W&B Restore needed

[Danielbz]

Hey guys,

I bought a W&B that definitely needs a restore. I have an album of pictures here: http://imgur.com/a/RdGrH

I'm a student and work part-time, so I just don't have the time to invest into restoring razors =/. Can anyone point me to where the best place to have it restored might be? I'd rather support the B&B community if possible though. I appreciate the help!

-Danielbz

 

[Heespharm]

Pm doc226 or check out maggard razors... mycarver does amazing scale work, hit up the vendor forum here and you'll get a good idea

 

[daflorc]

The W&B you pictured is in rough shape, and a restore will run you $100 or more, from anybody who does restorations I'm assuming. In my opinion, you should not have that razor professionally restored, as its value is low. Try restoring it yourself instead. It'll be cheap, and you'll have fun with it. Some guys have been using kirinite with neat results.

 

[Danielbz]

Thank you for the advice. I thought it might have been worth more because the etching is pretty clear on the blade. However, it was a cheap buy so I'm not too worried about the loss.

 

[ScottinAZ]

Wade and butchers are pretty common razors. Nice, but common, hence the low value. That one shows some battle scars, but not in a bad way. If it were mine, I would rescale it, polish it with some white diamond polish, and send off for a good hone job. Should make a nice user grade blade when done.

 

[daflorc]

Wade and butchers are pretty common razors. Nice, but common, hence the low value. That one shows some battle scars, but not in a bad way. If it were mine, I would rescale it, polish it with some white diamond polish, and send off for a good hone job. Should make a nice user grade blade when done.

It's not so much that Wade and Butchers are low value because they are common (though you are right, they are common). The 1", or 8/8 W&B's are in high demand and fetch hundreds. It's just that this razor shows a good amount of wear, and 5/8" or 6/8" full hollow W&B's, especially ones made after 1892, don't fetch much money. They are just as fine of shaver as any, but this particular one is not worth restoring professionally.

 

[ScottinAZ]

the smaller sizes seem much more common than the larger 7/8+ sizes. also as you stated, its been loved. the Hefty girls don't seem to come out to play as often, and as such command a higher premium, especially in good+ condition

here is my meager collection of Wades:



top to bottom,
6/8 Celebrated Hollow Ground (pre 1891)
5/8 Extra Hollow Ground (Pre 1891)
5/8 Barbers Notch (post 1891)
5/8 no name (post 1891)

the bottom two have had the edge ground back significantly due to chipping. the others are as purchased. None are really worth a lot, most I paid for any of them was $35. They are a great way to get into the old razor hobby, and all shave great. I wouldn't trade them for 10,000 brand new gold dollars

Yours will clean up similarly to these here. Rescaling is fairly easy, and cheap. A piece of Kirinite large enough to do two sets of scales will run about 15 bucks, and a pinning kit about the same. you wont be making money, but you will have a damn nice looking and working razor when done.

 

[Chaloney]

A piece of acrylic an amazon big enough to do 6-8 will run about $8. Horn about $5 per razor from various ebay sellers. Kiri mite, although very cool looking, is kinda expensive. You can even go to cvs or an office supply store and get a plastic clipboard for a couple bucks and use that. Some have found sign making places that will let them raid their scrap bin for free--doesn't get much cheaper than that.