I've been seeking a Wardonia Razor that takes standard blades for a while now - I know they are like hen's teeth and most Wardonias are made to take their own non-standard blades. After a heads up by one of the guys on B&B I managed to bag one on Ebay France. Strangely it was made in France (most Wardonias were made in Sheffield, England) It was worth the wait as it's a great shaver - I know some don't like the Derby Blades, but I love em Has anyone found a standard blade Wardonia that is English-made? - if so, you'll start me on another hunt..
Nice. Making proprietary blade razors must have been a risky decision for smaller companies. On the other hand, if you made some of your razors to take standard blades, then there would be less reason for people to buy the proprietary kind, and you'd lose out on blade sales. Still, from what little information I have, the company did last for a while.
My Wardonia Black Prince made in England took standard DE blades. I never shaved with it though because it was NOS. Unfortunately, I had to sell it recently.
Tried this one this morning and it's really aggressive - got myself a few cuts even though I took it easy and softly.
I'd seen these razors before but several months ago I was at the library and got an Art Deco book called Art Deco Scapes and it had a white wardonia set in it. Then I forgot about the razor and saw 1 one day on eBay. (Sort of a rarity since they are mainly available in Europe.) I'd forgotten that they didn't take regular blades so now I have a close-to-mint beautiful bakelite Wardonia sitting around and no "special" (proprietary) blades that it uses to make it work. God, it's a great looking razor! A real shame that it takes a special blade. It's much more fanciful than my WWII Neillite "400".
