NOS 6/8 World Master, Otto Busch, Solingen-Wald Number 194, with factory edge. Top and bottom gimps. Absolutely pristine.
"Made From Kayser Ellison & Co-S
Best Sheffield Silver Steel"
Attachment 213143
Attachment 213145Attachment 213146
Printable View
NOS 6/8 World Master, Otto Busch, Solingen-Wald Number 194, with factory edge. Top and bottom gimps. Absolutely pristine.
"Made From Kayser Ellison & Co-S
Best Sheffield Silver Steel"
Attachment 213143
Attachment 213145Attachment 213146
Now that is a gorgeous straight razor, always been a fan of the thumb notch, congratulations, that is a real beauty - pristine is an understatement.....
AWESOME razors
I just honed one a few days back, I tried out the Factory edge before honing :) just stropped and shaved..
Actually not bad, you could call it "Shave Ready",,, personally I like the edge a bit smoother, but it shaved :)
Gorgeous razor. Enjoy in good health!
Such a find!!
I can't help it, I'm drooling over this beautiful razor and I'm in good company !!
Attachment 213186
This one looks awesome. Congrats and happy shave with it.
Razor such that the eyes do not tear.:tu
Beautiful I saw the listing he was selling a number of them I couldn't bid because the seller didn't take Paypal as a payment.
Lovely razor.
Well, I didn't cry, but I did whimper ever so slightly...Quote:
Originally Posted by Gipson
It seemed the seller has/had 6 of them, perhaps more. They had price tags of 2400Yen on the back of the box. They shipped to me from Sweden.
So, a minor thread jack of my own thread.
Why would these particular razors and some Puma razors have been made with Sheffield steel imported to Germany? I had not previously known this and am now curious. Thanks.
Nice, it looks like it was manufactured last week!
Great catch Bob, that is from some of the best years of razor production IMHO. I have Puma, Bartmann, Koeller/Craftsman, Griffon 'Carbo Magnetic', among others, made with Kayser-Ellison steel. They seem to have been highly regarded in the cutlery world before and for a time after WW2.Quote:
Originally Posted by lz6
There is an old thread here discussing the marketing involved with Sheffield steel 'ground in Solingen.' My own supposition is that it involves the Germans mastering full hollow grinding in the late 19th century, when Sheffield had been the dominant razor purveyor. Robert A. Doyle, in 'Collecting Straight Razors' recounts how the full hollows pretty much replaced the wedge fairly quickly.
So it was not uncommon or a few decades, to see 'Ground In Solingen' on Sheffield razors. Even in the recent past, Theirs-Issard stamped their French made razors 'Sheffield Silver Steel.' So anyway, at one time I think the public perception was that the Sheffield steel was superior, as was the German grinding. Kayser- Ellison was one of the pre-eminent steel producers of the time. IIRC they went under in the '50s or '60s.
Thank you very much Jimmy. Greatly appreciated.
These can be found with relative regularity in The Netherlands, in varying shape. It seems to be made for export, as this is not a Weltmeister but a World-Master / Worldmaster [sic]. A pretty specimen, this one.
Great catch
Really like the blade.
Have a great shave.
The newer Sheffield steels (including those made by Kayer-Ellison) were developed with German engineers involved. Silberstahl (with chromium and vanadium to make it rust resistant ("rostträge", ie "slow to rust", not "rust free") is a prime example which was used for razors until fairly late into the 20th century. Apparently, "English steel" was perceived as a token of quality, like "Made in Solingen" (but not "made by Volkswagen"...).
Apparently, there was a lot of shipping steel to and fro going on back then. Consider the Japanese razors made from Eskilstuna steel when Tamahagane became prohibitively expensive.
Jimmy is (almost) spot on with his observation that Solingen superseded Sheffield as the prime source for razors. If you ask the search function here for "Daniel Peres", you will find two things: 1) Peres was "inspired" by the black polish in Sheffield (ie he enhanced the formulation, and brought it back to Solingen, where he worked as a rogue (as in, not member of any guild) razor maker), and 2) he commoditised razors by streamlining the production process. Add to that, over time, superior machinery, and you have a pretty convincing explanation as to why Solingen superseded (more like, annihilated) Sheffield.
