Thread: Is this razor unique?

Have recently come into the possession of a Joseph Rogers razor. It is about a half hollow grind one one side only the other side is absolutley flat.

In the hands of a right hander the flat side would be to your face.

I would imagine one would sharpen it in the same manner as a chisel.

Would really appreciate any input or info any of you wise and noble people in straight razor land could offer.

Colin Howkins
Brisbane Australia

Sounds like a microtome to me!

They were used to cut up scientific samples that had been preserved in wax. The microtome could slice the samples thin enough that the scientists could view them under a microscope.

I've only honed one of them and it was a bear to do. I had to tape the spine in a really weird way.

I put a layer of tape on the spine as you would any other razor, but then I had to cut a thin sliver of tape to put on just the flat side to raise that side up a bit more and get a symmetrical angle on the bevel.

It was definitely fiddly to do but that did get her shaving...! There may be a better way to hone these blades, but that's what I did.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Stubear,

Thanks for that. Obviously great minds think alike because I have been doing exactly what you describe, but getting the angle of the hone from the flat side is certainly a trick, and to date have got it nowhere near shave ready. But if it is a you describe it was never intended for shaving, so it might just end up being an interesting thing to have in the collection. I can see if its used for slicing specimens I could imagine the specimen being held in jig or whatever and the flat side rests on the top of the jig and pushed through the specimen taking off whatever thickness was required

Colin, if you want to go through the trouble of doing it you can get a bevel set on the flat side and if it is like my Puma it will be a good shaver. Here is a thread I started a couple of years ago explaining my experience with honing a microtome. Interesting thing is that the one side being a full hollow and the other essentially a wedge. If I were doing it over I would put 4 layers of tape on the wedge side rather than the three that I used.

Jimmy,
Thanks for your feedback. I'm probably not that far of getting a shaving edge, not too sure if I will bother. I am a bit of a believer in using the right tool for the job. Even though I am noted as a Junior Member [Oooh that makes me feel good] I've had and used a cut throat [straight] razor for around 45 years or so now. It was my son that introduced me to this forum, and I have only been collecting them for about 3 years or so now.

Getting back to the right tool statement, I have often remarked to people that the design of a cut throat razor was one they got right first time, I know there are nuances on the design but the basic design was right, and the design has never been improved on.

About the only other thing I can think of like that is the metallic cartridge.

Do appreciate your input