Guide to Straights?

mmiller3475 · Oct 15, 2010

After spending an hour or so checking out what's being offered on EBay, it dawned on me that some guide for selecting as straight would be very helpful. In general, I was looking at razors made with Soligen steel or maybe Sheffield steel, but past that generality it seemed like a hit or miss proposition. There were names I recognized like Wade & Butcher, Red Imp and Henckels, and names to steer clear of (Sweeney Todd - is this a real shaving razor or a stage prop?).

Is there some guide to straights out there that I just haven't found yet?

Luc · Oct 15, 2010

This should give you an idea: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/Straight_Razor_FAQs

Yes, stay away from Sweeney Todd's razor!

mmiller3475 · Oct 15, 2010

Luc said:
This should give you an idea: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/Straight_Razor_FAQs

Yes, stay away from Sweeney Todd's razor!

Okay...that's a start. Is that Todd razor a real razor or a prop? Because of its size, I'm guessing it's for the stage...easier to see I suppose.

dakotaev · Oct 15, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
Okay...that's a start. Is that Todd razor a real razor or a prop? Because of its size, I'm guessing it's for the stage...easier to see I suppose.

The ebay Todd razors are decorative props you can't shave with these. As you mentioned earlier Soligen and Sheffield are safe bets. Although things to look out for would be uneven hone wear eg: The flat line along the spine which touches the stone while honing, rust or pits near the edge of the blade. There are also many other factors that might not be evident in photos that would cause the razor to be difficult to hone.

If you're looking for something to restore or clean up and hone for yourself, there are plenty of great deals on ebay. With exception of a few good ebay sellers, if you want something "shave ready" ebay can be very hit and miss even if it is advertised as "shave ready". There are plenty of great deals and very shave ready razors available on the B/S/T. All of my B/S/T purchases have been nothing less than 1st rate.

mmiller3475 · Oct 15, 2010

dakotaev said:
The ebay Todd razors are decorative props you can't shave with these. As you mentioned earlier Soligen and Sheffield are safe bets. Although things to look out for would be uneven hone wear eg: The flat line along the spine which touches the stone while honing, rust or pits near the edge of the blade. There are also many other factors that might not be evident in photos that would cause the razor to be difficult to hone.

If you're looking for something to restore or clean up and hone for yourself, there are plenty of great deals on ebay. With exception of a few good ebay sellers, if you want something "shave ready" ebay can be very hit and miss even if it is advertised as "shave ready". There are plenty of great deals and very shave ready razors available on the B/S/T. All of my B/S/T purchases have been nothing less than 1st rate.

Basically, I was looking for something to restore, but I was very surprised at the offerings on EBay. I limited my search to razor between $5 and $15, and the results showed many razors that looked pretty nice...minimal restoration. There were many though that I did not recognize. The pictures offered on EBay may or may not show things like uneven hone wear. However, many of the sellers admitted quite freely the downsides to their offerings.

I'm thinking choosing a raazor will be a hit or miss proposition.

Luc · Oct 15, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
Basically, I was looking for something to restore, but I was very surprised at the offerings on EBay. I limited my search to razor between $5 and $15, and the results showed many razors that looked pretty nice...minimal restoration. There were many though that I did not recognize. The pictures offered on EBay may or may not show things like uneven hone wear. However, many of the sellers admitted quite freely the downsides to their offerings.

I'm thinking choosing a raazor will be a hit or miss proposition.

Pretty much any straight on ebay could be used to play with if you want to restore them. The thing is, they won't all turn out to be great shavers. Ebay is a bit of a gamble but you can get something good out of it. You pretty much need to stay away from straights made in Pakistan...

Safe bets are made in Germany, Sheffield, Solingen, USA, France and Spain (there are more but those are the most common).

mmiller3475 · Oct 16, 2010

Luc said:
Pretty much any straight on ebay could be used to play with if you want to restore them. The thing is, they won't all turn out to be great shavers. Ebay is a bit of a gamble but you can get something good out of it. You pretty much need to stay away from straights made in Pakistan...

Safe bets are made in Germany, Sheffield, Solingen, USA, France and Spain (there are more but those are the most common).

Hi Luc - thanks for the help. In general, the more times the same razor is offered for sale on Ebay, it's a safe bet that it's a razor to avoid. I'm thinking of Kreiger razors here. I don't have any way of identifying those razor that would make great shavers.

