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I have been using straight razors for a couple years....I know germany and USA are good, but that is about it. Someone is selling these razors for $90 for all, and would like to know if this is worth buying.
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Lion Brand by Yankee Cutlery, E. Weck & Co NY, Torrey Razor Worcester Mass green handle, Geneva Cutlery, Geneva NY, John C Cockwill Sheffield, brown celluloid handled razor, and 5 cases, $90 for all
Its gone now...!!
Just kidding. All the names are good, but who knows what condition their in.
They look pretty rough to me.
In a way your asking for an appraisal, which we do not do here.
The photo is hard to tell anything.
If I were in your situation, I would compare prices of each brand on eBay. See what they are going for & only the buyer can really decide if they are worth buying.
Five straights and a shavette style. One of the straights has a chipped up edge. With straights, condition is also a very important factor. With that picture it is impossible to tell much. I would not likely buy from those pictures at any price. They could be anything.
I would buy one at a time until you don't have to ask here :) whether it's a good deal (no snarkiness intended).
There is nothing exceptional about any of those razors and as mentioned you really have to be able to access the physical condition of each one. Deep pits or chips on the edge, too much blade pitting, broken scales could all be deal breakers.
None of the blades are particularly wide so nothing particularly valuable there. With a little luck and some knowledge you can get a 6/8 requiring only a little work for $10 shipped (I just did that recently) so no need to purchase this way.
It is all about, condition.
Buy razors in the best condition, you can afford.
You can get some good deals in lots, but you must be careful and look at the photos carefully. No rust, no chips, no pits, no broken scales. Basically, nothing that will not clean up with just steel wool and metal polish, to start off.
Usually in lots you will be buying some clunkers… and maybe some good ones.
Generally, if the photos are not good, there may be a reason.
As said, there are some good razors in the lot, but I would not buy them.
If you are shopping on line, and see something interesting, you can PM me and I will, try to advise you, so you don’t get in to trouble with evaluation and end up with some shavers.
Local antique swapmeets and antique stores are good places to look.
Go antique store hopping. Your in NY, where most were probably shipped in. Either with the immigrants personal belongings, or freighter in port.
Look online for stores near you, then call and see if they have any. You'll be surprised,trust me. [emoji57]
$15 per unit.
You will need to check out the popular auction sites to see what similar items are selling for
I think id pass on it. Only one catches my eye but you still dont know its condition. Your shooting in the dark. As parts you might get a couple good s ales from them too but...
Good luck.
thanks guys. Its nice to get others opinions instead of taking my own. I would of thought 90 was a steal. I cant look at them personally because the guy is too far away to just go and check them out, an hour or two drive away. And based on the comment,s not worth the bother.
Thanks again.I appreciate it.
If you can email him ask for better pics. Close-ups of each one. Im new to SR but this 8s what id do. If he wont then pass. Good luck.
Lion Brand by Yankee Cutlery, E. Weck & Co NY, Torrey Razor Worcester Mass green handle, Geneva Cutlery, Geneva NY, John C Cockwill Sheffield, brown celluloid handled razor, and 5 cases, $90 for all
So, when looking at lots, I check the brand name razors, and look at the condition of those first. In this case, you have a Torrey, Genco and the Cockwill, Sheffield, that I would be interested in.
If the condition of those or even one, was equal to the asking price, then perhaps consider the purchase.
I upload the photos to a photo editor and enlarge the photos and examine each razor looking for flaws. In this lot, there are only 2 razors that look promising, the two in the middle and I could not identify the brands. The first two of each row, probably the Torrey and Genco are junk.
So, in this case, I would make my decision, based on the condition of those two razors alone, the bottom one which is probably the Sheffield.
Additionally, the first razor in the second row, is consistent with celluloid used by Geneva Cutlery and they are very prone to Cell Rot, off gassing. If so, that may be why it is so badly chipped, and, more importantly if stored together, could have spread to the collection. That, also would affect my estimate of value.
Keep in mind that at the height of Straight Razor production, the early 1900’s, Genco was advertising production of 6,000 razor per week and they were, one of hundreds of manufactures in the US, not to mention the rest of the world.
There are still many razors in excellent condition, in the wild and no need to jump at a purchase. Next week there will be even more for sale.
Hey Thought I Would Chime In Here!!! Check Sellers Other Listing Or His Feedback,,, Never Buy From A Seller That Sells Straights Individually,,,, They Are Unloading There No Sales In Lots!!!! Really Hope This Helps Ya In Your Decision!!!!!!!!!!!!Ty
Depends on your skill with restoration really. I usually set a personal limit on ebay vintage blades of $15-$20. So for me it would only be worth it if I could turn all 5 of those straights into shavers. I don't use Shavettes, so the odd one out would likely go straight to the round file. 4 of the 5 I'm confident I could get shaving, but the one with the chips in the blade looks too rough - another candidate for the round file.
Then the question becomes, is it worth the time and money spent to get those 4 blades polished and in shaving form. At the cost to acquire them (more than I personally alot myself on an ebay find to begin with) I'm going to wager you can find 4 blades in better condition and have them up and shaving in a fraction of the time with a fraction of the effort. Of the last 3 I bought, 2 were cleaned up in less than 15 minutes with some 1K sand paper and CrOx on a cloth Dremel polishing pad, then bevels set and honed up in under an hour each. 3rd one needs scales, and I just haven't felt up to hunting down the set I bought for it, filing, forming, polishing, and pinning them up.
