Thread: Great-Grandfather's Razor

I just recently received my Great-Grandfather's straight razor from my Grandmother. I have never shaved with a straight razor, but I would really like to start and I think it would be cool to use a family heirloom. I have attached some pics. Please let me know if you guys think this is a useable razor and what steps I need to take to get it in useable shape.

Welcome to SRP. Nice to have grampa's razor. Looks like the point has been honed off a bit but overall it is something that could be honed to shave ready by a pro. If you go to member services in the SRP classifieds you'll find members who will hone it for a nominal fee.

Follow the link below to the beginner's guide in the SRP Wiki for mucho info on successfully shaving with a straight razor.

You are fortunate to now have a family heirloom. The good news is that the razor is a Gold Bug, no doubt made by Witt and given the retailer's stamp. I have one and they are excellent shavers.

The bad news is that the blade is damaged. I doubt it would be usable unless you can shave without the last half-inch or so of the blade. Must have become chipped and the chip was ground out.

Using that razor will mean a lot to you as it did to me when I had a chance to use my grandfathers razor. Get it honed first and while you are awaiting its return bone up on everything you can! Welcome to SRP!

I've lost track of the number of times I've made this recommendation but here goes again...

Go ahead and have someone else clean up, fix up (if you wish the blade to be shortened--but personally I wouldn't), and most importantly hone up that razor, but then, PUT IT AWAY. Beginners have a habit of trashing their first razor. Razors are sharp because the steel is brittle. You can drop it or ding it against the side of the sink or you might think of some more creative way to destroy it. You might be an exception, but you don't want to break your family heirloom. Buy another razor and learn how to use that one. If you break that one, it's no big deal.

Oh, and don't even think about cleaning, fixing, or honing his razor yourself until you have practiced on (and broken) several other razors first.

Originally Posted by Utopian

Oh, and don't even think about cleaning, fixing, or honing his razor yourself until you have practiced on (and broken) several other razors first.

Seriously, no cleaning? Cause I was thinking about working on it while I learn. I recently won a Torrey on ebay.

Originally Posted by agriff44

Seriously, no cleaning? Cause I was thinking about working on it while I learn. I recently won a Torrey on ebay.

Seriously, no cleaning.
Clean the Torrey, which are nice razors by the way. Clean any other razor. You'd be amazed at the number of stupid mistakes that can happen while you learn. I'm just strongly suggesting that you gain all of your experience with something other than your family heirloom.

I would either put it away or have someone work on it for you...learning on an heirloom is no-no in my book. If you want to start restoring blades, the most expensive one you have is not the place to start...and by expensive, I mean an irreplaceable heirloom.

Please listen to these guys, they are trying to help you!

Another saying, please listen to these guys. What Utopian says about making the mistakes on a razor that doesn't mean so much is very true.