Can anyone tell me anything about it it has the two c and cross stamp and the handle says philadelphia
It looks like a lovely old American razor. It's sweet looking, and looks like it would clean up fairly nicely. Should be a nice shaver.
Hey thanks i'm looking at the stamps and it might be from the early 1800's I just cant figure out why it has philadelphia on the handle. I love learning bout stuff like this.
Joseph Elliot Sheffield England Razor maker 1824-1954 The tail tells a bit of a story and I can't see it to help on the date, so does the tang and grind, the grind looks more late 1800's but it is also hard to tell from the pics Two pics front and back overall razor would really help. The Silver Steel stamp makes me think more toward late 1800's but it is all just guesses that come together to get close.. Is that a crack in the blade by the heel, check by sliding the bevel across the top of yer thumbnail. Many of the Sheffield makers used American names to market to the US not uncommon at all
This razor is certainly from the victorian era, probably pre civil war. Before the industrial revolution most tools were hand made and no where in the world were they better than in Sheffield England and Solingen Germany. You razor has what is called a Barber's notch" at the end which is that half circle cut out. The great days of razor making were during this time and the razors were mostly hand made. There were no craftsmen in the US that did this very well and the English makers all had agents here to sell razors wholesale to sellers here, which were often either department stores or hardware stores. The names of these stores were stamped on the razors. However, as long as it says either Sheffield or Solingen on it you should be OK if the blade is not damages. That tarnish you see on these old blades is called "black rust" and can be sanded off (with a lot of effort) by 400 grit emory paper but a buffing wheel will get the job done a lot faster. Check out what can be learned on youtube. I have an Elloit of my own and just restored it last week. It now has a place in my weekly rotation and shaves wonderfully. The trick is getting it sharp enough and for that you can restore it yourself or you can send it out to any of the many guys out there that do this for a hobby. I would recommend BryanJenkins@yahoo.com for that should you choose that avenue. However, to get set up to restore old razors you will need to spend a min of $300 and perhaps as much as $500 in tools and equipment. NOTE: a buffing wheel is of vital importance and they are hard to find since a grinder spins way to fast to buff correctly. Do not buy a wheel that spins faster than 1900 rpm. I have two buffing wheels that adjust the speed and the best of them was made by Foredom. Also, get the end spindles that are pointed, that way the actual wheels can screw on by hand. You would then not need a wrench to change out a buff. Also, when buffing a blade remember that if you sanded the blade from left to right you buff it up and down across the scratch marks or it will take forever to get the marks out and make the blade look new again. Your blade looks to be in pretty good condition and should clean up nicely. Good luck
