Thread: Help me ID a Silversteel Wedge

I've got a wedge here that was a piece of work when i got it. I won it for just a few bucks off ebay and figured it would be an interesting experiment with a wedge. There was a tiny chip in the blade that I've already gotten out, and i'm working on finishing the scales and cleaning up the rest of the blade. The scales are not original, they look like they were made pretty hastily with a piece of oak or something. Its actually a solid piece with a slot cut from one end, not two pieces. I'm guessing the original manufacturers name was on the original scales or the box. Also the blade seems to have been ground off from the square shape it probably was into a more rounded blade. Like i said, it was a piece of work but its not far from being shave ready now. A few more coats of rub-on poly and its over to the sharpening stones for her. But i'd really like to know if anyone has any idea what brand this might be, or what year it could be from?

From the tail and grind, I'd guess 1840's maybe. No idea on the maker, though.

My guess with rough scales like that is they were homemade replacements. There are tons of examples of razors that old with really nice scales, so I cannot imagine anyone would buy one new with scales like that.

Lastly, and this is just a personal pet peeve of mine - that is not a Full Wedge. I can see where the razor has a band of wear at the spine and above the edge. Since they do not meet, the whole razor does not sit on the hone, and it is not a full wedge. Just "wedge" is used more or less interchangeably with "quarter hollow," and I can accept that, but adding on Full should, in quite possibly only my opinion, only be used for an actual full wedge. Otherwise what purpose does adding the word "full" serve. Sorry.... /endrant

I also assumed that the scales were homemade, poorly made replacements. As far as calling it a full wedge, I can almost guarantee that the entire razor with sit on the hone before i am finished with it, as i can see light scratches across its entire width from the rough stone it was on to remove the chip. There really is absolutely no grinding to speak of.

It may sit flat after you hone it, but that is because of hone wear and would not have originally been true. Going by the way you put it, I could take a new production Dovo, hone the crap out of it till it's a 1/8 toothpick that sits flat on a hone, and call it a full wedge. It just isn't.

Also, heavy ground razors often get scratches above the bevel and below the spine wear when honed on low grit hones because some of the grit comes loose and scratches the razor. As I said before, if there is any area that does not sit on the hone, than the razor is not a full wedge. Maybe only a little was hollowed out, but it was partially hollowed. Maybe it looks like it's a triangle, but it's not.

Here is an example of a near wedge that has been honed down and now looks like a true wedge at the toe. But it's still a near wedge, and it's very clear that the hone wear would not have looked like this had it not been so flattened.

I see your point. I had made the assumption that if it was meant to be anything other than a full wedge, then a noticeable amount of material would have been removed, but i suppose not.