Cheers

Gordon

You started it and I join

It is a 3/8 wedge.
Small, but I hope it quallifies to join the Band.

A cute little thing that my father sent me. He had it laying around.
Got it in a knick-knack box at an auction, I think.
He is strictly electric, always been. Poor fellow.

Only marking is Bengall on the tang. Nothing on the flip side.

Have a bigger one in the mail. Will post when arrives.

May I join too?! I picked up my only Bengall a couple of weeks ago, from a bits-and-bobs-y antiques shop, for £7. It looked, to my relatively inexpert eye, completely unused. The rubbery scales are a bit rubbish, and took badly to a rinsing under hot water (old celluloid, is it, that can start stinking like burning hair?); I'm planning to try making some new scales for it. Only shaved with it once, but it shaved excellently, and look forward to using it again. Really small bevel.

i love my bengalls. infact i want a 7day set great balance of heavy blade, hollow grinds with great edge taking steel. they get my nod.

heres 2 of my 4. both 6/8th rounds.






~J

Those are all beautiful razors

I've always found the Bengalls to be stupendous shavers, and very amenable to the hone. In fact, my first razor was a vintage Bengall that belonged to my wife's grandfather and yes, they seem to be ubiquitous in Australia. So much so that sometimes I do pass them over in antiques shops - but I love the idea of a seven day set.

Oh and Sheffieldshaver - I'm no expert on this, but those scales sound and look like Vulcanite/ebonite to me. Vulcanised rubber with sulphur - earlier than celluloid. Avoid light, moisture and heat to avoid decomposition.

James.

Thanks for the id on the scales, James

I have a T R Cadman that is a great shaver (my first Sheffield) but I need to get a Bengall model! Nice posts, guys.

Oh James, you are so eloquent I could read your posts all day

Strewth mate are you really an Aussie

....momma

[QUOTE=Jimbo;166009]Often maligned, frequently misunderstood, all too often overlooked as our eye is drawn to those gold-washed pieces of fluff shamelessly flaunting themselves in the dimly lit recesses of ebay like the metal floozies they are, one razor stands out from the pack. With typical British understatement, these stalwarts of the straight razor world quietly go about their business all over the globe.

I love the look of my Dovo Perlex and my Revisor with their sculpted jimps, gold wash and mirror finished blades. What do I get my best shaves from? My Torrey, my Wade & Butcher and my Diamondine. All plain and basic to look at but what an edge on these puppies! I don't have a Bengall, but based on your recommendation, there may be one in my future.

I just got a Bengall in the mail with a Worcester Razor Co. and a Griffin Cutlery Works for 6 bucks from ebay. the Bengall blade is a mess, chipped and wrinkled to a depth approaching 1/16". i had no hopes that these would be useable and bought them to practice on, cleaning up the metal, polishing and so on. But the Bengall, after reading about them, intrigues me. it has really nice wooden scales and if i take and post a picture of the blade, maybe i can get some feedback on whether it's worth trying to salvage it.
I also bought a nice Red Point 917 and a Wade and Butcher that needs new scales, so i've been in the shop trying to figure out the whole pinning/peening thing and have seen the doming/dapping sets and my mind is spinning with visions of neat new tools. Made a nice set of scales out of some curly maple but i don't want to ruin them with a clumsy pinning job. So i tried this on some scrap...drilled a 3/32" hole, which fit the hole in the A. Davis & Co. i'm using for this, inserted a matching brass rod, then drilled a 1/16" hole from the midline of the edge of the wood and drove a sharpened bit of matching brass rod in, pinning the larger rod in place. Filed everything off nice and smooth. doesn't have the look of the little washers and pins, but it worked.

here's before and after pix after breadknifing the razor, taping it, and doing it on oilstones. i buffed the scales a little with a scotchbrite and rubbed some linseed oil into them. this worked to the point where i may send this and the Red Point to someone who knows what they're doing so I can start shaving.