Bagged A Frederick Reynolds 8/8 & Peters Brothers 6/8 For $30!

[Phog Allen]

Wow lads. Today was a good day. After breaking the scales on my Dotzert 5/8 I have been in cutthroat limbo for a week. What to do? Well I hied me away to local antique mall today to scrounge for razors. Really, without much hope. The razor situation in my city is pretty poor. Some old no name or unmarked razors, usually with major damage to the scales and edges. At the very least the edges are usually frowned or have toe honed to a horrid angle.

And such was the case today. I found a display with half dozen 5/8 razors laying piled in it yesterday. They were about to close for the day so I went back today after church. I was hopeful about the razors because it meant the booth owner had not really looked at them. They were all marked $19 and $20 each. None of them had a name I recognised and ALL were worn, rusted, and had BAD scales on them. Alas, another bust. But wait a minute. There was this one booth I had overlooked on the way out yesterday and went back through the area today. And there they were. Side by side amongst table lighters, crystal wannabe figurines, various stick pins, and other gadgetry.

I immediately spotted the Frederick Reynolds as a large razor. The scales told me that by their large size. I went directly to the clerk and asked them to open the case. I grabbed it up and opened the blade to inspect it. The name is clearly stamped, there is only light staining on the entire blade with outright rust at the tang pivot point. The edge is pretty good and will still cut you! I cut a thumbnail pretty easily with it. It has this one tiny bump on one side where it looks like it may have been banged on something or closed on something small. And it is a full 8/8 size. It looks to be at least 3/4 hollow ground. BTW, does this qualify as a "meat chopper" or is that reserved for wedges? I cannot tell the scale material but I think it may be some kind of horn. Like a lot of these it has pits that look like bugs ate at it and it is serious need of a re-pin or new scales outright.

The second razor is a Peters Brothers of at least 6/8 size and it is in even better shape than the Reynolds. It has a French point blade(I think that's right. It is squared off with a slightly forward trailing angle at the toe) and the edge has no pits but is in need of a complete honing job. Scales are much tighter at the pivot than the Reynolds as well. I think I could probably clean and disinfect this blade, hone it, and shave with it. Like the other razor it has these funky looking chips in the scales which look more like damage than insect attack.

Both razors were marked at $18 and were in much better shape than the junk at the other booth. I offered the chap $30 for the set and he took it in a heartbeat. I will get some photos up tonight so you guys can give me some opinions on the pieces. I think(with my limited experience) these are probably both candidates for a good refurbishment. The Reynolds will likely need new scales but I really like the brass ferrules or bushings or washers or whatever they are that the pins go through. I may be back in business soon lads. Wish me luck.

Regards, Todd

[Greyfox]

Congrats!

[Kentos]

These are the threads that turn me green with envy...I will never find a straight in the wild out on this rock. Post pics to rub some salt in the wound please :lol:

Sounds like you need some hones old boy! It's a slippery slope, and we are all down it together...

[Wid]

Nice, look forward to the pics.

[Phog Allen]

These are the threads that turn me green with envy...I will never find a straight in the wild out on this rock. Post pics to rub some salt in the wound please :lol:

Sounds like you need some hones old boy! It's a slippery slope, and we are all down it together...

Absolutely Kent. Always ready to assuage the angst of a fellow B&B'er. (Ducks for cover)

As for the hones, I am part way home. I have two DMT plates. A D8C(325grit) and a DMT D8EE(8000 grit). I want a 1K to set bevels and a finishing stone or pasted strop. I have CrOx paste coming so the strop part is coming along. I am seriously thinking of a DMT 1200 grit plate for the bevel setting. Those things sure are nice. Flat, stable, and do not need to be lapped.

Regards, Todd

[mdunn]

Pics or it didn't happen!

[Brent]

Wow! I'm jealous. I've been cruising the bay to find a big razor and can't seem to get one on the super cheap. Great, great finds.

[dakotaev]

Well done, those do sound like great grabs! Looking forward to the pictures.

Finding nice razors in the wild is such a rush!

[blademen]

Congrats

[johnmrson]

Hurry up with the pics.

[Phog Allen]

Okay lads, here we go. Sorry to delay but my wife had the PC for her homework. Where are our priorities? Sorry for the shadowy photos. I HAVE to find some way to cobble together a light box or something to make taking these shots easier. The lighting actually makes these look worse than they are though they both need a good amount of TLC. Enjoy.

Regards, Todd

http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=27978

http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=27979

http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=27980

http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=27981

[Phog Allen]

Hey chaps. I have to report a finding I made this evening. I wanted to hone up the Peters Brothers razor and use it tomorrow morning. I know, I know. Probably foolhardy at best. But what the heck? You learn this way. Because this razor has sat for who knows how long I wanted to sanitise it a bit before staring any work. So I mixed up about six ounces of water and Hydrocide. Hydrocide is similar to Barbicide. In fact, I do not really know if there is a big difference or not. I did not follow the directions for dilution on the Hydrocide like I normally do. This is steel after all. So I dumped in about two tablespoons and soaked it for a couple of hours. I took it out a little while ago to hone it and noticed a change in colour. The blade was much brighter. So I examined it under a light and danged if it was not much cleaner. In fact, there is a noticeable colour line on the tang starting where it entered the solution. So this stuff will remove rust! At least to a certain degree. I have no idea how caustic it actually is so I don't know about leaving things in there for days. I suspect an overnight soaking would not hurt much on these darker stained razors. Just food for thought. I will post up photos tomorrow to show the difference. You learn a bit every day.

