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My father in law picked this up for me as a birthday present. He found it at a gun show in Bakersfield. The scales aren't in great condition but the blade is. I can't wait to get it honed up and ready to shave.
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What a gorgeous old razor. Great blade lines
Thats so cool. I'd love a present like that.
Nice piece of history you have there. Those scales look saveable unless the other side's worse.
I hope you restore the scales too.
Very nice, very old razor.
regards
Tom
That's got a great shape to it & I love the grind. Enjoy it!
This side is the worst. There are quite a few pits like the one visible in the close up.Quote:
Originally Posted by onimaru55
Very nice - I am a sucker for large old blades like that one. Enjoy the restore.:)
Unless the scales are cracked or warped, I'd say leave them the way they are. Those little bites look pretty minor. Adds character to a nice old razor :)
Nice blade profile! I love Joseph Elliot razors too. Should clean up well, except for the pits, and make a nice shaver. I would just oil the scales, they are intact and the bugbites don't detract from the utility of the razor.
I'm thinking of leaving the patina as I like the old look that it brings. Is this ok to do, as far as hygiene goes?
Also, dealer told my father in law that he had narrowed it's production down to between 1820 and 1870. Does this sound accurate? Is there any way of narrowing it down further?
It may also be helpful to know that it came in a black coffin-shaped box with the C's and crosses on it.
Seems about right to me. I'd have guessed 1840s to 1860sQuote:
Originally Posted by Dulouz
The blade's tang & tail shape and style remind me of this Elliot beauty (scales by Philadelph)
http://straightrazorpalace.com/attac...a-dscf0024.jpg
The scales can be fixed. If you want to take the little chips out, get some black epoxy die. Mix up a small ammount of 10 min epoxy. A quick set keeps it from sagging. Put some wax paper behind the scales along with something flat like a paint stirrer from the hardware store. Then you can use a toothpick or sliver of wood to dabble epoxy into the bug bights to fill them. Then sand it lightly with some 400 grit where the epoxy was applied. That will get it even with the scales. Then give the scales a light sanding with some high grit paper, 800-2000 to clean and smooth them out. You can wipe the scales down or soak them in some neatsfoot oil to recondition them. Then give them a buff with some white compound to shine them back up like new.
The term 'silver steel' gives a starting date - 1820 - the original formulation by Faraday contained silver (modern silver steel does not - and has not for a very long time: it is just bright tool steel).Quote:
Originally Posted by Dulouz
From the Ken Hawley Trust, describing an old silver steel razor:
HANDLE - SCALES of black buffalo. Square HEAD and spire TANG END. Iron RIVETS and brass PINS.
DATE - c1825.
COMMENTS - These makers made razors from silver steel and marked them as such, but this one isn't. Other razormakers used silver steel. Messrs Rhodes of The Wicker, Sheffield, wrote a booklet on razors in 1824 having experimented with silver steel. Note that Pearce was using this metal for his razors. The instigator of this metal was Faraday in London, who got Sanderson of West Street, Sheffield to make samples of silver steel on his behalf and no doubt sold the steel to other razormakers.
It is right at the bottom of the page.
Regards,
Neil