Thread: A Mystery Razor

Hey gang.

I was looking around the bay for a nasty, a trash razor that I might practice honing with one day, just something I keep an eye out for from time to time.

Well, today I spotted this and won it...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=320358296093

It looked like a decent piece and was going for a very reasonable price, so I took a shot at it and won the thing. Interesting, though. No markings, with the exception of the word "POLDI" on the blade.
I searched the forums here, at B&B and looked into the straight razor database - nothing.

That got my attention. So, I googled.

All I could find was references to the Poldi Steel factory in the Czech Republic, north of Prague about 25km. It opened in the mid 1840's and produced a wide variety of steel grades until it went backrupt about a decade ago. They had a worldwide reputation, and they were the prime Bohemian steel source for the majority of the 20th century.
I don't know if this razor was made in the Poldi Factory, named after the Poldi family, or named Poldi because the word has a particular meaning.
I don't know how old the razor is, but by the photos I doubt it's terribly vintage. Looks like a 1/4 hollow square point from no earlier than the fifties. The blade is 1/2 inch wide. What is a half-inch wide, 4/8?

If you know anything about this blade, please feel free to tell me. If it's a find, I'll gladly take a pic of my own once I get it and I'll post it in the database.

Someone loved it enough to shave with it quite a bit. Looks like a decent shaver to me.

a 1/2 is 4/8s, yes. Looks good to me, as soon as I saw POLDI I assumed it was from eastern europe. I'm going to the czech republic in july/august, I will have to see if I can pick up one of these.

Greg,

I appreciate the clarification - 4/8, and I'm still guessing 1/4 hollow.

If you can locate more of these, please post it here later this summer. The more I look at the word "POLDI" on the blade the more I think it looks like a modern type of etching. I'd be surprised if this razor is more than thirty years old.
The old Poldi plant is not completely shut, a part of it still is in operation. This razor, if it is from there, may be in fact rather new.
Makes me wonder if I have the Czech version of the Dovo, the common straight razor for the region.

Also makes me wonder how many more are out there.

It looks to me like acid etching, I have no idea how long they have been doing that?

I don't think I'll be very far from there at all, as I'm staying a little way north of prague. I'll be in the area for a little while, I'd like to pick up a razor in Germany as well.

It's a very pretty razor anyway, I'm a big fan of narrow blades.