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I acquired this razor from an antique dealer. It is fairly old, I think late 1700s or thereabout. It says Acier Fondu on the tang and its hallmark consists of what I think is an old pipe with an arrow. Does anyone know who made it? I'll try an post a picture to clarify. Thanks
Nice looking razor. IIRC, Acier Fondu would translate to cast steel.
What a beauty! I believe that is an early George Wostenholm razor. Be proud to own that :-)
Very nice and old blade, that was made by George Johnson. Congrats. And Welcome to SRP.
http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...tml#post838554
Acier Fondu(cast steel) stamp was used till about 1820.
There ya go see above post :)
The stamp is definitely in French, meaning cast or crucible steel.
Stamp "acier fondu"(cast steel) was used by different Sheffield makers and others.
Thanks for the identification! You are well renowned for your expertize with razor identification and history!Quote:
Originally Posted by manah
We are all fortunate to have you with us!!
Just out of my own inexperienced curiosity...is a razor that old actually usable? Can it be rehabbed and honed after all these years? I know old steel is still very usable (I use a 1930's era razor myself) but I wonder if something that old just reaches a point where it's a display piece.
I imagine it could be used if you could clean it up reasonably well. I also imagine you wouldn't want to put new scales on it or do too much in the way of restoration. It is very attractive looking though...do you plan on using it?
Yes, of course. Why not?Quote:
is a razor that old actually usable?
Need the correct honing and the razor can be usable for a long time in the future.
Acier fondu is actually melted steel ,,,, acier mouler is cast steel.......Quote:
Originally Posted by Noswad
Gssixgun/Glen restored a razor for me very similar to this one and it shaves beautifully.Quote:
Originally Posted by U2Bono269
Absolutely. This old Greaves acier fondu quickly honed up to a keen edge and gives an excellent shave.Quote:
Originally Posted by U2Bono269
Regards - Walt
http://i464.photobucket.com/albums/r...u1780-1816.jpg
I wish to thank you gentlemen for your input. I thought that the razor may've been a Wostenholm or a Johnson. In any event, it is a nice shaver. However, the steel is very soft and it makes it gentle at its sharpest. I have shaved with it once shortly after cleaning it up just to be able to say "I shaved with a two-hundred year old razor." I know, wip-di-doo (that's what my wife said). The cleaning up was necessary because whoever owned it previously had taken a flat file to it and boy did it look ugly! Thanks again.
These razors cry out loudly for the gentle caress of a Coticule, IMHO :)
They provide a very comfortable shave, sometimes they are not the closest of shaves, but it does have the added allure of like you said "Shaving with a 200+ year old razor" that still does an excellent job of what it was made to do...
diyguy's
Whoop-de-doo indeed. What other 200-year-old item do you have in your house that can still perform the function for which it was intended? Any other everyday article from two centuries ago is probably a pile of rust or locked away under glass in a museum. You hold a piece of history in your hands and you should appreciate the fact that someone, ten generations ago, highly valued this razor and it has survived by one means or another to end up in your hands for safe keeping. You owe it to that original owner, and to history, to value this piece of acier fondue and horn as a tangible connection to another time and place and show it the respect it deserves. Shave with it, enjoy it, appreciate it. It is your passport to a time machine that few others can experience.Quote:
Originally Posted by cflaageriv
Regards - Walt
Semantics but ... crucible or cast steel is made by melting so the translation is quite ok. I think acier moulé would refer more to casting a shape eg a statueQuote:
Originally Posted by Martin103
The steel is formed (melted) in crucibles, then cast into ingots and sold for use, thats where the cast part of the name comes from. The razors were still forged into shape - they were not 'cast' into a razor shape.Quote:
Originally Posted by Martin103
Regards,
Neil
Looking at the stamp I would guess it is a very early George Wostenholm. This pipe is very familiar.
Awesome looking razor and a great find!
Please treat it with the respect it deserves, for all our sakes :)
Nobody has commented on the rivets/washes........the largest I have ever seen, and appear to be in fantastic shape.
Probably brass? Is is possible to get a rough idea of a razors age by the style of the rivet?
Thanks for posting this :tu
here is my razor. come again. Cast steel not available 1740th
identify someone the firm "Nankin"? France?
it is almost new .. All my old knife shave like new
Attachment 84402Attachment 84403Attachment 84404Attachment 84405
Cast steel was invented by Benjamin Huntsman of Sheffield in 1740.
Great looking razor, much better looking than the one I picked up this morning. Here is a link to it:
Auctiva Image Hosting
I found out recently, after I have been toying w/ the idea of learning to shave w/ a straight razor for about a year now, that my great grandfather was a barber. My mom showed me some of his razors and will give me any that my uncles do not want. I decided to get on eBay and purchase some as well, thinking I would like to learn how to restore some as well. Any pointers? Thanks!
Welcome to SRP. That is a nice old stub tail you have there. I guess you know it is probably from the late 1700s .... As for restoring some of your great grandfather's razors, or your ebay acquisitions, go to the SRP library at the toolbar above and check out the tutorials. There should be good info in there. Also go to the forum menu and check out 'The Workshop.' There will be many threads in there with videos, tips & tricks. You might also want to check the forum menu and post in 'member introductions.' More people will see you there than will go to this specific thread. :gl:Quote:
Originally Posted by jccrabtree
Quote:
Originally Posted by JimmyHAD
I am already impressed in my short time at SRP with a quick response to my first comment/question. I will follow your advice, JimmyHAD!
Wostenholm is only a claypipe mark, Johnson has a claypipe and dartdevice markQuote:
Originally Posted by cflaageriv
The pipe is been used several times, in combination with a dart device is a Johnson mark (Tweedale)Quote:
Originally Posted by Zelenbakh
I have seen very old razor with similar pipe and Wostenholm stamp.
The oldest Wostenholm blade with the pipe isn't earlier than 1843.
The Wostenholm company acquired the Pipe trademark from William Hutchinson in 1843 (which was granted at 22nd Dec., 1694 and Wostenholm described as the oldest mark on the Company of Cutlers' register).
Indeed, like I said, Wostenholm is only a claypipe mark (very likewise) but normaly it wouldn't have a dart, Johnson had the same mark but with a dart symbol, in the book "standard guide to razors" by Ritchie there is also an example of pressumably a Wolstenholm, but in this forum, with good reason, classified as a Johnson ( more info in Tweedale's directory to Sheffield cutleries)Quote:
Originally Posted by Zelenbakh
Quote:
Originally Posted by manah
Indeed, and without a dartdevice mark
Very interesting infomation. I myself have an old razor with only Wostenholm stamp? no pipe or any other mark.
I think there are such examples in the razor database of this forumQuote:
Originally Posted by Zelenbakh
I have a whistle found stamp. It might be of Birks. I have 2 of them knives.
here
And the marks of George JohnsonQuote:
Originally Posted by strawinski
