Wade & Butcher "Special" Sheffield England 11/16++ inch Extra Hollow Ground This was a decent buy, in my opinion. The seller took $20 for it. It was a little tarnished, but in very nice shape. After cleaning it up, it appears to be in almost "Unused" condition, from what I see. Not a spot of rust or tarnish on the blade. The pictures do not do it justice. Almost all original bluing still on the full length of the Spine, Tail, and Tang. The only parts missing bluing is where I rubbed it off, cleaning it up. Also, The Bevel is factory original, and looks like it hasn't touched a proper Hone. Any dark areas on the blade are just shadows from the camera. It is highly polished.
Saw this, knew it was different, but I still don’t know exactly what it is. F.W.Soderen & Co. frameback No big surprise there, as Soderen cranked out some beautiful framebacks in the late 1800’s. But this one has something different going on with the frame... I had seen one of these before as part of a 7 day set, 6 normal and 1 with this dark frame. In the thread, the owner thought it was a man made material, but later thought a dark wood. It has a “grain” to it, but I honestly can’t tell if that is natural. I know it is not the same material as the scales based on smell, and I am leaning wood, but I am not positive. Either way, definitely looks cool and unique. Happy hunting. Tom
It looks like a wood grain. But, they probably made it out of plastics(polimer), of some kind, due to durability, strength, and water exposure. Also, if you can find an area not visible, take make a little scrape. If the scratch reveals the same colors underneath, its probably manmade.
Yes, ebony. But, i would be afraid it would be brittle. Scrape some off, in a hidden area, and do the burn test. That would tell for sure.
W.H.Morley & Son's "Victor" Clover Brand Germany 11/16th Full Hollow This brand is always produces a well made razor, and I snag them when the price is right, and this one was $15. It was pretty tarnished up, but polished out nicely, almost too shiny. It looks to have almost no wear on the spine, and still has the factory bevel. It has been used, because I could see dried up soap, in the scales. Doesn't look to have been touched up, on a stone, at any time.
U.S.GEM 11/16th 3/4 Hollow This was tarnished pretty good, but ended up looking bright and shiny, after a little work. Not much is known about this razor. It does feel and look like a high chromium Swedish Silver Steel. Then again, many manufacturers used this, from time to time. Very bright and shiny, almost looking like Chrome.
For a long time, I've been meaning to get a Japanese Kamisori razor, but every time I'd go looking, I'd buy some crazy razor from Europe because I'm easily distracted by shiny objects. Well, I finally did it. (I included one of my French razors in the picture for size comparison). My first reaction was, "This thing is small!" So I went back to the website from which I bought it and sure enough, they did list the length, both in entirety and the blade... But it was in METRIC! How was I supposed to understand that?! Another thing that was unusual thing (although in this case, I actually noticed this before I bought it) was it actually said it would need to be honed before use. I know some people express doubt over other manufacturers' claims that their razors are shave ready, but every other new razor I ever bought at least made that claim. But I have honing stones, so no problem. So onto the results. I got a good shave but... Holding onto a long thin handle and the asymmetric shape of Japanese razors seriously throws off my muscle memory. It's like having to learn to shave all over again. I did cut myself once, and the whole time I was shaving my neck, I felt like I was a split second from disaster. I'm not complaining, half the fun of straight razor shaving is learning new things, but it definitely has a learning curve.
Soon is the only country in the world using imperial measures USA, also the inventor of the imperial measurement UK, uses Metric today. Personally as a engineer I have no problem with it. But seriously, imperial units are quite old fashion. Feels a little bit like 17th century... or even older than that Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk
I understand your post Hans, yet I disagree with it. I am a retired engineer and understand numbers, but in many instances numbers have no ‘MoJo’, no ‘magic’! You don’t post your SOTD as ‘I shaved with a 17 x 68mm 1/4 hollow razor this morning with a 0.5u edge, with some Tabac.... You posted that you shaved with a lovely Swedish razor with an edge that you adore and received a lovely shave. There is a difference!
True, old habits with razors and shot guns with inch measurements.. Anyway, a little bit old fashion it is. Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk
Have not purchased a razor in some time but finally pulled the trigger on one that has been on the top my list, an Iwasaki western grind.
Congrats Keith! I know you have been on the lookout and glad you got the opportunity to add to your stable. It looks like a fine example.
