Thread: Heirloom Razor

Hello everyone. I have started shaving with a safety razor and tried some of the shark plastic straight razors that came with it. My mother after finding out I was interested in a straight razor gave me my great great uncles razor that he used as a barber. As far as I know he used it in his shop and it was kept by my grandmother until she passed away and it went to my mother. It is a wedge razor made by Wade and Butcher. The scales have a few small chips but the blade is without defect and I'm in the process of sending it out to be honed properly. Any information on it would be greatly appreciated.

Very nice! one of the great things about sr shaving is the history that's behind the razors. An heirloom razor is even better.

It is from a very well known manufacturer. Heirloom blades always shave just a little better than the rest. I use mine periodically. Mostly when I am feeling nostalgic or I'm getting ready for a special event.

I've its exact mate and they are very pleasant shavers when properly honed. A keeper for certain!
Congratulations!
~Richard

I wish I had more info, if he bought it new, from where? I know my mom remembers all of his clients had there own mug on the wall with their name on it which is kind of cool.

Originally Posted by JosephHoffer

I wish I had more info, if he bought it new, from where? I know my mom remembers all of his clients had there own mug on the wall with their name on it which is kind of cool.

In barber shops, bar-rooms, and diners, the "regulars" had their own mugs, always at-the-ready. It speaks of a stability that's in short(er) supply.

Smooth shaving!

It's nice to have the history on a piece that you can use. Good luck.

Bravo for having a pro do the work. I think you'll be glad you did.

A wavy bevel is no problem, as long as it shaves (I have one or two slightly wavy bevels, on near wedges), but this seems like an awful lot of wear for one full honing: the bevel width at its widest is ~1/5 of the entire blade, to me that seems a bit excessive. I know some people don't hone with tape, and feel substantial hone wear is normal for near wedges like this, but the honing job seems to have been executed very heavy handedly to me. Especially considering it's an heirloom.

Comparing the pre-honing to the post-honing pictures literally made me cringe. I hate to be all negative, but this is my honest opinion.

We'll I finally got to shave with it. It was the best shave I've ever had. I wasn't sure it was shaving for the first second but it had no pull at all. My technique is still terrible but two passes went great. I started to go for three and that's when I felt some burning on the first up stroke on my neck and I nicked my chin on the next upstroke from the right throat to chin so I stopped. I will continue to do two passes without a AG like is recommended. (Some people just have to learn for themselves lol) . The main thing is it's a great shaver.