Thread: Age of a razor?

I am sure this has been covered before but I couldn't find it.

How can someone estimate the approximate age of a particular straight razor?

I understand that the vast majority of vintage razors were manufactured or crafted between 1850 and 1950 - but that's a big range.

What are the tell tale signs of the older ones as opposed to the newer ones?

And for those who collect, to what extent is age a value determining variable? I am surprised that approximate age is not mentioned more often in the classifieds as I would have thought older blades would be seen as a more valuable collectible.

Thanks in advance for thoughtful responses.

Seth

Originally Posted by Seth

I am sure this has been covered before but I couldn't find it.

How can someone estimate the approximate age of a particular straight razor?

I understand that the vast majority of vintage razors were manufactured or crafted between 1850 and 1950 - but that's a big range.

What are the tell tale signs of the older ones as opposed to the newer ones?

And for those who collect, to what extent is age a value determining variable? I am surprised that approximate age is not mentioned more often in the classifieds as I would have thought older blades would be seen as a more valuable collectible.

Thanks in advance for thoughtful responses.

Seth

in General there some books Encyclopedia about the manufacture dates straight razors.
from handles,tale of the blade and grind will give some indication about the ages particular straight.
Straight Razor Manufacturers and Dates of Operation

This may help a little.
Good luck

It's frustrating, but age seems less important than maker and condition. Gillette is the only manufacturer I know who put date codes on razors.

Originally Posted by wsfarrell

Gillette is the only manufacturer I know who put date codes on razors.

Bet you they did that just so they could remember when to stop manufacturing replacement parts for them so you'd have to purchase a new one

The best book I've found for dating razors is unfortunately out of print. Robert Doyle's "Collecting Straight Razors" can be found on ebay or in used internet book venues. He doesn't specifically date razors by maker but rather by the style of blade and scales.

See the razor club forum "1700s Show" here for examples of early straights in their evolution to what we know today. The late 1700s razors had no distinct tang. The tang ran into the bevel seamlessly and I imagine the slicing of thumb pads became common enough to generate the gradual step between tang and bevel which became more pronounced into the early 1800s.

Another way of dating is the gradual change from straight scales to a curved scale such as we are familiar with today. This began in the early 1800s as well. The book goes into other examples of style that can be helpful in dating a razor but I am at work and it is not here so the above is from memory and, not to date myself but, I am old.

According to the book by the 1880s the full hollow had come to dominate the market and the wedge gradually was phased out. Anyhow, good luck in finding more info. SRP member Manah has a lot of source material and he may be able to give some more timely info on the subject.

There are many characteristics that helps us date razors, I will be brief and run down a list of these:
1. As already pointed out, the shape of the tang or absence thereof can help us
2. Blades and handles were wedge shaped before 1800, no tang, nor monkey tail
3. Silver steel made its entry after 1820. That is the addition of .02% silver into the steel
4. Slogans began to be etched right onto the blade beginning after 1830
5. Photo etching on the blades began after 1860
6. Frame back razors were introduced bet 1850 - 1870
7. Celluloid handles were introduced after 1868
8. After 1870 the hollow ground razor was king, displacing the wedge type blade
9. The hand forged, hand made razor’s logo on the blade began around 1880
10. Bakelite made its debut around 1900 replacing celluloid
11. Aluminum was introduce as a new handle material around 1920.
Hope this help a bit in dating some of your razors.

This article from Henry Lummus is available via google books is also helpful
The Magazine antiques - Google Books

Originally Posted by dirtychrome

This article from Henry Lummus is available via google books is also helpful
The Magazine antiques - Google Books

Thanks. This article was sublime!

The "tail styles" section in this part of the wiki will help too: The straight razor - Straight Razor Place Wiki
(though from what I've seen, the dates for a given style tend to be more to the more recent end of the ranges listed.

Originally Posted by dirtychrome

This article from Henry Lummus is available via google books is also helpful
The Magazine antiques - Google Books

I especially loved the closing paragraph:

"Perhaps an article on razors should conclude with an apology or defense. Comparisons to other hobbies is odorous, as Dogberry says, and in defending my hobby I would not decry another’s. But if forced to in self-defense, I could mention several objects of the collector’s question that cannot compare in beauty and utility with old Sheffield razors."