Thread: Am I messing up??

Am I messing up by cleaning up, polishing and removing scratches from my razors. I am wondering if I am not ruining the value of my old stuff by improving them. Tell me the truth

It depends on why you want them.

Do you have the blades to shave with, to keep and hand on to your kids and want them restored back to their former glory?

Or are you buying them in the best possible condition and keeping them as an investment in as close to original condition as possible?

If it's option A it doesn't really matter! The blades are yours, you want them rescaled, polished or whatever because that makes you happy.

If it's option B then maybe you are. Some collectors might not buy a restored W&B, they might prefer the as is condition with patina. Others may prefer the restored blade. That's more of a gamble.

So it's really down to what you want the blades for: use or investment?

Short of handling a historically significant razor (a Lummus razor or some famous person, for example), go as far as you want. For me, deep scratches, active rust and edge dings have to go. Otherwise, the rest is character that I like - shadows, pits, patina. Some of my best shavers look a little rough around the edges shall we say.

...Ray

Option "A". I just like to sharpin and improve on the stuff I get...
SELLING!! Hummm...never thought about that...;-)

I bought an old razor off a woman last year. It has very deep and intricate engravings in it depicting an old building. It also has scales with great big holes and chips, and there is a big chip off the tip of the blade. It's totally unusable and unsightly as is and needs a serious date with my Dremel.

She keeps telling me (despite the fact that it's MINE now) that I should not touch it. But no matter how many times I try to tell her that everyone who is anyone who collects straights is here at SRP, and that if I sold it as is, someone would just buy it (for very little money) and restore it anyway, she just don't get it.

What I've found is that most serious collectors want usable razors that look nice. Many collectors stopped buying battle hardened razors a long time ago and now only go for ones in prime shape. And when it comes down to it, the small hand full of truly "collectable" razors are already in someone's collection, and finding one is akin to finding a Stradivarius in someone's attic. So I wouldn't worry about changing the value of your razors by improving them... if I were you. That's my opinion anyway.

Originally Posted by stingray

Option "A". I just like to sharpin and improve on the stuff I get...
SELLING!! Hummm...never thought about that...;-)

If it's option A then restore away! Get 'em how you like 'em and enjoy.

Sell them????
I'm having way too much fun restoring them and using...
and as was said by Ray, I like a little character but all rust and chips must go!