Thread: need help on razor collection

hello, i am fairly new to the game here but am currently looking to buy a collection from a local. here is the list of razors. any input on the quality/ good brands or would be helpful. and also what you think this collection would be worth . sorry no pictures

-Vintage Climax straight razor in very clean condition. Gebruder Schmachtenberg Solingen 171 with anchor and cross swords on tang. Black bacolite handle has no cracks and the pins are tight.

-Vintage Columbia Cutlery Co. straight razor made in Worcester Mass. Has #10 on tang and Extra Hollow Ground is etched on blade. There is a small nick on the blade and the black bacolite handle is in good shape. There is some rust discoloration on the blade.

-Vintage Rich. Abr. Herder straight razor. Slight rust discoloration on the blade and the name Solingen appears on the tang. One of the two pins appears to have been repaired with washers. Very nice collector item.

-Vintage black handled straight razor with no markings on blade. The pins are tight and the blade is very clean with one minor rust discoloration

-Vintage Hibbard Spencer Bartlett Company straight razor. Improve Rattler etched on the blade. Bakelite handle is in good condition. There is minor rust discoloration on blade. -Vintage George Wostenholm & Son straight razor. Celebrated I XL Razor. Sheffield England marked on the tang and “Friday” etched on the thick top of the blade. The handle is bacolite and in very nice condition. There is some rust discoloration on the blade and tang.

-Vintage straight razor with Made by Geneva Cutlery Co. Geneva, NY and the initials OJ stamped on the tang. The handle is bacolite and the razor blade is clean and fee of any major rust discoloration.

-Vintage straight razor with King Cutter etched on blade. The name H. Boker & Co. with a tree stamped on the tang. Couple of rust discoloration marks on blade and there are no cracks in black and clear plastic handle.

-Vintage H. Boker and Co. straight razor with Edelweiss etched on blade. Handle is bone cream in color with a couple of very minor cracks near tang pin. There are 10 little notches in the middle on one side of the handle. Very nice and clean antique.

-Vintage collector Durham Demonstrator Duplex beard trimmer and razor. Made in USA on one side and Pat. USA May 28, 07 on other side of tang. DURHAM DUPLEX BLADES and the other side reads of the bakelite handle is DURHAM DEMONSTRATOR. There are no blades for this razor.

-Rare vintage old American Improved Quality (Three Line Hone) straight razor sharpening stone with instructions in original box bottom. The stone is in great condition with one small nick on one side. This is a must for collectors of shaving antiques. -Rare old straight razor hone with the name “Drei Reihen Rasier Messerstein” stamped on the nameplate just above the Three Line Hone name. There is no box and this stone has a small chip on the bottom left corner and a small chip on the top right.

Welcome to SRP.
First off, we do not do valuations around here, so we cannot help you with that.
That said, it seems your list is made up of decent brands.
If they are worth buying or not depends entirely on their condition.

Well, besides not talking money here... it would be kinda hard to appraise a collection based only on descriptions. What may seem like a trivial little nothing to you may be a deal breaker to someone else. Some will pay top dollar, but the frugal amongst us wait patiently for an opportunity to own a particular razor or even a specific brand.

The bottom line is that if you like them and it seems to you a reasonable price, then get them and be done with it. Don't look back and enjoy them.

May all your shaves be smooth.



Marcos

Welcome to SRP. We are a wet shaving community with interests in helping members learn the skills to wet shaving and the use of a straight razor. If you would like to learn to use straight razors this is the place to be and we can assist you in your quest.

Moderator Note: Valuations are not allowed on this site please refrain from asking. If you are asking if the razors would be good for you to shave with we will need pictures. We also just like to see straight razors. Enjoy your visits to SRP and we hope you will become a valued member.

sorry,didnt know about valuations part on this site. just curious if they were good brands so it wouldn't be a waste of time to go look at them tomorrow.

It is never a waste of time to look at razors... many of them are just pretty. focus on the blades themselves when you look at them... some people think the scales are important and that fancy scales mean something... they don't. if the blades look good and you can arrive at a price you like ... by all means buy them, and post us some pictures... some of my favorite brands are on that list.

enjoy,
jim

Pictures speak 1000's of words...

You can never go wrong with a Boker or a razor made in NYC, as long as someone hasn't "tried" to restore a blade and damaged the heat treatment in the steel. Many times the good intentions of a person to restore a razor actually damages it...

As stated look at the blades but pay attention to other details than just rust/clean/chips. Look at the spine to see if there is hone wear, is it even, excessive in some areas? Does the blade have a smile/frown? Does the bevel look even or are there wide areas? Is bevel even on both sides? These can make the difference in a blade being worth 10.00 or 100.00.

I am no expert by any means but I have waisted a few dollars on some junk blades to learn these lessons

@dyimages:

I've bought my fair share of shit razors, but I don't think I wasted any money. I consider it the price of a lesson learned, and as a bonus I get a practice razor... to hone, unpin, re-pin, rescale and shave the cat.

@OP

Most Solingen blades are good, in particular vintage ones. Many vintage American blades are very good too, though I find a lot of them are tagged Solingen, and without knowledge of brands you can't tell (stick around and you'll learn all about brands, and then some.) The Bokers are nice, unless the blade has been messed with and ruined. Little things make the difference between a junker and a find. Look at the edge, should be rust and chip free, though small chips are fixable. Cracks are a deal breaker. The edge should not have a frown (that is, be narrower in the center than at the ends), and the spine should have even wear.

What is acceptable to you depends on your level of skill and confidence at working on them; I've bought razors that I brought back to life myself, but I have a box full of blades that I did a rough clean on and covered in oil and am waiting to either get better at it or to have some disposable income to send them to my betters to be fixed properly. Be careful, though, because a $10 find can easily cost you several times that on restore and hone alone, even with the reasonable prices most of the craftsmen here will charge you. Don't be blinded by the possibilities unless you have the patience to build up your skills to get the job done.

And I was kidding about shaving the cat.




Marcos

Originally Posted by Snake

as a bonus I get a practice razor... to hone, unpin, re-pin, rescale and shave the cat.

Marcos

I'm looking at my cat beside me and thinking "he'd look good with a lion cut for summer."