Thread: Should I buy one of these razors?

+1 pass

You can get 3-5 nice shave-ready razors from the classifieds for that kind of dough. Alot of the razors pictured have frowns that will need to be honed out which raises the price of that $160 razor to over $200...that's Wacker teritory!

I antique a lot, and interstate too. My advice is the majority of the razors being sold by antiquers are because nobody shaves with them and they have a small amount of value for their age, and authenticity.

The antiquers who think their gonna cash in on the ebay fantasy and think they got a sucker at the door, and think their selling me a slice of friend gold, are not who I'm buying from.

The reason I say this is, that "we" straight razor shavers know what is useful, and worthwhile, and we're a small group in the grand scheme of things. Their not selling Wedgewood to me. So the way I look at it is, I have to restore, hone, and finish the blade to make it a useful tool. It's in non working condition 99% of the time.

The razor prices on here are a different story, because these are restored, and honed working useful razors, so they have a different "value" so to speak.

I have never paid more the 50 for any antique razor bought from an antique store, and that I am positive will not change anytime in the future.

Like I said, these are tools, and although we think their beautiful, their not tea sets, rugs or furniture so the antiquer your dealing with needs to get a grip $160 for a red imp.....lol I wouldn't pay that restored on here well maybe if Max or Glenn or myself did it lol.

Cheers
David

Yeah, I vote no on this also. I'm in the business of restoring ACTUAL antiques, e.g. I have restored 150-200 year old furniture that fetched over $150,000 at auction. As stated above, most of these junk store folks think that if it's over 30 years old it's automatically worth big bucks. Don't let 'em have your money. I have bought several nice razors at antique stores that basically just needed to be buffed and honed and shave great, and never payed more than $10. Among them a great Wade&Butcher, a Genco, and others. Obviously, the choice is yours, but think twice, especially if you have never gone through the hours to clean, polish, restore, and hone an older razor. Either way, happy shaving.

Yeah, I'd be leery of spending more than $10-$20 on a fixer-upper. Not that you can buy a crummy razor because it's $3, but there are finds out there if you look hard enough. (And weasel a little deal, too. ) Besides, if you've never restored a razor there's no telling what you'll do to that thing once you take it home. If you chip the edge or snap the scales on a $10 snag you won't lose sleep over it.

IMO - pass. But if you listened to any other posts on this thread, you probably did that already.

Happy hunting!

i bought a red imp wedge 132 mint for $35 from a guy off ebay a couple months back. the emblem on the scales is perfect as is the blade..

Originally Posted by 59caddy

i bought a red imp wedge 132 mint for $35 from a guy off ebay a couple months back. the emblem on the scales is perfect as is the blade..

Very nice! Did you post photos in the show and tell?

Originally Posted by BingoBango

Very nice! Did you post photos in the show and tell?

no, i am still trying to get my photo skills perfected
let me see if these come out ok

Just a few hours ago I bought a Wade and Butcher with broken scales but a decent looking blade and a Red Imp 133 with a crack on the pivot end of the scales for $37.77 on ebay.

Here's my personal take, now that I have a few shave ready razors, and a few to play with.

A used razor, in pretty good shape, shave ready but not a major name - I'll give $35.00 to $50.00. So a Wade and Bucher ordinary razor that I can clean up the blade and replace the broken scales with a set I already have is worth around $20.00 plus $15.00 for having it honed. Same with the Red Imp. Remove the pin, super glue the scale, repin and send it to be honed. So each of these razors, finished and ready to use I've given around $35 - $40 for. I consider these middle of the road name razors. The Wade and Butcher is not a "For Barbers Use" or heavy wedge and the Red Imp I only wanted because I have a 132 and needed the 133 to finish the set. And that the 132 is my current personal favorite shaver.

Just my two cents.

Zacsdaddy