Mandarin razor. Ever hear of one?

Has anyone seen or heard of a Mandarin Razor. I won one on ebay, but don't know anything about them. It looked interesting to me. It is a wedge blade razor, with the wedge clamped on top, looking completely exposed. It came with two wedge blades with blade holders.
Any information would be appreciated.

BTW, I like weird and unique razors. They seem more fun to look at and talk about, than the usual razors I shave with.



Oops, this needs to be moved to the Single edge forum.

Something like this?

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/202858-1903-14-Mandarin-SE-razor

Yes, like that photo, but not like the one in the link.
Unfortunately the one, that I won, doesn't have the case, or stropping handle.

Any history on it?

Looks cool. Nice razor.

Only this:


Brand name
Mandarin



Type
Hoe type


Country of origin
Germany


Blade
Wedge


Manufacturer
Goedecke & Cie. G.m.b.h., Solingen. Distributed by Robert Klaas, Ohligs, Solingen


Patent information
German patent No. 129096 10 Mar 1902 filed 10 Mar 1901. Goedecke & Cie. G.m.b.h., Solingen

Ok, thanks, that's more than I had originally.
It's being mailed from France. Hopefully it won't get lost, like a Hoffritz Slant I bought, a while back.

Best of luck with the razor!

It was only $9.12 + shipping. So, I figured it would be an interesting piece for conversation.

It just arrived. It's in very good shape. It came with three wedge blades and two blade holders. The two in the blade holder look unused, with no rust and little staining. Those two are marked "LE GRELOT", on the spine. Too bad it didn't come with a case.

Are you gonna shave with those blades?

nuclearblast said:

Are you gonna shave with those blades?

Click to expand...

Yeppers. I will strop them first. No telling how many times they have been fingered, taking the fine edge off.

Are the wedge blades, from that era, interchangeable with other wedge razors and lather catchers?

DaltonGang said:

Yeppers. I will strop them first. No telling how many times they have been fingered, taking the fine edge off.

Are the wedge blades, from that era, interchangeable with other wedge razors and lather catchers?

Click to expand...

I really don't know but I guess so, at least the ones I've seen they look all the same to me. I could be wrong, better ask the SE guys.

Yeah, I'd use the blades too. In fact I might need to get one of these wedge razors, I think it'd be pretty cool shaving with an old wedge blade.

The design was licensed from Wilkinson Sword - Henckels, notably, modified the design to release as their Wotan, this, and others in Germany are very much the same as the Wilko original. Very nice razor!

My Wilko, for comparison:

I am green with envy! Before Christmas, I bought a couple of stunning Heljestrand blades, cheap, in the hope that I'd soon find a handle... no luck, yet, all too dear for me. And I've been out-priced on Henckels and Wilkinson SEs, too. At least now I have a couple of other brands to watch for!

Pjgh, very nice looking. Did you replate it? I haven't had time to clean mine yet. It looks nickel plated, but, I could be wrong. I'll play with it this weekend.

Yes, mine has been replated - I buy razors to shave with and don't get precious about refinishing them.

Mine had a stropping handle, but the top was so corroded it wouldn't hold a wedge. The wedges were all good but all had little rusty fleabites on the edge, so they stayed in the (very tatty) box. I'll do up the box some time - it's the hinge and material that covers it that's gone, the rest is quite presentable.

I think these give lovely shaves - the long handle, that simple blade holding mechanism, lovely.

Enjoy

nuclearblast said:

Something like this?

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/202858-1903-14-Mandarin-SE-razor

Click to expand...

I just got one like the version in the link rather than the pictured version. Suspect mine may be earlier as it is in a painted metal case which I believe would date it quite early. In close to 98% condition or better for the razor, stropping blade holder and holder handle. Paint on the case good but far from perfect.

Here are pictures of mine with the metal case. As mentioned elsewhere it accepts a Gem blade with no problems.



IMO pretty good paint for close to 110 years old.