J Shaw & Sons

I have been given by my auntie her late dads straight razor, a vintage razor for me with family connections i feel very lucky. So i plan on doing what has to be done to this razor for me to use and keep.

This razor was kept in his WW2 box of stuff he was in the RAF , there where lots of stuff dated 1943 in the box and 2 of these razors of which i have been given 1. The blade is just about a full wedge there is a very slight hollow. I cant decide what the scales are made of they seem to be some sort of plastic which can bend, im not sure what to use to clean them. The pins are firm and the blade does sit nicely in the centre, so i think i would rather clean them than change if i can.

Anyway heres some pictures and any comments or knowledge on it would be really welcome, Cheers.

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You have been given a part of your family's history, and are very lucky. I wouldn't change a thing on this razor except to give it a good cleaning with soap and water and hand polish with Maas. On the rust spots try to get them with oooo steel wool and Hoppes # 9 gun bore solvent. Hard to tell from the pics, but I think the scales are bakelite. Rub them with a dry cotten rag, and if they smell like burning rubber that is what they are. If they are bakelite, they will be very brittle so treat them with care. Very Best, John

Thanks for your reply wildhog i have been meaning to buy some Mass for a while now.

Some more on the scales, yes it does seem to be some plasticy material but im not sure it bakelite. You can actually nip the scales together when it the blade is out quite easily, also they do bend slightly. Im hoping some one with knowledge of J Shaw and sons might now as im sure they are the original.

Im struggling to find anything really about J Shaw and sons to , except they where in Wolverhampton.

Hi,

Enjoy! I have 3 of great grandfather's razors. It's a blast to have that connection.

Ive

Very nice heirlooms. You are very lucky. Some plastic polish from an auto parts store will do wonders for plastic scales.

You sir, are a lucky man.

I had someone look at it from chat and they think the material could be Vulcanite. Im still struggling on more information on J Shaw & Sons.

John Shaw(1816-1879) was a razor manufacturer, who worked and lived in Copper Street. He was born in Stannington. Possibly he may have been the son of Joseph Shaw, who was also a razor maker living next door in Copper Street. John remained in Copper Street throughout his career and eventually brought his sons - Thomas, Frederick, and John - into the business (another son, Joseph, died in 1873, aged 33). John Shaw died on 24 April 1879, aged 63.
The firm continued in Copper Street as John Shaw & Sons and advertised in The Foreign Buyers Catalogue(1895). By 1901, it had moved to Eldon Street. It was then based in Wheeldon Street until after the WWI, but apparently became defunct during the 1920s. Shaw's was a largely anonymous backstreet firm, but it had several trademarks:
http://manah.strazors.com/j_shaw_2.jpg

I use vulcanite when making my pipe stems. It's a verry hard rubber material and from my experience has very little if any flex to it at all unless heat is applied. It could be Vulcanite or Bakelite.

Hmmm it seems hard to find what this scale material actually is. If vulcanite has no flex at all that must rule that out. I also presumed bakelite also has zero flex ? Im not sure. From manahs excellent post this razor must be dated at the latest 1920s . A very intresting item for me.. I spent last evening on my coticule and am hoping for my first shave with it tonight , I can't wait to see how it performs. Thanks everyone for your help and please if you know anything else let us allow know.

Hey MoreWhiskey - Congrats on the razor! I would love to have one handed down to me.

As for the scales, I've seen similar ones before and I think they are actually leather (this would account for the flex in tha material) a search for "Leather Scales" brought this up:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...er-scales.html

Cheers

Thats the scales Johnny!!!! cheers

that is a good looking razor. I would love to get one by that maker as my first initial and last name is "J Shaw"

Very nice heavy blade, looks to be 1/4 hollow or less. I think that the scales are made of gutta percha. I have a razor with a similar set of scales in better condition, that fooled me into thinking it was stag, due to an impressed stag pattern. Here is some information about gutta percha..

