Thread: 7/8 meat chopper barber notch wedge in Bacote, 100+ years old?

I got my first big wedge scaled today. This is a 7/8 barber notch meat chopper of a wedge. There is no makers mark on the tang, it is simply stamped universally approved best cast steel. I am guessing mid 1800’s when this style was common but makers did not always put a makers mark on the blade (if my information is correct). It is a big heavy beast weighing in at 80 grams.

When I got the razor it had old horn scales on it and the blade was black, but without much rust. I sanded, and I sanded, and I sanded. There are still some small pits here and there but given its starting point, I think it turned out quite nice. There are still some sanding marks in the blade and one day I will go back and further polish it, but for now, I am sanded out.

I put it in a set of Bacote scales with a third pin and spacer. The blade is ¼ inch across the tang so a spacer was needed. There is a very slight hollow grind to the blade. I can feel it in the middle of the blade when I run my fingers down it from the spine to the edge. There was very little hone ware on the blade. I can imagine it will take some time to hone, even with a diamond stone to set the bevel. It should be interesting to shave with.

I think I got my $5 out of it.