Regards, Todd

[rarreola]

nice score, congrats!!!

[nmerth]

What a good find! Way to go!

[Phog Allen]

Well lads, I am absolutely sick. The Frederick Reynolds has what appears to me to be about a 1/4 inch deep crack about 5/8 from the heel of the blade. I knew I felt a nick in the blade when I bought it but I thought it was just where someone had tinked it on something. They may have but after taking a rag with Maas to the blade to remove some of the tarnish I started giving it a thorough examination. And my gut started knotting a bit. I grabbed up the magnifying glass and my fear was confirmed. Now I if I can I will try to take a close up and see if you chaps think the blade could be ground down 1/8 inch or so to remove the crack and possibly save the blade. If not, it is bound for polishing practise and re-pinning. Again, just for practise. This could be a huge loss for me. I have coveted a meat chopper since I started traditional shaving. I finally bag one for fifteen lousy U.S. dollars and this comes up. Oi.

Regards, Todd

[dakotaev]

Thats a shame, now that you mention it I think I can pick it up in the photo.

[Phog Allen]

You sure can Evan. Hold down ctrl buton on your keyboard and tap the + key a good number of times to enlarge the photo. It is clear as day even before I gave it the Maas treatment. I just couldn't see it in the poorly lit antique mall. I have a pretty good idea this blade is beyond redemption but I am hoping someone can come along and give me some hope for it. Again, just a big ego crush for me. I only have $15 in it so if nothing else it will make good fodder for refurbishment practise. But oh to have been able to whack the whiskers with that big dog would have been an experience. The Peters Brothers will make up for it I think. It is hefty razor which I can already tell I like a lot. And this whole episode is a good reminder that trying to save money by searching out and refurbishing vintage blades is a crap shoot at best.

Regards, Todd

[Phog Allen]

Good afternoon chaps. I thought I would post some more photos of the razors and show you the difference between them after the Hydrocide soak. And indeed, you can see the crack in the Reynolds. Does it have any hope? Man, I was REALLY looking forward to shaving with a meat chopper.

Regards, Todd

First up, the Peters Bros. You can really see the difference in colour. Later, some Maas on both blades made an incredible difference.
http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=28036

The Reynolds. I know it does not exactly look like it but it was much lighter. The shiny spot toward the pivot part of the tang was like that when I got it.
http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=28037

The crack. This just about made me sick. Look about 5/8 inch or so from the heel.
http://badgerandblade.com/gallery/displayimage.php?imageid=28038

[rajagra]

If I ever get my hands on an 8/8, I'll want to shave with it, crack or no crack! Trouble is, stropping will risk snapping parts off. Honing might be relatively safe.

[dakotaev]

It can be made functional again if you grind that part off to the heel and make a notch there, otherwise that section could flex while shaving and give you a nasty cut. Unfortunately doing that will leave it less than appealing to the eyes in most peoples opinion.

If its a very heavy grind I've heard of people shaving with a small crack without issues. The theory is, if its heavy enough of a grind the metal won't flex while shaving and it will be virtually unnoticeable. Unfortunately it looks like a hollow ground from the pictures so that is probably not an option.

[Brent]

That's a major bummer. I don't know if I could keep myself from using it at least once. Meat choppers seem hard to find.

[Phog Allen]

I know Brent. And this one will not go quietly into the goodnight...err, I mean showcase. I am going to work that edge over and barring it losing a chunk, I will shave with it at least once. My first 8/8 and it has a ruddy crack...

Regards, Todd

[Brent]

Hey, you got a start. That's what counts! Hopefully this is a sign the local antique market will start picking up for you.

[PapaFish]

There was a guy on here not too long ago with a Double Duck with a crack in the blade. Another gentleman recommended that (as long as the crack looked and felt even) he hone it up and strop LIGHTLY, watching the strop for signs of it scratching (if it scratches, it will cut). Gradually increase pressure once you are sure there will be no scarring to the strop. Now shave with it in the same manner. If you don't have a problem during your first shave, you may not have a problem. I have never tried shaving with a cracked blade, so I can't comment myself, just pass along information.

[Kentos]

I shaved a few times with a cracked blade and it was no big deal. When you hone it you will see how it affects the edge better. In my case the crack radiated out to one side of the razor on both sides of the crack, so on one side that particular area couldn't be honed properly, since it was indented relative to the rest of the edges. That crack was closer to the toe, so I chopped it down into a stubby.

For your razor, you could carefully grind down the edge until the crack is gone, maybe careful breadknifing...then shave down the shoulder so you can hone it, and bam, nice vintage 6/8 heavy razor...it can be done. The crack could run deeper into the blade, so you would need to be extra careful.