I was watching this auction, knowing nothing about this razor other than I thought it looked quite stunning. Had a "whoa!" moment at what I assumed was a snipe battle at the very end. Crazy!
Darn it, missed a Darwin again on Ebay......
- Thread starter alex2363
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That's a lot of money. I had that one on my watchlist too, more out of curiosity since I'm shaving with straights and any DEs are just to look at on the wall. I lost all interest in this one once it passed $70(US).
I really should thin my herd of modern Merkur and Muhle, since the only modern DE that I'll ever likely use will be the 2011 R41. I'd keep that one and the Tech.
I really should thin my herd of modern Merkur and Muhle, since the only modern DE that I'll ever likely use will be the 2011 R41. I'd keep that one and the Tech.
I thought i had til.......last minute bid came in. I even had it sniped.
Ah, I was watching and wondering if you'd win - sorry you didn't get it.
I have said this many times so I will refrain from giving my usual spiel but the long and short of it is, the Darwin Deluxe is the absolute best DE razor ever made (IMHO). Nothing I have tried beats it in efficiency. It's the only DE razor I will never part with. And it's made of solid cobalt steel so it will last forever. I'll admit the looks put me off at first but I had to have it and I am glad I did. It's a nice hefty razor that is perfectly balanced for me.
Where are you looking that you are seeing this? I try to monitor Ebay UK and until the flurry of Darwins that showed up a few weeks ago, it had been months since I had seen a Darwin DE razor for sale...unless you are seeing the Darwin that is made like the Rolls Razor which is a SE with the integrated stone, etc. Those are for sale a lot but not the DE. I see Eclipses all the time but I am not really interested in any other DE's since I got my Darwin.
Um yea....see above.
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- #25
Yup, that as me getting hit by money shrapnel from the winning bidder.
Rich, just 2, it that enough for you?
I am more sorry, i should have gone $375, but i ran out of time at $302, i think the winner prob wouldve gone to $400....darn it i think i may too.
Considering I haven't touched a DE since my 2nd Straight shave?
Ya.... I have 6 straights, 5 in the rotation.
Hand made..? Where did that came from? Any facts about that..? Maybe you imply the etched Darwin logo? I say, it´s statements like that after a while get´s in the head of people and trigger up prices. Without doubt very little is known about the company. I actually had an e-mail chat with the current Darwin manager last week asking for more information about the company. He replied that obviously no current employees were still around that he could ask. He had very little information to give actually. It was more like that he confirmed that the razor business was around up until the second world war. And yes- I have already asked him if he had some old Darwins on a dusty shelf somewhere and the answer was no.
In my last e-mail to him I asked if he could keep me updated if he indeed happen to stumble on some old documents that might reveal more of the history of the company- and it´s razors of course. If that happens I will notify you of course.
+1. I think Rasierhobel is thinking of the Darwin SE. I've been watching Darwin DE listings and I haven't seen any for nearly a year since until recently.
Hand made..? Where did that came from? Any facts about that..? Maybe you imply the etched Darwin logo? I say, it´s statements like that after a while get´s in the head of people and trigger up prices. Without doubt very little is known about the company. I actually had an e-mail chat with the current Darwin manager last week asking for more information about the company. He replied that obviously no current employees were still around that he could ask. He had very little information to give actually. It was more like that he confirmed that the razor business was around up until the second world war. And yes- I have already asked him if he had some old Darwins on a dusty shelf somewhere and the answer was no.
Didn't you know that the Darwins were hand made...
by elves at the North Pole?
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The Darwin DE razors are rare & hard to come by -- but if our comrade in Germany has a source & doesn't like them -- perhaps he could purchase them & then offer them to the eager fans over here. Maybe he does have a line on ones we don't see. Wouldn't that be excellent?
As for the Darwins being hand made... Long shot I'm afraid. CooncatBob -- now he's a hand made razor king -- and there may be others. But hand made out of cobalt steel -- unlikely. Doesn't diminish the value and effectiveness of these razors, just not to further that myth. One of the many razor legends that are simply made up out of wishful -- or is it wistful? -- thinking...
As for the Darwins being hand made... Long shot I'm afraid. CooncatBob -- now he's a hand made razor king -- and there may be others. But hand made out of cobalt steel -- unlikely. Doesn't diminish the value and effectiveness of these razors, just not to further that myth. One of the many razor legends that are simply made up out of wishful -- or is it wistful? -- thinking...
Hand-made? Well, we're talking the 1920's here. No doubt machines were used, and Darwin was a foundry after all. But think about it, they may well have been more like what we would consider to be tools rather than the kind of machines we think of in manufacturing.
While I don't doubt machines were used, I too would think much of the production was indeed by hand. There are videos of Dovo straights being made and yes, lots of tools and lots of machines are used, but they're pretty much made by hand today.