I agree with the razors made in those areas. I think that will be my primary source. I know it's paranoria, but would any maker stamp their blade as being made in those areas when in fact they're not?

mdunn · Oct 16, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
Hi Luc - thanks for the help. In general, the more times the same razor is offered for sale on Ebay, it's a safe bet that it's a razor to avoid. I'm thinking of Kreiger razors here. I don't have any way of identifying those razor that would make great shavers.

I agree with the razors made in those areas. I think that will be my primary source. I know it's paranoria, but would any maker stamp their blade as being made in those areas when in fact they're not?

yeah, avoid them too. Some blades are marked solingen, when really they are made in pakistan/china etc but the scales are attached in solingen, to get the stamp :mad3:

really, your best bet is the BST here for any blades you want to pick up

mmiller3475 · Oct 16, 2010

mdunn said:
yeah, avoid them too. Some blades are marked solingen, when really they are made in pakistan/china etc but the scales are attached in solingen, to get the stamp

really, your best bet is the BST here for any blades you want to pick up

All that's needed to get the soligne stamp is have the scales attacthed? Now that's scary.

I went to an antique store this afternoon and found some likely candidates. All had rust like you wouldn't believe and they had scales that were broken or so far gone they needed replacement. The sales person said he'd give me a good deal on whatever I found. When I showed him what I liked, the "deal" was $2 off...the razors ranged from $20 - $12. I told him he'd have to do better than that, and I left. If you had seen any of these on Ebay, you would not have given them a second glance. Anything on Ebay and I mean anything looked better than those razors. Oh well...there are other places to look.

Merle

dakotaev · Oct 16, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
All that's needed to get the soligne stamp is have the scales attacthed? Now that's scary.

I went to an antique store this afternoon and found some likely candidates. All had rust like you wouldn't believe and they had scales that were broken or so far gone they needed replacement. The sales person said he'd give me a good deal on whatever I found. When I showed him what I liked, the "deal" was $2 off...the razors ranged from $20 - $12. I told him he'd have to do better than that, and I left. If you had seen any of these on Ebay, you would not have given them a second glance. Anything on Ebay and I mean anything looked better than those razors. Oh well...there are other places to look.

Merle

Keep in mind shipping costs, some ebay sellers charge way too much for shipping and you end up $20 for a razor you bid $7 on.

After browsing for awhile you'll learn what to look for and what is a fair price for a particular razor. For example, one of those rusty broken handled blades may have been worth much much more than you expect. Rust can be removed, scales can be replaced. Quite often the brand of the razor is what sets its worth. Now I'm not saying go out and buy those. I agree for starting out you should get something in better condition that needs less work to make nice again. But once you're in the game long enough it will become easier to see the potential of a rusty old blade.

mmiller3475 · Oct 16, 2010

dakotaev said:
Keep in mind shipping costs, some ebay sellers charge way too much for shipping and you end up $20 for a razor you bid $7 on.

After browsing for awhile you'll learn what to look for and what is a fair price for a particular razor. For example, one of those rusty broken handled blades may have been worth much much more than you expect. Rust can be removed, scales can be replaced. Quite often the brand of the razor is what sets its worth. Now I'm not saying go out and buy those. I agree for starting out you should get something in better condition that needs less work to make nice again. But once you're in the game long enough it will become easier to see the potential of a rusty old blade.

I agree about the rust and cleaning, but several razors weren't even stamped as to their origin. Of the half dozen or so I really considered there was a Wade and Butcher frameback (?) that didn't seem much of a buy at $30 and the scales were shot. There was another razor that was stamped Pakistan. Are there antique Pakistani razors? I just thought that dealer offered razors that were overpriced (to me at least).

Luc · Oct 16, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
I agree about the rust and cleaning, but several razors weren't even stamped as to their origin. Of the half dozen or so I really considered there was a Wade and Butcher frameback (?) that didn't seem much of a buy at $30 and the scales were shot. There was another razor that was stamped Pakistan. Are there antique Pakistani razors? I just thought that dealer offered razors that were overpriced (to me at least).

W&B would be worth it. Pakistani razor, I would pass...

mmiller3475 · Oct 16, 2010

Luc said:
W&B would be worth it. Pakistani razor, I would pass...

