Thread: Sheffields

Originally Posted by Anthony1954

All I can add is the fact that Sheffield and to a degree Rotherham still manufacture steel for construction and also for cutlery. Now I'm not an expert but surely it wouldn't be a giant step from making knives forks spoons etc to maybe, just maybe producing a straight razor.

I wouldn't call myself an expert, but I do make / forge straight razors.

Yes, it IS a giant step. Modern cutlery and even chef knives are stamped out of stock using dies. There is practically no hand work involved. They just drop off the production line, ready for attaching a handle. Razors do have a lot of hand work involved, and more importantly, the difficult parts are performed AFTER heat treatment, by hand.
There is noone left in Sheffield with either the machines, skills or knowledge to make razors in an industrial efficient manner. Kickstarting that would require a hefty financial investment, in return for a fairly meagre return on investment on a rather long timeframe. Companies are not interested in making razors but in making money. They can do more efficient things to make money than to get back into the SR business.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2rlUSCJwWA