Need help with items won in auction.

Been straight shaving for a few months now. Have a Roberson mini from Treydampier, a DD Dwarf from classifieds and an heirloom Novelty razor. The latter two were honed by Glen. My folks run an auction house in North Carolina so I told them not too long ago to keep an eye out.

Today I got a box with 8 razors, a hone, an heirloom Russian strop, an old Old Spice mug and some Colgate soap. I won't bother you about those last three. :)

Wanted to get some opinions on the value of these blades. I'm not looking to flip them for some money -- I want to know which ones are worth the time and money to polish, restore, hone and actually use.

The I·XL and Shumate's were in the wiki (or had something similar). I've read about Morley and Koeller. The rest are pretty much older US blades. The steel is in decent shape on most of them except for the Clauss which has some noticable chipping. The others have some rust and pitting but I don't think it's anything severe.

I'm kinda bummed about the Clauss because it's probably the nicest looking blade. The engraving reads "Coronation 1902" and has portraits of King Edward and Queen Alexandra.

The hone says "Franz Swaty - Wahring bei Wien - Austria". I'm not into honing yet but would like to know if this would be good to start on.

Here are some pictures. Forgive my camera as it's not great and I couldn't get good close-ups of the engraving. Hopefully you can at least see the general condition.

Hone (Swaty in an unrelated box):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...razor-hone.jpg

I·XL Celebrated:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...i-xl-razor.jpg

Shumate's Barber:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...s-missouri.jpg

Kinfolk's Inc. Wedge:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...-inc-wedge.jpg

Wm. Bingham & Co.:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...eland-ohio.jpg

J.P. Ganley's Gula:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...t-michigan.jpg

Last three in next post.

Clauss Coronation 1902:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...emont-ohio.jpg

F. Koeller & Co. Velvo:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...gs-germany.jpg

W.H. Morley & Sons Trade Mark:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...rk-germany.jpg

Thanks for reading/looking and any help or advice is greatly appreciated. Much love, SRP!

I think maybe you should let me take a look at the Clauss in person before you write that one off....
You should also go visit your parents in NC and stop by the Meet Up in Asheville the first weekend in June.... I'll be there

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

I think maybe you should let me take a look at the Clauss in person before you write that one off....

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You can rest assured that anything worth saving will be sent to you for some honing and closer looks. :)

The chipping on the Clauss is noticeable but not too deep. It looks like it could be breadknived(?) without harming the engraving.

EDIT: You edit quicker than I do. RE: Meetup -- I've thought about it. They're in Cullowhee, which is about 45 minutes W/NW of Asheville. It's an 8-hour drive from Gainesville, FL and I'm not sure if I could get the time off -- if I went to the meet I'd also want to spend some time with the folks. We'll see.

That is a nice bunch of razors. The Wostenholm, Clauss, WH Morley, Shumate, and Kinfolks are all excellent razors. I have no experience with the other three.

The Shumate has rust on the edge and might have a split blade. If so, that one is toast. The chipping on the Clauss looks like it can easily be eliminated. Your hone is a Swaty barbers hone, one of the best, in a box that does not match it.

Very nice haul!

Saturday the 6th is the day you would not want to miss in Asheville....
With out a doubt you could learn more than you would ever need to know about razors that one day.... :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Utopian

That is a nice bunch of razors. The Wostenholm, Clauss, WH Morley, Shumate, and Kinfolks are all excellent razors. I have no experience with the other three.

The Shumate has rust on the edge and might have a split blade. If so, that one is toast. The chipping on the Clauss looks like it can easily be eliminated. Your hone is a Swaty barbers hone, one of the best, in a box that does not match it.

Very nice haul!

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Thanks for the input! Had no idea about the hone but it makes sense as most of the blades came in mismatched boxes. The stone fits snugly into that box so I just assumed it was a fit.

The Shumate has a scratch down the middle that I didn't even notice until I saw your post. It's not split, though. There is some pretty heavy rust right on the edge on the back side.

I never thought that having connections in the antique world would really help me out any. :D

I should have mentioned it in my other post--your hone is commonly referred to as a "three line Swaty." The "three line" refers to the three lines of text in the imprint. It is generally, right or wrong, considered to be the best version of the Swaty.