The thing about the W&B was the blade. From just under the "frame" part, the blade has seen some rough treatment. Looking at the blade from the end, it appeared that one side was shaped differently than the other side. There may be some way to correct that, but I know I don't what it is. Just because it said W&B on the tang did not automatically make it a razor I'd care to have. It just didn't seem worth the price.

Luc · Oct 16, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
The thing about the W&B was the blade. From just under the "frame" part, the blade has seen some rough treatment. Looking at the blade from the end, it appeared that one side was shaped differently than the other side. There may be some way to correct that, but I know I don't what it is. Just because it said W&B on the tang did not automatically make it a razor I'd care to have. It just didn't seem worth the price.

It's hard to say without any pictures. However, if you don't think it's worth it, just pass on it.

LarryAndro · Oct 16, 2010

When you start buying straights, don't even think about buying anything but vintage straight razors. That in itself will eliminate 99% of the quasi-scam razors on Ebay.

Here are some guidelines...

If it is vintage...
If it is not overly rusted...
If it is described as in good shape...
If the seller has a positive feedback track record...

It will hone and shave well. I've run into very few exceptions.

kfralin · Oct 21, 2010

Some here would seem to disagree, but I don't have any issue with razors on Ebay...as long as you know what to look for. If there are only a couple pix, poor quality and poor lighting, don't assume the seller is a bad photographer. I look for sellers who routinely sell razors, look at the feedback and you should have a good sense of what to expect. If the description sounds like someone who doesn't know what a razor is, you might be extra careful. If the wear seems excessive on spine or blade edge, understand that these are major issues. Many razors are offered shave ready, this is a plus for many. If you filter search by selecting "used" condition, that takes out the vast majority of the "crap" razors (Sweeney Todd, et al) Don't be surprised if you bid on a nice condition, like new razor if the price doesn't get well above the $30-$40 mark. I personally stay away from the "big name" items like Puma, dubl duck, Dovo, etc in that they generally sell for well beyond what the condition of the item would dictate. Best of luck!!!

mmiller3475 · Oct 21, 2010

kfralin said:
Some here would seem to disagree, but I don't have any issue with razors on Ebay...as long as you know what to look for. If there are only a couple pix, poor quality and poor lighting, don't assume the seller is a bad photographer. I look for sellers who routinely sell razors, look at the feedback and you should have a good sense of what to expect. If the description sounds like someone who doesn't know what a razor is, you might be extra careful. If the wear seems excessive on spine or blade edge, understand that these are major issues. Many razors are offered shave ready, this is a plus for many. If you filter search by selecting "used" condition, that takes out the vast majority of the "crap" razors (Sweeney Todd, et al) Don't be surprised if you bid on a nice condition, like new razor if the price doesn't get well above the $30-$40 mark. I personally stay away from the "big name" items like Puma, dubl duck, Dovo, etc in that they generally sell for well beyond what the condition of the item would dictate. Best of luck!!!

Thanks for the advice. I try to take the pictures with a grain of salt as most of us aren't pro photographers. If there's any doubts in my mind, I'll send them a question. There are certainly sellers that mis-represent their product, but for the most part I think that the others do the best they can.

The "big name" razors you mentioned are usually more costly than my budget will allow so there's no worries there :biggrin1:

global_dev · Oct 22, 2010

mmiller3475 said:
Thanks for the advice. I try to take the pictures with a grain of salt as most of us aren't pro photographers. If there's any doubts in my mind, I'll send them a question. There are certainly sellers that mis-represent their product, but for the most part I think that the others do the best they can.

The "big name" razors you mentioned are usually more costly than my budget will allow so there's no worries there

i just picked up a rusty looking old straight on the 'bay and it cleaned up pretty well. the pictures were not super clear, but showed enough to me that it was worth a shot. luckily it paid off and i had something interesting to play with.

it took me some time reading through the guides, wiki and threads here on restoration and repair as well as honing, rust, cracks, chips as well as handling a few razors to feel comfortable to something i thought was going to gouge my cheek. plus add on another $20 bucks to have it honed and i assumed that something like a new shave ready DOVO best for ~$85 online retail was a better deal for a newbie or something from a reputable honer or shaver on a B/S/T.

taffy · Oct 22, 2010

I cant complain about my e bay buys, all needed a clean up and honing and they were fine, without saying, you dont buy broken blades etc, but the photo should give some idea of what to expect, i also find the e bay razors are cheaper than most antique store finds lately.

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Guide to Straights?

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"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".

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"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".

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