Hi all I am going to some antique stores tomorrow and I was wondering if there are some razors I should keep an eye out for?
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Hi all I am going to some antique stores tomorrow and I was wondering if there are some razors I should keep an eye out for?
Anything you think looks good! Some good big name brands would be Genco, Wade and Butcher, Boker, Double Duck. Sheffield england and Soligen Germany produced some good steel. If you find a very large Wade and butcher, you should get it and send it to me because they suck and ill dispose of it properly....;) Good huntin!
Ones without chips, cracks, and huge amounts of rust. Other than that, grab whatever you can find, but I wouldn't pay more than $10/piece.
+1 on all of this advice.Quote:
Originally Posted by marosell
When you start out, chances are you'll probably overpay on some razors (meaning, they may end up either being more difficult to restore and use than you thought) but if you stick to not buying any over $10-$15 unless they're in very good condition, than you'll limit that type of thing. I like that I can now go into an antique store and make a mental decision most times within a few seconds of seeing a razor whether I'm going to buy it or not. I made a quick stop at an antique store while I was on the way to a business appointment on Tuesday. I was in and out of there in less than 10 minutes (it was a small shop) with a very nice Boker Red Injun (nicer than the one I already had which I'll now be selling) and a nice Regent barber hone. Bing, bang, boom!
Most of all, as Lynn always says, have fun! And, good luck antiquing.
Chris L
When I first went antiquing I brought a little cheat sheet 3x5 card with the names of good and bad brands from one of the stickies somewhere here (in the Newbies' Corner, I think). In the end I didn't need it because just writing them down was enough to help me remember what they were, but it was reassuring to have it in my pocket.
Something people don't mention much: some blades can be bent. (I think this is called "smile.":)) The one I bought was slightly, but I didn't discover it until I started to hone it. Fortunately it was slight enough to hone anyway. You might try laying the blade flat on a display case or window to make sure the whole edge touches at once.
Around here the antique stores, if they have anything at all, don't seem to have anything but junk for under $25 or $30, so depending on where you're located and how popular the razors have become that $10-15 limit might be a little too tight. Once you've found a couple of shops with some razors you'll get an idea for the prices in your area.
And if you do happen on any Fontana razors, please let me know! There's a good chance I'll ask you to pick it up for me.
Avoid any razor with rust or dark spots along the edge. Try to avoid razors with a definite hone wear along the spine more that 1/16" wide, less is better. If it has both an etched blade and rust than you can kiss the etching goodby when you try to remove the rust.
If a razor is "bent" then that is called "warping". Most vintage blades are ok on that aspect. Razors that have either an edge with a "smile" shape or a "straight" edge are ok. A "frown is not. A "frown" is where more steel is gone from the middle of the blade than on the ends. In other words, the width of the blade in the center is narrower than on the ends. That is bad, rather difficult to hone. ( Understatement!)
Make sure the blade is not cracked. Run your fingernail along the underside of the edge, slowly. If it is cracked then it will show up.
Thick bladed razors are more restorable than the thin grinds.
Hope this helps,:)
Is it still socially correct to haggle on prices? or only at like flea markets?
ALWAYS HAGGLE!!!:tu
Haggling in my experience depends on the antique shop. In Minnesota, there are few single owner antique shops (in those shops, if I find them I ALWAYS haggle.). Instead, in MN, there are many antique "malls" or shops where "dealers" rent booth space. In these shops I have almost never had a situation where haggling was even an option. The owner of the razors in a multi dealer situation is almost never on site, and the person showing the razors either has no authority to deal on price on someone else's property, or they could care less.Quote:
Originally Posted by Akady
Chris L
It's not that Yorkshire folks are tight, it's just that here it would be socially incorrect NOT to haggle...:wQuote:
Originally Posted by Akady
^+1 for Wales. They'll haggle over milk in the supermarket round here. :rolleyes:
Probably not technically wise advise, but go with your gut if you see something you like
My favourite inquiry - "What's your best price on that?" Almost saying "I don't care how much is on the ticket!"
I've been toying around with the idea of getting into straight razor shaving for awhile but I'm still in college and don't have much money.
Well today I went to a flea market with my girlfriend and her best friend. They needed help getting a refrigerator, there's a booth where you can get "scratched and dented" appliances at a premium. Well I also had the sneaking motive of looking for straights.
I didn't find anything in the cool air conditioned sections for awhile until i came upon a guy selling Kreiger but thankfully i read enough to know those blades are junk. But outside at more antique mom and pop booths I found three Sheffields for $20, $5, and $5.
I remember reading those were good brands and will post pics.
For me haggling is a way of life. :P
I do usually come out with the 'What's the best we could do on these?' line. In my experience it's best, I first learned it while buying cars. Either ask for the bottom line or just come out with your own price. Don't explain why too much, other than maybe explaining how buying razors is a bit of a crap shoot as far as honability sometimes.
If you try to haggle using condition or quality as leverage, you'll run the risk of either offending the seller or seeming like you're just trying to sandbag them, you obviously want it, so don't try to make it seem like you don't. I once sold a V6 Firebird, and they guy buying it tried to drop me three hundred bucks on the price, which was nothing, but his comment with it was, "With the V6 it's really more like an economy car than a sports car" which in a way it is, the v6 was only banging out 135 ponies, it was my first car and I couldn't afford to insure the V8 and I was selling it so I could buy a V8... But I also really did like the car, the guy calling it an economy car pissed me off and I told him I was firm on my price. I knew the car would sell anyway...
So long story short, I was asking for about 500 dollars more than what I was willing to take on the car. He offered me only three hundred less, but I have a bit of a temper and he offended me, so if he wanted the car he was going to pay full asking... I sold it about four days later to a high school kid who dropped me 350 on the price and didn't think twice about the fifty bucks.
So don't try to insinuate the person is selling something that's sub par, or that they're trying to over charge. You'll run the slight risk of offending them. If it's the kind of place you can haggle, they're not going to ask questions about why you're trying to drop the price, it's expected.
Oh! Also, if they have a couple razors you want, your bargaining power tends to increase if you buy multiple items. Fourty dollars cash in the hand often seems better than fifty dollars in theoretic value in four razors that may take weeks, months or years to sell. ;)
Well sadly in the antique malls you can not haggle. I was able to have her drop 20% because of a crack in the scale. I will post what kind I got later today.