is it good manners to laugh at the price

i was out and about this afternoon, and i happened to go into an antique shop that i know has some good razors for recon work. so i am looking around at what is there, and i see torreys, some w&b's and many of the other razors that most like, and i notice a few razors on a lower shelf. no when i see the price i am curious, 75 buck is alot, so i want to know what im looking at, i open the blade, and the what is the first thing i see on the tang. i will let you all fill in the blanks, i think most of you can see where this is going.

Zeepk??????

no, but i guess you could consider that the next best thing

Chronik? Gold Dollar?

nope, i will let you all laugh now, it said pakistan on the tang

...No. Better yet, take him to the side and say "what the hell are you thinking boy?":):)

might have done so if it was a younger gentleman, but it wasnt and i really dont want to upset the applecart, i look at this one place as a gold mine for razors that are in need of restore work, most of the blades are in need of some tlc, and most need new scales. a restore dream if you ask me

I've laughed at quite a few people, but you have to watch yourself with that it really insults them. I'm not allowed into one guys shop at all anymore. I think I may have cost him a sale.
I have to say, though, that situation would get me kicked out of another store. As an ex-salesman with a newly acquired soul I have become quite cynical when I am out shopping.

i agree i am an ex salesman also, and i dont want to insult anyone at this place, so i kept my mouth shut, and snickerd under my breath, knowing that they had no idea what they were trying to sell

I broke out laughing in an antique store once when I asked to see some straight razors, the guy in charge of the shop whipped out a couple of those Pakistan jobs. When I said that I was looking for vintage Solingen and Sheffield, he asked, "Why, these are better than those old razors." No matter what I said, I couldn't change the guys mind so i laughed and walked out.:)

although i did find a pipe razor at another shop for 14 bucks i am gonna go back and get hopefully

So is there a greater sense of satisfaction making a sales person cry or purchasing a true vintage beauty for pennies, while a pakistani rots in the display case? I really wish I could find some of the deals found on this forum, but in the mean time I'll help people take a second look at their career choice.

lol, i hope to keep finding them

They way I look at it, you see great stuff at cheep prices and crap stuff at expensive prices, and scoffing at one may mean losing the other.

this is so true that is why you do what i do, and keep your mouth shut, smile, nod, say that the wonderfull (chuckle chuckle) 75.00 pakistani razor is out of your price range, and buy the older more tarnished wade and butcher for 15 bucks and the patina'd torrey sitting next to it and leave knowing you walked out with 2 razors worth more than that junk razor sitting in the cabinet

I did bust out laughing at the antique mall that I stop by from time to time when I found a Pakistani razor. Well, snickered a little bit. The woman who was showing it to me was the proprietor of the mall, but not the owner of the stall with the razor, so she actually said "Oh dear!" when I laughed and said the razor was from Pakistan.

makes you wonder sometimes is these proprietors and owners of the stalls even look up the things they sell before they throw them out on the shelf

I went into an antiques place here in London where they had one solitary straight razor, a Sheffield of unknown brand. Mainly unknown because you couldnt read the name for all the rust..!

This thing was in pretty poor shape, but I thought it might make a good clean up with some work, and the scales were pretty solid. I figured the guy might want £20 for it... How wrong was I!

Apparently that delightful piece of English history could be mine for the low low price of... £275. :dropjaw: £275?!?! Madness.

I did point out that I could get a brand new top of the line TI or Wacker for that price, or even a custom, but he wasnt having any of it. Another victim of Sweeney Todd mania I suspect...!

When I find razors priced well over anything that would be considered reasonable I tell them that it displays much better where it is than anything I could do for it. :rofl2:

LOL.. funny thread..
At first I thought you were talking about the antique store near me.... Seriously chipped blades, broken scales, honed to death.... $75.00!... how about an old scuttle: $175.00!!

I didn't laugh... just mentioned to him that his price was kinda steep... and voted with my feet.

One shop here has a couple of razors with different scales, blade sizes, shapes and stamps on the tangs. The guy is selling them as a "rare pair" of razors. They have nothing in common except scale material. One has a broken blade. He wants $300 for the pair.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wdwrx

LOL.. funny thread..
At first I thought you were talking about the antique store near me.... Seriously chipped blades, broken scales, honed to death.... $75.00!... how about an old scuttle: $175.00!!

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don't forget the 2 inches of dust because no one else is willing to pay that much for old junk either.

SOme of these antique stores make me laugh. They have no concept of inventory turnover. They would rather hang onto an object for 10 years than haggle on the price.

I found a few closed razors in a case at a mall recently. After requesting the shop clerk to let me take a look, I casually mentioned that I was curious to see why one particular razor was priced higher than the others. As I pulled the blade out of the scales, a huge, gaping canyon in the otherwise serrated edge presented itself.

I withheld my chuckle out of respect, but the shopkeep was unable to stifle an unrehearsed jolly outburst :)