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This just went off on eBay - RARE~ Roman Soldier Handle John Primble Straight Razor - eBay (item 380127818477 end time Jun-03-09 15:27:46 PDT) - for over $2,000.00.
How many members expected such a price, if they were watching it? I was figuring $600 max.
And who said we were in an economic recession?
Regards - Walt
Here is another prize coming up. I am guessing $500.
Antique PEARL Marshes & Sheperd STRAIGHT RAZOR,19C - eBay (item 260418189046 end time Jun-03-09 18:00:00 PDT)
There are many more 'collectors' of straights out there than us guys here who actually use them. Lots of people really chase after these 'rare and original' razors with fancy scales.
Yeah, those are guys that collect fancy scales. Most of the forum members here are more interested in getting a good shaver rather than a collectible.If I had one of those I couldn't sell it fast enough so that I could take the proceeds and buy a Livi or something.
I am one of those "collectors" who has yet to actually shave with one. I am looking through my stuff for a few goods one that I can send to get honed professionally. I am fed up with buying cartridges.
I occasionally sell on eBay under this name, never bought razors off it. Most of mine are found at garage sales and antique stores. I just bought a big lot that I am going through now.
So, how does the sale section work? The first one I put up got pulled for some reason, still not sure why. I didn't see a tutorial per-se so someone needs to point out the rules to me.
Can we barter for stuff like marbles or pocket knives?
Brad
I believe you have to have a minimum number of posts now, just to stop people joining up and selling junk - I'm not saying that's what you're doing, but you understand it could be a problem with all the eager new members who buy now and think later?
You can trade stuff.
You sound like you're going to become an active member here, and it's scarily easy to post around here, so your post count will be through the roof before the week is out.
Welcome on board.
I was looking at that one. I was willing to pay about $40.00 for it. Maybe the person who bought it thinks it is a relic from the Roman age.
Am I out (there) or in (here)? Is there space for me in SRP? I think I am a collector, but a user too. I enjoy shaving with my razors, even if some blades are only collectible items, like many other members with their "secret" boxes full of "project" blades. There are many most respected members, here, considering themselves as users even with a good collection of hundreds of straights, so.. I think the difference collector/user does not belong to reality: it's part of our approach to reality. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Philadelph
I think I should have included some ":thinking:" in the text of the post. I'll put them here: :thinking::thinking::thinking:.
As a razor it is worth 40. Maybe.
As a collectible for the fancy scales... :shrug: There's one born every minute. Maybe if it was carved ivory. Although the bid history looks funny as well. I find it strange that the bid jumps from 400 ish to 2000ish with nothing in between.
The funny thing is, IF I would buy it because the blade is nice, I would probably rip the scales off with a pair of pliers and toss them in the bin :)
I would pay maybe $5.00 for the scales. They are marginally better than a set of broken scales.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruno
The Marshes&Shepherd is a "special" item.. I know, :rant:the blade has no future, but those graveyardish scales.. The auction started about $80, if I'm not wrong. I was there :p and thought: "Probably 90?".
I know these sometimes go for way more than they should, but if it hit 2 grand, my bet is there was a shill in there somewhere.
Did you guys see this one recently STRAIGHT RAZOR-RARE FANCY HANGING NUDE ---------CRAZEY - eBay (item 220423002330 end time Jun-01-09 19:00:00 PDT)
It pales in comparison to 2 grand though...
Nothing funny about the bids - the top three are from different people all with high feedbacks and 100% rating. (maybe someone from this forum???) They used sniping programs most likely.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruno
There is the "N" factor in all things - the NEATO factor that has no method of calculation beyond what a person has in their bank account.
IMHO, You may talk about ripping off the scales but in reality if you found this at an antique shop for $40.00 you would be laughing all the way to the bank...
True, but I'm talking collectors who will pay $2000 for that razor so they can put it in a display case and never use it. Guys who might buy from big auction houses, etc. To be fair most guys on this site consider themselves 'collectors' to some degree, but not THAT serious.Quote:
Originally Posted by clavichord
There is a segment of the straight razor community that collects decorated scales and they have been around for the 30 or so years I was active on and off in razor collection. Years ago when I determined that I wasn't going to shave with straights I limited my collecting to late eighteenth century and early nineteenth stuff. Also large W&Bs. I would buy them and put them in a drawer. Keep an eye on pressed horn oldies and you will be surprised at what they bring at auction.
I had one friend, a barber, who collected fancy scaled razors and had no interest in any others. He has passed away some years ago and when he barbered he would use a shavette to trim around the ears and the back of the neck. No face shaving. Anyhow, there is a new book out on collecting fancy scales by the author of the 1980 classic "Collecting Straight Razors", Robert Doyle. It is called ,"Celluloid Handle Guide For Straight Razor Collectors". It is filled with beautiful photos of scales but doesn't show the blades at all! :gaah: Illustrates the point I think.