I would say all those razors are in very good condition and well worth the time to restore.
Though I must admit, I am more interested in the etching/engraving on the Clauss and the Morley, I collect and try to restore when I can (and if I can afford).

Pity about the camera though, I would love to see those engraving up close.

Great find.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by smythe

I would say all those razors are in very good condition and well worth the time to restore.
Though I must admit, I am more interested in the etching/engraving on the Clauss and the Morley, I collect and try to restore when I can (and if I can afford).

Pity about the camera though, I would love to see those engraving up close.

Great find.

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Apparently my camcorder takes much better close-up stills than my camera. Here are the two blades engraved.

Clauss Coronation:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...coronation.jpg

Morley Trade Mark:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...trade-mark.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

Saturday the 6th is the day you would not want to miss in Asheville....
With out a doubt you could learn more than you would ever need to know about razors that one day.... :)

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:gaah::gaah::gaah:

Why did my Job out west have to be then????
:gaah::gaah::gaah:

Thanks a bunch commiecat, Though I never saw one before, I somehow know there existed a Morley with the clover trademark etched in the blade...

Yes, the etches can both be saved, the Claus just a bit more difficult than the Morley... whatever you do or whoever you send to have it restored, insist the etch be saved... or do nothing at all.... Just my opinion.

Thanks again my friend.

What a nice boxful!
Don't get rid of the Swaty, you'll need it sooner, than later. A great hone. The Kinfolks razor is a tremendous razor, which appears to be able to be restored to almost mint. Congrats!

Thats a nice lot, hopefully you will get the chance to enjoy shaving with them.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gregs656

Thats a nice lot, hopefully you will get the chance to enjoy shaving with them.

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I'm sure I will. I'll be sending them out to Glen after the SRP meetup to go over my options. I've since cleaned them up a bit and they all look pretty good. The Wm. Bingham doesn't really appeal to me so I'm not gonna send that one out -- that will be my practice razor for if I ever get into honing/restoring. The Clauss needs more TLC so I'm gonna wait on having that one restored.

I found that the Kinfolks actually has a small bend at the tip of the blade -- not sure how problematic that will be. The Ganley looks really nice and that's the one razor that I couldn't really find any information on. Hopefully it will shave as well, too! :) Here are some recent pictures. My plans for the razors are in parentheses.

J.F. Ganley, "Ganley's Gula" (just needs honing):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...anley-gula.jpg

W.H. Morley & Sons, "Trade Mark" (honing, and I might have scales replaced):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...-trademark.jpg

Shumate's "Barber" (honing):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...34-shumate.jpg

Geo. Wostenholm & Sons, "Celebrated I·XL" (honing & scales replaced):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...e2636-i-xl.jpg

F. Koeller & Co., "Velvo" (honing):
http://straightrazorpalace.com/membe...ller-velvo.jpg

I have kept the Swaty and thanks for all the info about that, Utopian. It's almost lapped (need some more sandpaper) and I look forward to using it. Thanks to all.

Were is your folks auction house in NC? I'm a resident and would love to visit and see what is available. Very nice lot, as Utopian mentioned, I just picked up a three line Swaty and love it. Enjoy the great lot, would love to see pics after Glen get's to working on them.

Enjoy

Joe

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Joeman

Were is your folks auction house in NC? I'm a resident and would love to visit and see what is available. Very nice lot, as Utopian mentioned, I just picked up a three line Swaty and love it. Enjoy the great lot, would love to see pics after Glen get's to working on them.

Enjoy

Joe

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It's in Franklin, NC. Here's the website and yes, that's my ol' man:
Welcome to Reminisce Antiques!

That's a nice set of razors you have there. I think each one is worth saving. By the way, how is the Robeson doing? Your razors there are going to give you a lot of pleasure I am sure.
Good Luck with the clean Up!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by treydampier

That's a nice set of razors you have there. I think each one is worth saving. By the way, how is the Robeson doing? Your razors there are going to give you a lot of pleasure I am sure.
Good Luck with the clean Up!

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The Robeson is doing well. I only have a three-razor rotation right now so it gets good use -- I use it to clean up my neck in between full shaves, and I've just started using a straight to shave my head as well. Needless to say, I can't wait to add the above-posted beauties to my rotation. :)