"Gutta-percha is a completely natural plastic, and from the mid nineteenth century until the 1930s it was moulded into many domestic and industrial products. Often mistakenly though to be a type of rubber,it is a hard substance scrapped by hand form Palaquium trees in Malaya, Borneo and Sumatra. Cleaned, kneaded and softened in hot water, it becomes a malleable plastic. Gutta-percha can be thought of as an early type of polythene. Many of the objects it was moulded into, such as buckets, containers, tubing and board games, have been made in polythene for many years.

In 1843 samples of gutta-percha reached England in the shape of tool handles and small animal sculptures made by natives in Malaya. Micheal Faraday identified its excellent insulating properties and its acid resistance made it immediately suitable for the expanding photographic industry. In 1845 the Gutta Percha Comapny was established in London and its first major commission was to insulate the submarine telegraphic link between England and France.

Thanks Croaker i investigate more about your gutta percha suggestion.

What ever the scales are they have cleaned up lovely, its all honed and it shaves lovely i will have to get another picture put up.

Well ive lived with this razor for almost a year now, so thought i would give everyone an update.

Firstly heres the info about the scales,

Those scales are almost definitely what they call ‘cuir bouilli’ – boiled leather. However, there is a difference to this type of boiled leather and the usual boiled leather that they make boot soles and so on from. The scales were subjected to a much greater heat, so great that the collagen fibres break down and run like rubber, cooling to leave a homogeneos substance that looks like rubber with some sort of filler in it – but it isn’t. You can overdo the heating, btw, and the whole lot just dissolves in water – that’s how they make gelatin. A ot of cuir bouilli scales were pressed into moulds – they readily accept decoration when in the plastic state, but by far and away most just had a simple raised line around the edge.

This information was supplied by Neil Miller whos has had a look at them and also gave it an expert hone far better than i can manage.

But the best thing i can say about this razor is after using it for a yr its now the one i go to 98% of the time! Its far better than my best Revisor or dovo. They certainly where doing something right in them days.

The scales are made from boiled leather, compressed and formed in a heavily oiled mould - cuir bouilli. Once it reaches a certain temperature, there is some 'flow' that lends the leather a kind of plastic/rubbery nature that does not resemble the original bit of leather. It was once a common method for constructing scales at a cheaper price than making them out of horn, etc.

Regards,
Neil

Great score, glad the razor was able to be kept original; the nostalgia factor is always a plus from a family heirloom like that.

Nice razor and fine heirloom! Funny you should post this today! My John Shaw razor came up in rotation this morning. A truly awesome grind. A smooth and very nice razor. A link to a similar discussion on mine Here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ine-razor.html. It seems older than yours.
Neil, what IS recommended for these scales. I am thinking soap and water might do harm?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

Nice razor and fine heirloom! Funny you should post this today! My John Shaw razor came up in rotation this morning. A truly awesome grind. A smooth and very nice razor. A link to a similar discussion on mine Here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ine-razor.html. It seems older than yours.
Neil, what IS recommended for these scales. I am thinking soap and water might do harm?

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I see MoreWhisky beat me to the post! Outdrawn again....

Definitely do not treat them with oil. A tiny amount of hard wax briskly rubbed on and off is OK, but there is not much you can do in the way of making them look more presentable when they have broken down - if they have gone soft, deformed or warped, that's usually the end of the story for them, although hard ones in good condition with crisp definition are still to be found.

Regards,
Neil

this is the cheapest razor I have, probably the oldest and, most definetly, theone in worst condition when I bought it. It was so dull that I coud run my fingers applying pressure on the edge without cutting into the skin, and that should give a good idea! So, I did my first attempt in honing it, and it took a long whils, with visible mistakes of uneven edge. Still nowhere near to be as sharp as my hollow ground but, not quite sure why, it gives me a shave way better, I mean not deeper, as I need to apply a bit more pressure, but after shaving I don´t have those tiny cuts on my throught too small to see them, but you feel them if yourub your skin. Something tells me that in theold days people where not so mad about passing the hanging hair test or, maybe, because it is a full wedge,that is how this kind of blade shaves. The shave is so comfortabletha I am now after another one but they are not easy to find, looks like. Opinions and advise always welcome!
Thanks fellas :D