Thread: Wacker Jungmeister

So for the last year I keep seeing this one razor in a case at the Antique Mall just around the corner from my house. It has what appear to be black plastic scales with a silver inlay script of "Jungmeister". I have mostly ignored it as the price is above the mark I was willing to pay for something I knew little about. Now that I am being more active on this board I have come to find out, after a bit of random curious searching, that it is a Wacker and therefore quite well respected. Unfortunately I have had a hard time discerning what exactly Wacker blades are. I think from what I have read that they are recent regrinds of old blanks and there are no true vintage Wacker razors. Can anyone direct me to some history on the name or just fill me in? It seems that they are highly respected though and I am itching for a more hollow ground razor (which it appears to be from what I have seen) of late.

Regardless I plan on stopping back by there after work today and finally asking to see the razor in person to check out if it is a clean and NOS-y outside of the scales as it appears to be.

I don't know where the blanks come from, but I do know they are highly regarded razors. My understanding is that Wacker is the last truly masterful grinder in Germany.

Originally Posted by Muirtach

So for the last year I keep seeing this one razor in a case at the Antique Mall just around the corner from my house. It has what appear to be black plastic scales with a silver inlay script of "Jungmeister". I have mostly ignored it as the price is above the mark I was willing to pay for something I knew little about. Now that I am being more active on this board I have come to find out, after a bit of random curious searching, that it is a Wacker and therefore quite well respected. Unfortunately I have had a hard time discerning what exactly Wacker blades are. I think from what I have read that they are recent regrinds of old blanks and there are no true vintage Wacker razors. Can anyone direct me to some history on the name or just fill me in? It seems that they are highly respected though and I am itching for a more hollow ground razor (which it appears to be from what I have seen) of late.

Regardless I plan on stopping back by there after work today and finally asking to see the razor in person to check out if it is a clean and NOS-y outside of the scales as it appears to be.

Muirtach, I bought my Jungmeister directly from Shaving Shop. They have a line of Wacker razors for sale. You might want to look into this before paying a visit to your nearby store, their website: www.shavingshop.com. My Jungmeister does not have plastic scales; but rather is a three pin horn scales and it is a fantastic shaver; matter of fact my next shaver will be a Wacker. Good luck

So the current Wackers are being ground out of old blanks. I have also seen that the name has been in razors for a few generations. Do we know if the current ones are using new names or retouching on old ones? Say for example that the Jungmeister I have seen is from his father's era and the current ones are just keeping the naming tradition going.

Conjecture on my part of course.

Originally Posted by Muirtach

So for the last year I keep seeing this one razor in a case at the Antique Mall just around the corner from my house. It has what appear to be black plastic scales with a silver inlay script of "Jungmeister". I have mostly ignored it as the price is above the mark I was willing to pay for something I knew little about. Now that I am being more active on this board I have come to find out, after a bit of random curious searching, that it is a Wacker and therefore quite well respected. Unfortunately I have had a hard time discerning what exactly Wacker blades are. I think from what I have read that they are recent regrinds of old blanks and there are no true vintage Wacker razors. Can anyone direct me to some history on the name or just fill me in? It seems that they are highly respected though and I am itching for a more hollow ground razor (which it appears to be from what I have seen) of late.

Regardless I plan on stopping back by there after work today and finally asking to see the razor in person to check out if it is a clean and NOS-y outside of the scales as it appears to be.

They are not "regrinds" - some are old blanks that have been recently ground. A regrind is an old razor that is honed out but still salvagable if the blade is reground, or an old wedge that is hollowed out. All production razors are ground from forged razor blanks. To get one that is not ground from a blank you must go to one of the custom razor makers. Having said that, Wacker also grinds recently forged blanks now too.

Originally Posted by Muirtach

So the current Wackers are being ground out of old blanks. I have also seen that the name has been in razors for a few generations. Do we know if the current ones are using new names or retouching on old ones? Say for example that the Jungmeister I have seen is from his father's era and the current ones are just keeping the naming tradition going.

Conjecture on my part of course.

Jungmeister is one of Heribert Wackers family brands. Sometimes when he locates a blank or group of blanks from companies whose trademark is now public domain he will grind and decorate them and with others like Bartmann and Dorko he has permission of the trademark owners to make their brand razors. There are a lot of new blanks being forged in Solingen now because the supply of old blanks has diminished significantly.

Thanks John. I'll go check it out tomorrow and see if it is in good condition. Seems like a solid rep either way.

Well I finally got a chance to head back over there today. The razor is in pretty much NOS condition. It appears that it is an older one though as the case reads Karl Wacker and not Heribert. 13/16ths round point full hollow. Tang reads "Silber Stahl Solingen". The Solingen is not much of a surprise. There is some gold wash on the blade and it reads "Acero Plata" with a crown in the middle. Jimps on the bottom and top with teh top jimps being on the edges and not covering the whole thing.The original price was marked at 185 down to 125 and I talked the seller down to 105. Seems like a good deal and after I clean the edge up I wil take some images.

So was Karl his father or grandfather?

Just to clear up any confusion.........

Really the only regrinds out there are like a W&B Wedge with a totally flattened spine that is actually reground to a more hollow ground razor.

What is normally referred to as a regrind really is not. Whether old stock or new, razors are or were typically drop forged other than those being cut from bar stock by the custom guys.. These blanks so to speak are what are being ground to the finished state. I guess they can actually be called new grinds...........

Have fun,

Lynn

Here are the pictures. Far different from the rest of my stable, which is mostly wedge or 1/4 grind Sheffield with a nice 1/4 Henckels in there too.