Persoll the eye glasses maker still makes their glasses largely by hand, using designs and techniques from the 1930's.
And while I know nothing about how handles are made, the Darwin handle doesn't look like it was done on a lathe, does anyone know how stuff like that was made in the 1920's? Would the steel have been poured into a mold?
While I don't doubt machines were used, I too would think much of the production was indeed by hand. There are videos of Dovo straights being made and yes, lots of tools and lots of machines are used, but they're pretty much made by hand today.
Persoll the eye glasses maker still makes their glasses largely by hand, using designs and techniques from the 1930's.
And while I know nothing about how handles are made, the Darwin handle doesn't look like it was done on a lathe, does anyone know how stuff like that was made in the 1920's? Would the steel have been poured into a mold?
probably drop forged. I suspect they had a high scrap rate. I also suspect the deck and lid are "matched" pairs.
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- #33
keep us postedHand made..? Where did that came from? Any facts about that..? Maybe you imply the etched Darwin logo? I say, it´s statements like that after a while get´s in the head of people and trigger up prices. Without doubt very little is known about the company. I actually had an e-mail chat with the current Darwin manager last week asking for more information about the company. He replied that obviously no current employees were still around that he could ask. He had very little information to give actually. It was more like that he confirmed that the razor business was around up until the second world war. And yes- I have already asked him if he had some old Darwins on a dusty shelf somewhere and the answer was no.
I was not sure if they were hand made or not, but many have said that it was hand made. I cant find any real evidence at this point...But this is one razor that is really hard to get and not many are around. I wonder why such a great razor and design was not produced in higher numbers. I figure if it was hand made maybe not many could be made.
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For those interested this is the original british patent for the razor. You can find out more by looking at the tabs at the left side including the original document.
http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publ...T=D&ND=3&date=19251210&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP
http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publ...T=D&ND=3&date=19251210&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP
Wow that price is for a Standard..... I am curious to see what my Deluxe would bring in 
I have heard they shave the same and are the same razor except the posts are on the top cap on the standard and on the base on the deluxe. Pretty much the same razor with a minor variation so they should go for the same at auction. The deluxe name sounds better though so maybe yours would go for even more...but you can't sell it now can you.
Aaron
Aaron
Yes you are correct, the differences in the razors are minimal.
I have been deciding whether to sell it or not for the past couple months. At this time I cant but maybe soon. If I find the right price I will let go of it.
Your inbox is about to fill up with offers I expect.
Thanks missing for posting the patent, what a great resoure this place is! We now know the name of the man who invented/designed the Darwin, Paul Richard Kuehnrich, he owned the company and was an inventor of various types of steel. Very cool.
Bit more info .........
Hello, thank you for your enquiry. the firm of Darwins Ltd was Founded by Paul Kuehnrich (1871-1932) as a public company in 1926. The main firm was Darwin & Milner, a tool steelmaker, located at Rockingham St, 1900-25. Then in 1924 it moved into the Fitzwilliam Works, Tinsley, the old Sheffield Simplex car works. It was involved in merchanting initially, but later began exploiting Kuehnrich's inventions in alloy steels, magnets, razor steels. The firm had its ups and down, becoming involved in litigation with Gillette and once having to recall 800,000 rusty razor blades.
There are a number of websites and publications relating to early razors. Details of the firm of Darwins will be in local newspapers, obituaries and trade journals.
I hope this is of use.
Best wishes
Joan Unwin
--
Dr Joan Unwin,
Honorary Research Fellow, University of Sheffield
Archivist, the Cutlers' Company
The Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire,
The Cutlers' Hall,
Church Street,
Sheffield,
S1 1HG
Hello, thank you for your enquiry. the firm of Darwins Ltd was Founded by Paul Kuehnrich (1871-1932) as a public company in 1926. The main firm was Darwin & Milner, a tool steelmaker, located at Rockingham St, 1900-25. Then in 1924 it moved into the Fitzwilliam Works, Tinsley, the old Sheffield Simplex car works. It was involved in merchanting initially, but later began exploiting Kuehnrich's inventions in alloy steels, magnets, razor steels. The firm had its ups and down, becoming involved in litigation with Gillette and once having to recall 800,000 rusty razor blades.
There are a number of websites and publications relating to early razors. Details of the firm of Darwins will be in local newspapers, obituaries and trade journals.
I hope this is of use.
Best wishes
Joan Unwin
--
Dr Joan Unwin,
Honorary Research Fellow, University of Sheffield
Archivist, the Cutlers' Company
The Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire,
The Cutlers' Hall,
Church Street,
Sheffield,
S1 1HG
And the last part, sorry Alex............
