Thread: A Newbie and his razor: Solingen Extra?

Greetings all, my first post here, and is probably the norm, it is an equipment check. I apologize for that.

I picked up the razor below via online auction for $20, and I'm hoping someone can tell me a bit about it. I'm a little suspicious of the bait-and-switch in this case, as one of the auctions pics shows a stamped "Made in Germany - Simmons Hardware Co." (see last pic below), but the razor I received is simply marked "Made in Germany." A little bit of research suggests that the razors made in Germany for Simmons Hardware Co. were their lower-end product, but nonetheless are considered today to be very decent steel. I based my purchase on this research. It could be an honest mistake on the part of the seller in confusing pictures of his products, but then again this could be inferior steel. I simply don't know, and I'm probably over-thinking it. I've found some mention of Solingen Extra here and there, but in this case the box may not match the razor I suppose. If it is decent razor, then I am happy with the purchase, but if someone recognizes it as an inferior razor, I would very much like to know obviously so I can contact the seller.

Hopefully I'll find out that it is a decent razor for a newbie, and I can restore it and send it off to be honed, and soon be on my way to ultimate smoothness. Thanks all!

The rust looks very superficial. Give a polish and a hone, should be a good shaver.

Never assume the box did belong to the razor originally, while it may have... Always look at the razor.

That said, I've had a few Simmons and they were all fine shavers.

That should be an ok razor once cleaned up and honed. But definately not the same one as in the last pic.

Welcome!!!! nice pick up but i would agree with the above that it is not the same razor in the last picture!!! you can tell by the scales! enjoy i would get that thing Honed by one of the guys here and read, read, READ!!!! the wiki is great for infor and the guys here are a stand up group!!!

What you have there is a perfectly serviceable German razor, not every razor could be some fluffed-up beauty queen. Plenty of razors were made for the barbering trade where functionality was key. The thing is, now you need it made shave-ready, so you have a bit more money to spend on honing and polishing.... pick someone out of the classifieds and make some inquiries.

Have fun with straight razor journey!

Hi I you were going to polish the blade what product would you use as my razor has. Number of discolouration marks on it and I was wondering if they would polish out. Thanks

Thanks for all of the good suggestions guys. I polished up the razor last night with the Dremel; I was genuinely surprised at how well it cleaned up. I'll find somebody in the classifieds to sharpen it up for me. Thanks again.

You an get it honed by one of the pro's which is a good idea, but I would ask you if you have ever SR shaved and if so do you have everything else you need? (Strop etc)

If not, save the 20 - 30 bucks for now, and go to Categories and get the 48 dollar sight unseen deal which is ready to shave with and has a strop etc in the box.

Then once you start to learn, you can collect more...

Originally Posted by Westminster

Hi I you were going to polish the blade what product would you use as my razor has. Number of discolouration marks on it and I was wondering if they would polish out. Thanks

If just discolorizations, and even "light" rust you can polish it very nicely with Mothers aluminum wheel polish which you can get from almost any auto parts supplier, or I think even Wal Mart. I use 0000 steel wool to apply the polish and then finally with a cloth. You can also use 1000 grit wet/dry sandpaper with the polish as a first application if the tarnish is heavier, and then move to the 0000 steel wool and then a cloth to finish. This is all by hand, but be sure to protect your fingers from the edge. I lay the blade flat on a folded paper towel with the handle at a height to keep the blade level. The edge is always flat or compressed lightly into the paper towel. Hope this will help. Good Luck!! Regards, Howard

PS; Sorry, I replied not realizing this was not the OP. Didn't mean to hijack the thread, but maybe it's still relevant. Obviously you don't have a WalMart or maybe evens Mothers brand products. Use what's available in a similar product in The UK.

My apologies to Zenbolic!