Overall, and that is just my personal perception, steels have got ever better over time. I do not have a single vintage Sheffield razor in my collection, but a growing number of modern Solingen razors. Consistency through quality control most certainly plays an important role. Still, some people love old Sheffield blades, and that's great. They certainly made a number of extremely stylish sets the likes of which I have not seen from Solingen.
I hope that helps,
Robin
Thank you Robin. And Pithor, thank you, and, at least, this particular batch were indeed made for export to Japan. The back of the box has a retail price tag of 2400Yen. Around $17 US in todays market.
Funny how that full hollow grinding apparatus revolutionized the industry. Looking at it the idea seems so simple, yet until the Germans developed it the Sheffield wedge was the dominant razor.Quote:
Originally Posted by RobinK
Here in the USA, on SRP anyway, it seems to me that we have many members who prefer the heavier grinds, I wonder if that is a worldwide phenomenon, or if like the preference for synthetics over naturals, it seems to be an SRP thing ?
Certainly the professional barbers, if not straight shavers in general switched to the full hollows en masse once they became available.
I'd say it is. Heavy grinds are harder to maintain, and in my experience do not deliver better shaves. Quite the contrary. But the so called meat choppers look interesting. Bit like 8/8 razors. Nobody used them professionally, yet still they are very popular. I keep a few in a display cabinet for the looks, but otherwise don't use them.Quote:
Originally Posted by JimmyHAD
Any idea if these razors are from the pre or post war era? They are good lookers!! It's slightly odd looking at a thumb notch that also has a stabiliser in the grind!
There will be something on the flyer that came with the razor.
Also, http://www.weltmeister-solingen.de/index.html?info.htm
I've got a World Master 194 that isn't Kaiser Ellison steel, instead it is marked "Made from Bohler Extra Razor Steel Best Elektrik Silver Steel". Not sure if my scales are original but they've definitely shrunk and are pretty cheap look/feel. Wonder if they just change steel providers, or if Kaiser steel and Bohler Elektrik steel are marketing schemes?
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...9c31529553.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...adc30d9717.jpg
I've got a couple, maybe a few Solingen blades marked Bohler steel, and they are super. See this post by Mike Blue here ........ ; http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ml#post1361093Quote:
Originally Posted by TwistedOak
Interesting...Quote:
Originally Posted by JimmyHAD
"Böhler-Uddeholm is a large Austrian company specialised in producing tool steel and special forgings. It was formed in 1991 as a result of a merger between the Austrian parastatal Böhler and of Uddeholms AB of Sweden. The company has production sites in Austria, Germany, Sweden, Brazil, Belgium, Turkey, China, USA and Mexico. As of September 2008 it is a wholly owned subsidiary of voestalpine." (Source).Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Blue
I'm sure you'll find this article here interesting.
So it seems like the Bohler and Kaiser steel were more than marketing. Thanks for the info gents!
Beautiful find Robert
Good thing I saw this post. As I was going to post up some pics and review. My razor is identical to the OP's. The size, grind, thumb notch and upper/lower jimps. Are all for exactly what I like. The extra hollow blade and scales are balanced. Fit and finish is top notch. The sound of the blade while in use is shaving music.
I purchased one a couple weeks ago. And after shaving with it for the last week and half. Decided to grab another while they were still available. I would have certainly regretted not getting a second. I enjoy it so much.
This has knocked my NOS Gold Rex off the top of my favorite list.
So now my list goes from #1 to #7
1. Otto Busch World Master x2
2. Gold Rex 1072
3. Fisher Inox #20
4. Burrel Top Flight 6/8 x2
5. Harris Goar St. Louis Extra Hollow.
6. A.J. Jordan Old Faithfull.
7. Stiz Russian
All of the razors in my rotation are enjoyable to use. But the Otto just feels correct in my hand. Kind of like when you hold and shoot a pistol or revolver that fits your hand so well. That it's point of aim is "automatic".
