Thread: Should I buy one of these razors?

I went to an antiques shop today just out of curiosity and noticed they had a few razors. Many of them were priced quite high (~$100 for a G. Wostenholm with oxidation and pitting) but I'm sure I can get them to drop a bit. I found three that I thought I could work with:


Case 133 Full Hollow Red Imp



Morris 132 Wedge Red Imp




T. Noonan Bengall (There were actually two other Noonans that I didn't take pics of. One said Arabic on the tang and the other, Harvard).

Both the Case and the Morris seem to be in decent condition (to me anyways but I'm a newbie) though the scales seem to have shrunk and it's a snug fit to close them. The blades of both actually rub against the white wedge by the pin. Also, the Morris Red Imp's scales are pink now instead of red. You can see a closed pic of it in one of the Case pictures (below).


So...what do you guys think a fair price for each of these would be? You can actually see the price the store is asking on a couple of the pictures. Should I bother trying to purchase one of them at all? Help please!

Thanks.

-Jon

Those are very highly priced... More than they are worth in that condition, for sure.

I would say, try to get at least 1/2 of those prices. Antique stores usually will not go down very much however, based on my experiences... Best of luck!

Also, they are probably not shave ready. I didn't know if you had hones to sharpen or not. Just my two cents.

for 105 you can get a brand new Dovo, and for 60 the Ruprazor strop /razor combo, those prices are very optimistic.

I'll shy away from the pricing question, but IMHO You'll find many better deals in the classifieds.

I have a bunch of razors that I'd like to sell to the people who would answer yes to the OP

LOL Thanks for the responses guys. I knew that would be the case on the prices. Considering the prices for what I can get new I wouldn't pay near those prices for the pics shown. Right now I don't think I'd pay over 40 for a used blade. I am interested in restoring a razor but I'm going to try and stick with one that doesn't need too much work. Also, I figure a cheap vintage would be a good razor to practice honing on.

The lady at the store said she'd be willing to work with me on pricing when I told her I wouldn't pay that much for them but we'll see. I figured I'd ask you all first to improve my bargaining position.

Originally Posted by sapito318

Those are very highly priced... More than they are worth in that condition, for sure.

I would say, try to get at least 1/2 of those prices. Antique stores usually will not go down very much however, based on my experiences... Best of luck!

+1 IMHO

I've not had very good luck with antique shops/dealers. In most cases that I've dealt with dealers (regarding razors anyway), they seemed to think that if something is very old it's instantly worth a lot of $ - regardless of condition. They simply whip out their antique pricing guide, find the most comparable item, look at the age of it, and slap on a value.

More often than not those general antique &$ guides are not very in tune with actual prices tolerated by experienced collectors in a particular niche - such as us straight razor folks.

I guess that just makes those rare occasions when you do find an antique store bargain find just that much more exciting and worthwhile.

Originally Posted by Del1r1um

I'll shy away from the pricing question, but IMHO You'll find many better deals in the classifieds.

Hello, JRMx3:

I second Del1r1um's opinion, as well as that of the others on this. You will have more success, with more assurance, from the SRP classified.

Regards,

Obie

Pass. Make an offer to the owner of the store on the ones that you would like to get, and make that same offer six to eight months later if they refuse. I am sure they will still be there. You can get a shave ready Solingen with scales that center the blade for a bit over half of that amount from MANY different users in the classified section. Usually they have been cleaned up a bit and you will make a much more helpful (and longer lasting) connection than the owner of a junk store will ever be.