EDIT; The funny part of it is that in '06 I decided to ebay all of the razors I had accumulated and did. I would ask a friend who has a good eye for such things to evaluate my ebay presentations. In doing so he became interested in shaving with straights and found the various shaving forums. I told him not to waste his time and money but he wouldn't listen to me.
He got into it and shortly thereafter so did I. The rest as they say is history.:D
Wonderful!! Thanks!! I think I could read your post every night before going to bed. Also: it here a sort of secret password or something similar that I should know to visit your collection? A place, a webpage.. or just a very-well-protected room?
My current accumulation is more shavers than collectibles. I have put a couple in the SRP Wiki database and will add more as time and inclination permit.I tend to be sort of secretive about things like my collecting. I was told that I am paranoid and I should go to paranoids anonymous for help. I tried but no one will tell me where the meetings are. :shrug:Quote:
Originally Posted by clavichord
Probably in the last 25 or so years this country has gone collection crazy. You name it and people buy it and there are always people who are flush with cash and can afford just about anything they want no matter the economic conditions.
I think most guys here would be really shocked at how many people have really large collections of straights they don't ever use. I remember a year or so ago I bought a razor off a guy on Eboy and he told me he had his office wallpapered with them. He wasn't even sure how many he had but at least 4 or 5 thousand. He said he just liked to look at them. He was not the first guy to tell me something like that either.
So I'm not surprised when some of these razors go for wild prices. I'm more surprised when I see say a Goldedge go for a grand then some rusty beat up razor with one of a kind scales go for 2 grand.
No I wouldn't. I wouldn't have bought it because the blade is meh.Quote:
Originally Posted by schmoozer
And if I would, I would rip off the scales or give them away, because I cannot see anyone paying anything worthwhile for scales unless they are ivory of one kind of another.
The thing with collectibles is that you can't set a fixed price on any of it, whether you're talking about razors or baseball cards or stamps. I know there's pricing guides out there for most collectibles, but those are based on recent average prices, not an any intrinsic value.
As a shaver, as several people have pointed out, that blade wasn't worth more than a tiny fraction of what it went for, and NO razor is worth more than a few hundred dollars at the very most.
However, there could be two guys out there trying to build a collection of a particular era or style of razor, and both needed that one razor to complete their collection.
In a case like that, the only limit on the selling price, is the depth of the wallets involved.
Why is no razor worth more than a few hundred dollars? Aren't there new TI's selling for $500+ right now?:shrug::shrug::shrug:
Quote:
Originally Posted by schmoozer
Because I didn't say that. I said that no razor is worth more than a few hundred dollars, as a shaver.
Somebody paying $500-$1200 for a TI or Maestro Livi isn't paying that much just so they have something good to scrape the hair off their face.
Don't get me wrong, if I could afford such an item, I'd own one. No bones about it. But, I'd be buying it more for the luxury and prestige of owning one than I'd be buying it as a tool.
Agreed, as a shaver, I don't know many razors that are worth more than 100 dollars, but if you take custom work and artistry into account you'll find people willing to pay tons more than that.
Speaking merely for myself, I wouldn't pay anywhere near the prices that some of these things are going for... but I don't value the scale designs nearly as much as I do the blades. I don't need a rare razor, but I do like great shavers that look nice.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Del1r1um
You hit the nail on the head. That's precisely what I'm saying.
Got it, thanks! User versus collectible. I think everyone has a different line splitting the two.
I picked out 6 I am going to send in to get honed.
Stilleto - top left this has a small nick in the heel but looks like it needs to get straightened out anyway.
Krusius Brothers
Devon - bottom left
Ford & Medley - top right
Worchester
JA Henkels - bottom right
Since you have never shaved with one, if I were you I would take a good full bladed 6/8, a 5/8 full hollow and maybe a 7/8 wedge if you have one and send them off. This will give you a few different blade profiles and sizes to find if you prefer one size or grind to another.
You might want to check out the SRP Wiki here for shaving tutorials. Particularly this post here by Lynn on easing into straight razor shaving gently. :gl:
Thanks Jimmy. I had read the guide but it didn't seem to talk about blade profiler, just makers. I do have some wedges, need to go through them. Will cut my selection down to 3.
This is really, Really funny. I bet what happened is two people who collect razors for the rare handles each put in a huge sum as a spike bid and one of them trumped the other and got stuck with the bill!Quote:
Originally Posted by schmoozer
I remember seeing this one. I didn't bid because while it was less than $100 at that point it was more than $30 and I thought that price was insane. I remember seeing that it had a Kentucky mark on it - so - Romans, Kentucky? No way it's 2000 years old! I thought the seller must be referring to the Roman soldier molding. And since the scales pictured showed only one side, I thought it was a good assumption that the other side has simply blank - and that the scales were celluiod at best.
Seems maybe somone's snipe setting got caught, or, a few guys actually thought it was Roman era (and that Kentucky existed 2,000 years ago?). In any event the seller is probably still sitting in shock!