Thread: Garland (what is this?)

I got this of eBay for not a lot of money. Truly Have no idea of what it is or whether is worth fixing or not.

I think the etching is cool, and I like the shape of the blade - although I suspect it would be... uh... rough on a noob.

Any information would be appreciated.

Cool looking razor is enough for me. I would restore it.

That can definitely clean up into a good shaver. From the looks of it, the etch should be salvagable.

FWIW, I've seen that etch on several razors of different brands. I wonder if a distributor added them after production, or if it was just something that a lot of razor makers put on their blades.

what is this?

It's a razor made by Garland Cultery Co., 1913-1940.
I don't know details about this company and razors.
Several companies have the similar etching: W & B, Wostenholm, Imperial Razor Co, Cosmo Mfg, Colonial Cutlery Co, Geneva Cultery, London Razor Co.

I think you did quite well . I don't see much , if any , hone wear on that blade . You may have a diamond in the rough . If it were mine I would use nothing but Flitz metal polish to clean it up . It will take a good bit of time and effort , and you will still have some minor staining where the rust was when you're finished , but it will not scratch the finish on the blade , and it won't hurt the etching . I think you can bring back most of the original mirror finish on that blade . Just my $.02 .

Thank you, guys, for sharing your thoughts and experience.

I'm at a crossroads here, because none of my razors are properly honed. I'm thinking of sending one out to be done by someone who has the skills I lack.

Still, I will probably try cleaning the blade if it involves nothing more invasive than polish.

Again, thank you all for your insight and opinions.

Nice looking razor you've found there. Congrats, it should be a nice shaver.

I have a razor with the same engraving on it only its made by the Imperial razor co. But I can tell you if these razors are related get it honed up because the one I have is a fantastic shaver.

Snake-I've got the Improved Eagle, except made/stamped/distributed (whichever) by Unexcelled. I was lucky enough to get mine off our classifieds in pristine condition. It is a handsome etch-you might want to try to clean it up a little if you can preserve it.

Mine gives great shaves if I REALLY stay on top of the touch-ups and good stropping. Once it started to pull, I got it honed by Sham, aka hi_bud_gl, who found it to be a pretty soft steel. He could only get it to final keenness with 1 layer of tape. I chose him because he seems to get a lot of respect on this board for his legendary edges, and I only have a barber hone (so far, but I see me developing HAD real soon). Enjoy your Eagle! aaron

I picked up the same razor as this from a vendor here recently. I'm looking for more info on it as well.

My first straight - I really like the etching on it!



Other than that, I don't have much to add.

Ben