Here's an unusual razor from George Wostenholm & Son. The razor dates from around the mid-19th century (Rockingham Works; 1815-1848). The condition was not atypical of many razors from that era— years of grime, rust and 'devil's spit' on the blade; some real potential pitting on the tang stamp and pivot point. The dark horn scales looked to have several cracks and splits at several points, and both pins were loose. Here are a few shots of the unique beveled spine treatment which runs half the blade length. On one side is inscribed with the words, "J.R.Parrott Con 50" —perhaps the early owner of this razor? Originally I planned on tossing the old, dark scales—but once I began cleaning them up and sanding them a bit, I was amazed at the beautiful color of the horn which lay beneath the years of accumulated gunk. I decided to use the original scales, despite some slight chipping and other imperfections present. All the cracks were superficial and didn't seem to threaten the overall integrity. The blade itself had a good deal of rust to remove and revealed areas of pitting ( no surprise!). The stamp on the tang was all but unreadable before clean-up but afterwards, despite some loss of the stamp, is legible. Overall, I thought the old wosty turned into a really attractice-looking razor that cleaned up nicely—far exceeding my expectations at the start of the restoration. New brass domed washers, solid brass pins, original horn scales and lead wedge….
My plan is to finishing honing it sometime this evening but with both the Sharks (Stanley Cup) and Warriors(game 7) tonight, I may not get to it. Maybe an SOTD for tomorrow...sometime.
So true. I suppose one never can know the REAL attributes and beauty of anything until you start to clean away and see through the years of built-up abuse and wear-n-tear. Just like with people. (Whoa….deep philosophical observations this morning)
First shave: Wow! Honing process: Chosera 1k to set the bevel; Naniwa SS 3k, 5k, 8k, 10k, 12k — and finished with laps off the Apache strata natural. Linen & leather laps on Tony Miller strop. HHT- popping sharp. Super smooth edge. BBS results. Sweet shaver.
Awesome work. Truely amazing to be able to bring such beauty from the mediocre. Way to turn back the clock.
