Thread: Senior members, a question

Originally Posted by mparker762

That's what it looks like to me too, which makes no sense. If we started telling people about them then everybody would bid them up into the stratosphere, and what's the fun in that?

I'm only willing to divulge the Chronik because I've already got one you see.

I had several at a time a few years back. They would give a good shave just like so many other brands - marketing and contemporary perception drive prices. The truth of the matter is that not many of them are different in any way other than small differences in hardening/tempering and grinding accuracy and technique. I know it messes with the conceived or at least present perception of one's own collection to think so, but that's the truth.

Any razor from Solingen, Issard, Eskilstuna or Sheffield, or any number of defunct American razor manufacturers can be made into an excellent shaver if the blade isn't too far gone and it wasn't bent or twisted in the hardening and tempering process.

remember too, that the cutlery business in general was populated by hundreds of concerns. Some pretty big and many very small and unknown. These concerns (with a few exceptions) did not do it all. They bought a blank from one manufacturer and scales from another and maybe sent the product out for various fabrication operations. They just kind of assembled the parts and put it all together and did final finishing. So the blade from company X might be the same as company Y. What may make them different is who did the grinding and heat treatment and forging and honing and the quality control.

And here I thought it was Gillette that was putting the American straight razor manufacturers out of business

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Yes that is one of the ones on "The List"
That list is however only passed between very senior members of the forum...... Mr Parker I do believe that he is actually after a copy of "The List"

Originally Posted by mparker762

That's what it looks like to me too, which makes no sense. If we started telling people about them then everybody would bid them up into the stratosphere, and what's the fun in that?

I'm only willing to divulge the Chronik because I've already got one you see.

There's more layers to this mystery?!

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

remember too, that the cutlery business in general was populated by hundreds of concerns. Some pretty big and many very small and unknown. These concerns (with a few exceptions) did not do it all. They bought a blank from one manufacturer and scales from another and maybe sent the product out for various fabrication operations. They just kind of assembled the parts and put it all together and did final finishing. So the blade from company X might be the same as company Y. What may make them different is who did the grinding and heat treatment and forging and honing and the quality control.

You are exactly right. It was what we now refer to as a group of cottage industries each doing their part. I think this mentality comes from how airplanes and even submarines were manufactured in Germany during WWII. Small shops all over made the same part day after day. Then shipped them to an assembly point. That is why even towards the very end of the war they were still producing four times the munitions that they produced at the beggining of the war and this was in spite of allied bombing.

Originally Posted by hoglahoo

And here I thought it was Gillette that was putting the American straight razor manufacturers out of business

In WWI the troops on both sides had to be well shaven to get a good seal on their gas masks or face the horrible consequences. A straight razor - although still used - was much slower than the then new double edge razors. When they started issuing them to the troops it was the beggining of the slide.

Ichinichi, I think this is actually the type of info you are looking for right???? and this is what I was eluding to, how I bought it so cheap is because it is a fairly unknown brand....


http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...tml#post384455

If it is, there are sprinkles of it throughout the Razor Forum and the Auction Forum....

Before anyone jumps out there and bids up a"Chronik" for a few hundred bucks, Google "straight razor" and "Chronik" at the same time. The first page or so deals with the town in Germany and then you get to some discussion about the blade. After reading a few pages of that, it's apparent that it's not a consistent shaver at all. One discussion was an experiment with 3 or 4 of them and the results were not stellar. I'm not saying it's not a good blade, just that there is some indication that it's not a consistently good blade. I think the "Shave my face" forum has a pretty good analysis that I found.

He is absolutly right !!!

Mr Parker and I were joking guys, there is an ongoing joke about certain razors the Chronik is one of them, my very own "Mack the Knife" is another...

Originally Posted by mparker762

That's what it looks like to me too, which makes no sense. If we started telling people about them then everybody would bid them up into the stratosphere, and what's the fun in that?

I'm only willing to divulge the Chronik because I've already got one you see.

You don't have a chronik! A chronik is seven feet long, with a great flame red handle, and it shoots lightning bolts from its tang that sear the whiskers from your face!

It's true! I read it on teh intarnets!