Help with Penn Razor

I am thankful for all the help from the members of the shaving den as I am a rookie on this topic and can use all the help that you are willing to give. This was another one of my finds and from what I can tell this is a “HOE TYPE” razor built by the A.C. Penn Inc. First built in 1914. Anybody have a guess on the value?

dean

 

Value is pretty difficult to assign with these razors since they do not use any type of modern blade and are therefore basically display pieces. The market is then limited to pure collectors and does not include actual end-users. For example, I own a very unique Christy razor with a wooden handle which also uses a non-standard blade and is therefore a collector only piece. Even though no one has seen another like it I can't assign any value because I have no point of reference.

There is an eBay sale asking $9.99 for a Penn and a Cross, but that's the only one past or present that I can find. Of course, that one does not include a case which is always a value added item.

 

For what it's worth, there is a "Safety Razor Price Guide" that was published in 1995 by LW Book Sales. They show your razor in the aluminum box but with the original instruction sheet, package of blades and the outside packaging sleeve. In that state, they price it at $25-$40. Keep in mind that serious collectors do place a lot of value in such things as "complete with instruction sheet, blades and packaging".

For your information, the only other notations in the book about this razor is that it was "a two piece razor with a thin double edge blade, made in Newark, NJ, circa 1920". According to the packaging sleeve which is pictured with the razor, this was called the "No. 5 PENN non-adjustable Razor" The original price printed on that packaging sleeve was $1.00.

Regards,
Tom

 

Two photo's in that book of Penn razors. Sorry about the "fast" scan.

 

Everyone is really helping me out.. THANKS.. I have located a few sites on the web with data and information but really want to find out from some officiandos what some values of my razors might be. All my razors but one come inthe original cases.. The one without a case I think is a Gillette TTO Super Speed? Marked X4.. Thanks Dean

 

That Super Speed would be a 4th quarter 1952. That is a 40's style SS which is generally recognized as the best of the Super Speeds.

 

penn razors really havent been going for a lot if anything lately, but you never know.