Thread: Help with some old razors

So I expressed an interest in learning to shave with a straight razor to my wife the other day. She told me that her dad had been a barber, and she still had several old straight razors of his that I could look into. So I'd like some help identifying if any of these razors are good quality, and anything that I could perhaps still use. The man passed away in (I believe) 1977, so they all should be older than that, but other that that I have no idea of what year he would have been using them.

Here are the pics:

So the one of the top says Vita Style on the handle, and 121 NU-VITA on one side of the blade, with "Made in France" on the other side
The middle one says Edmond Roffler on both the handle and blade, and "Made in France" on the other side of the blade
The bottom one just seems to say "Tondeo" on the blade. It's the only marking I can find on that one. Any insights and advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Welcome aboard,,,,,,,,,,,,,

It's nice to have family heirlooms,,, those razors look nice,,, just need a little cleaning up & TLC.

I'm going to attach some links for you to review & educate yourself about the razors.

As the day goes on, members will stop by & give you some of their thoughts about your particular razors; till then, read through the links & enjoy your journey here.

Straight Razor Manufacturers and Dates of Operation

STRAZORS.com - all about classic razors - Home page

Straight Razor Place Library:Books/Beginners Guide - Straight Razor Place Library

Welcome to SRP!
A+ on the info above!

Welcome to SRP!

I know there are usually several Vitas on ebay so they are somewhat common, but I don't know anything about them.

The Roffler is from the late 1950s. It was supposed to be a high end shaver, but I've never shaved with one.

The Tondeo is a shavette and still in production. Not sure of the date on it, but I'd guess the 1970s - the 2016 model looks just like it. You can buy blades for it Walmart I think.

See if you can get a replacement for the plastic blade holder. It should just slide out. I had some terrible luck with the longer blades, they tend to be too long and never lined up properly. This caused some funky shapes with the blade and it chewed my face up like a rabid marmot. It was my first few shaves, so YMMV. I still use the holders that use the 1/2 DE blade, just snap one in half and boom, 2 blades.

Don't know much about the brands but having some heirloom razors is priceless. Congrats.

Anyone from the western Missouri area that could recommend someone who might be willing to hone these for me? I hesitate to ship them, since there is a lot of sentimental value wrapped up in these :-/