Thread: Worth trying these old razors?

Hi all,

My uncle just gave me 6 old straight razors that were owned by my late Grandfather - I'm interested in trying a straight razor, but from the looks of them, they are not in great condition... but then again, I dont really know.

Below are the pics, with a short description of any brands, etc

Happy to restore one of them if its known as an excellent razor (and its not the broken one). There are various degrees of corrosion on the blades of all of them.

Let me know if more detail is required

Thanks all

-G


1.


"Blue Wonder"
Germany

2.



Invicta
E.M. Dickinson, Sheffield England

3.




Dorko
Solinger

4.



Magnetic Platypus
Germany

5.



George Butler & Co.
Sheffield
Broken hinge on a scale

6.



Bengall (?)
Wooden scales

The blue wonder,platypus and George Butler look salvageable, scales can be replaced, a great family heirloom you have there.

WOW that was nice of your uncle to pass them along to you! Best of luck with them.

You're a lucky man. I'd love to have my Granddad's razors. Hard to tell the shape by those pics.

send them out one at a time for restoration and honing. Start at the top and work your way down. The last one depend on how deep the rust is on the edge. In the mean time scrape the excess/ red rust off with a razor blade and get them oiled up.

Wow, what a score, and for them to have been your grandfather's is even better. All look salvageable except perhaps the Bengal. Depending on how serious you are about getting into this addictive hobby/life, you could send some to a pro and work on a couple yourself (polishing, hand sanding). Either way, those will be some good blades.

I agree with Suavio, all except the Bengal seem like they can be made shave ready again... some high quality, well known brands in that bunch.

Thanks all - I took a closer look at the Blue Wonder yesterday and polished it up with a bit of Silvo metal polish. Although there is still some black on it that I'm sure a coarser polish would easily remove that, the blade and edge looks to be in fine condition, with no rust or pitting anywhere. As a bonus, this razor has a larger blade than the others (I didnt measure it, but perhaps its a 6/8)

Unfortunately, the scale is broken at the hinge. From time to time though, another Blue Wonder shows up on ebay. I'll try and nab one and then pillage it for the scales.

This is what the edge of the Blue Wonder looks like after a bit of polish - looks in pretty good shape (from my inexperienced eye).

The blade itself is very blunt - being completely unable to cut a single hair on my leg ( - I hope that's not a sacrilegious thing to try with a straight razor...). Should I send it out for rehoning?



There is some black staining around the blade shoulder where its difficult to get a cloth into (didnt come out in the photo very well)... any tricks to getting that off? I've tried metal polish, warm soapy water and toothbrush, and my fingernail so far.

The spot on the spine is strange, its black around the edges with a faint golden hue in the middle and flush with the rest of the spine such that it almost can't be felt with my finger - does anyone have an idea what it is and how to remove it?

I have a blue wonder get honed once cleaned they are a great shaver