Thread: Recent acquisition: Wade & Butcher For Barbers Use 15/16 or 8/8

Hi, Guys,

I just thought I'd share my most recent acquisition: a fairly robust yet tarnished Wade & Butcher For Barbers Use razor. I'm not quite sure how to classify it since it varies in width as you move down the blade. It is 1" at its widest and about 15/16 at its narrowest (just eyeballing it with a ruler, so I could be wrong).

Now I just have to set about getting this one cleaned up and honed. Since I've never had this done before, I'm open to suggestions on how best to proceed. In any case, the world of straight razors is an interesting and exciting one, indeed.




Have a good one!

-- Sammy

If you've never restored or honed a razor before, this is not the one to start with.

What he said^^^^, nice blade

That slabbed spine has got to be somewhat rare, eh?

great find....it will be a beautifull razor after restoration and a great shaver too!!

The good news is that from the pics it looks like your scales are in decent shape. Giving them a soak in neatsfoot oil may be enough to bring them back to life. This means there's a decent chance that it could be restored using the original bits which is kind of nice!

As for the blade, it all depends on what you want. If you want it all buffed and shiny, then definitely send it out to a pro for restoration. But if you don't mind patina, I don't think there would be any harm in getting some polish and seeing what that does. But as ace said, if it needs anything approaching serious restoration work, this is not the blade you want to practice on. It's simply too good for that!

However, what you have there is a potentially *fantastic* shaver. So whether or not you decide to send it our for restoration, you should *definitely* send it to a pro for honing!

Originally Posted by dfrazor

That slabbed spine has got to be somewhat rare, eh?

I must say, I've not seen this type of spine on other W&B For Barbers Use I've looked at online. I have a few more W&B's in my collection, and they also do not look like this. Would this be specific to any certain time period, or may this just have been decision made by the grinder?

Also, thanks to all for your input. I will likely be sending this razor out to be refurbished soon, or at least sooner rather than later. I'm anxious to see how it performs.

-- Sammy

Originally Posted by samlark

I must say, I've not seen this type of spine on other W&B For Barbers Use I've looked at online. I have a few more W&B's in my collection, and they also do not look like this. Would this be specific to any certain time period, or may this just have been decision made by the grinder?

Also, thanks to all for your input. I will likely be sending this razor out to be refurbished soon, or at least sooner rather than later. I'm anxious to see how it performs.

-- Sammy

I'm not even close to an authority on razor history, but looking in my price book there is a razor with that type of spine dating back to 1810. Yours is not that old, but it seems to be most common from 1820-1840 just from what I can gather from the pics in my book.

Indeed, an unusual BU. I first thought it to be an early "rattler" grind. I have not abandoned that idea. I don't know why. It is obviously a wedge grind with a peaked spine for Barber's use. Probably , in effect, a 7/8 or so razor with some real weight behind it. I think I have not seen this. Has anyone else? It seems to have characteristics of the Rattlers (some call them faux framebacks), but is plainly a near-wedge grind. Heavy stuff, that! Cool, for certain!

Unmistakably a very interesting W&B FBU, you dont see that kind of elevated spine often, undeniably that razor hasn't met with a lot of hones since the spine doesnt show wear, by looking at the tail and scales and pins i would date that razor 1840-1850, looking forward to see this beauty restored.