Thread: Antiquing?

I see tons of posts about finding razors in antique shops. Are these good sources for inexpensive fixer-uppers?

Antique fairs/shoppes, eBay, etc... Yes, if you know what you are looking for and have a keen sense of what problems to look for. It will also depend on your skill levels in restoration and how much work you are willing to put forth. I have successfully purchased some of my razors from ebay. I have also had a few duds (mostly due to my inexperience at the time). If you are truly interested in purchasing "fixer uppers" I'd start reading through the honing and restoration forums here on the site.

A note of caution here.

Once in a while you can find a good deal in an antique or second-hand shop, but then sometimes you run into the odd dealer who feels that just because something is old(er) he has a right to demand a premium for the item regardless of its actual worth or condition.

So, you still have to have a fairly good idea of what you are buying and whether or not you can use it (or successfully restore it).

Happy hunting!

I'll second that advice from ignatz - I wandered in to a dusty old antique shop in the mountains here and saw a no-name, nothing special, seriously rusted, severely honed, chipped edge straight with a quarter of one scale missing listed for $85. I thought it was simply a negotiating ploy, so just for fun I humbly offered the guy $10 for it. From his reaction you'd have thought there was an armed robbery in progress. I was unable to count the number of times he said "...over one hundred years old!"

Yup I suspect many dealers see a century of existance as justification for holding to a price. But you know, some tourist will eventually lay down $85 plus tax for it - we've all seen similar results on the bay when a straight is shiny and has some interesting scales that photograph well - even if they've been honed down to less than 1/4.

As Dward suggests, knowing what to look for, what the relative value of a razor is, and knowing what you can reasonably restore is going to save you a tremendous amount of cash! Even the classified here aren't always safe buys without that knowledge. 99% of the time they are, but I've seen some significantly overpriced asking prices get paid for a shiny blade or somewhat different looking scales. I've fallen for a good photo more than once (we all have).

Good advice from all above. Knowing what to avoid and what to pay is needed to get good buys from antique shops and the like. It is very similar to EBay except that you can see, feel hold the items and it is not made available to everyone in the world to bid on. That said next is to scope out the places to shop and the places to avoid. There are a lot of places near me to hunt for bargains but not all are buyer friendly and some are more friendly than others. Learn what to buy, what to avoid buying, which shops are friendly and which shops to avoid. Occasionally you will stumble on an extremely great find out of luck, but that is the exception rather than the rule. The more work and thought you put into antique hunting the better your results will be. If you go out expecting the shops to give away the store you will not enjoy the hunt. Don't get upset with items priced well over what you would expect to pay for it. Just tell them that for that price it looks best in their case and walk away with a smile.

I prefer estate sales but the same rules apply.
Simmons Barbers Pet. No hone wear, just reflection.

Originally Posted by AirColorado

I'll second that advice from ignatz - I wandered in to a dusty old antique shop in the mountains here and saw a no-name, nothing special, seriously rusted, severely honed, chipped edge straight with a quarter of one scale missing listed for $85. I thought it was simply a negotiating ploy, so just for fun I humbly offered the guy $10 for it. From his reaction you'd have thought there was an armed robbery in progress. I was unable to count the number of times he said "...over one hundred years old!"

Yup I suspect many dealers see a century of existance as justification for holding to a price. But you know, some tourist will eventually lay down $85 plus tax for it - we've all seen similar results on the bay when a straight is shiny and has some interesting scales that photograph well - even if they've been honed down to less than 1/4.

As Dward suggests, knowing what to look for, what the relative value of a razor is, and knowing what you can reasonably restore is going to save you a tremendous amount of cash! Even the classified here aren't always safe buys without that knowledge. 99% of the time they are, but I've seen some significantly overpriced asking prices get paid for a shiny blade or somewhat different looking scales. I've fallen for a good photo more than once (we all have).

You guys are so right! Some of those antique shop dealers have a lot of brass, to ask high prices for junk that is "old". Just grab a rock and tell them it is 500,000,000 years old and offer to trade it for their shop!

Originally Posted by Croaker

You guys are so right! Some of those antique shop dealers have a lot of brass, to ask high prices for junk that is "old". Just grab a rock and tell them it is 500,000,000 years old and offer to trade it for their shop!

I like that one! Very well put and will get them thinking, maybe.

As has been said, some of these sellers are out of their minds, so don't be afraid to walk away. I bought two razors at my local flea market last Sunday. The first one was a fair deal at $12. The next was a good deal for me, as I picked up a nice little razor for $4. A few vendors down the line I found one with a decent blade, but so much rust on the tang that you couldn't read the maker's name. The seller wanted $20 and seemed miffed when I said "No thanks". Lastly I met a guy trying to sell a beat up Henckles with a rusty and chipped blade. I almost laughed out loud when he said he wanted $200 for it. It takes all kinds. Just be choosy and hold out for a good deal.

Thanks guys. I have no restore experience and I guess if I were to go out looking at a garage sale, estate sale I would be looking for something that needs minimal work. $200 for anything with a chipped blade sounds like a racket unless there are diamonds embedded in the scales or something.