Thread: Possible manufacture date for J. A. Henckels model 88

Hi,

My grandfather left me a J. A. Henckels model 88 straight razor about 20 years ago. I recently found it in a box. After doing about 3 hours' research on the Internet, including the S.R.P. database, I haven't found any information about when the model 88 was manufactured. A link in one of the posts in your forum on the subject, which was described as containing some of this information, was old/dead.

I would be glad to submit photos, should anyone be interested.

Many thanks,
Hedy

G'day, I'd be interested to see some pics !!
Looking forward to them.

A close up of the logo might help a lot!

Here you go. I can take the razor upstairs to my studio for better-lit photos as well, if these do not suffice.

Thanks again,
Hedy

Hi Hedy, welcome to SRP. Henckels was one of the premier Solingen razor mfgs. They made hundreds of different models over the decades with numbers, such as 88, denoting the models. Your grandfather's razor looks well taken care of. Not a lot of hone wear and what is there appears even. So if you wanted to put the razor back into service it would be doable at a nominal cost for pro honing.

If you're curious as to value I would suggest doing a completed items search on ebay for "Henckels razor". Yours is a plain barber's no frills model. Any similar Henckels razor, in the same condition, will give you a ballpark if that is what you are looking for. It doesn't have to be a model 88 to give you an idea. If the value isn't an issue disregard my blurb.

Hi,

Thanks very much for the information. I am glad to hear it is in good shape. I want to introduce this razor back into the marketplace for an enthusiast at a reasonable price; if I could find a local friend who was serious, I would give it away. My husband hasn't shown any interest.

Thanks again,
Hedy

Please excuse this newbie question, but what is the significance of the two little dancing guys ?

They are Siamese twins, one of the stylized incarnations of the Henckels logo, as far as I've read.

Originally Posted by bongo

Please excuse this newbie question, but what is the significance of the two little dancing guys ?

Most every company had a "mark" back then. The "twins" just happened to belong to Henckel. The razors, knives and bayonets were all produced at the ZWILLINGSWERK which is German for Twin Works. They've been around for quite a while and are still in business today.
from wiki;

On 13 June 1731 Peter Henckels registered the "Zwilling" (German for "Twin") logo with the Cutlers’ Guild of Solingen. This makes Zwilling one of the oldest trademarks in the world. 40 years later, Peter's son Johann Abraham Henckels (1771-1850) was born, who would later re-name the company after himself. The Henckels logo has been in the current shape with a red background since 1969.



J.A. Henckels opened the first trading outlet in 1818 in Berlin, opening a shop in New York in 1883 and followed a year later by Vienna and in 1897 by Copenhagen and Rotterdam. In 1909 Henckels set up its first subsidiary in the U.S., followed by Canada, The Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Japan, Italy, France, Spain, China. In 2008, subsidiaries were set up in Great Britain and Brazil.
JA Henckels was awarded the Grand Prix prize in Paris in 1900 and the Grand Prix of St. Louis in 1904. It was also awarded with the Prussian State Golden Medal. Henckels was also given a Royal warrant of appointment as purveyors of knives to the Imperial and Royal Court of Austria-Hungary.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._A._Henckels