SE info needed

so i think I'm in the right place. looking through my stuff and i found a razor my dad gave me about 15 years ago. it appears to be unused and the blades all have this grease on it. can anyone tell me anything about this thing? is it worth keeping? if i wanted to use it how would i go about prepping it for use? id much prefer a Straight razor over this but i guess its worth a shot. any help is appreciated

Cool looking razor.
Hell load a blade and try it. You may be suprised.

Some one with more knowledge about them than myself is sure to give you some information. But I would sure hold on to it.

Oh that's in much better shape than the one i found in my dad's junk drawer.
One of the Wilkinson Sword Empire sets I think.
Complete with blades and strop? Wow!

That is an awesome razor. Those Wilkinson Empire sets are some of my favorite. That one is in great shape. The wedge blades that come with it need to be honed just like a straight razor. But you can modify current GEM SE blades by removing the spine so they will fit snugly. Mine is a great shaver. And being an engineer, I just love the mechanics of the whole thing.

Wow, that Wilkinson is in AMAZING condition. You won't need a straight after you get that thing tuned up and running. The original blades give a very very nice shave, and the mechanism is a wonderfully steampunk sort of affair. What a great find!

Thnaks guys. It seems i may have to give this thing a try.

A wonderful find. Enjoy it.

Awesome Set!

I ran across this thread the other day because I have been thinking about purchasing a Wilkinson. It appears that DaltonGang may also be a good source of information.

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/444591-Wilkinson-Empire-razor-in-awooden-box

Great razor. No-one's mentioned yet that it's an adjustable too. There's a knob on the back that opens up and closes the blade gap. It goes from very-very mild to reasonably aggressive. If your blades are new and don't show corrosion on the edges, you can probably open up the strop and treat with Fromms or something similar, clean up a blade, strop it and give it a go. Mine had been used, so I wound up honing six of them like Rolls blades. (The seventh was corroded on the edge.) All but one of them came up nicely. I have to revisit the hone with "Friday."

The other thing that you can do if you don't want to mess with the wedge blades is get a Shaper blade (Fromm makes them and you can get them at Sally beauty. I think they're Fromm #106 blades. There are also generics that are the same size.) If you cut one of them to the same width as your wedge blades, you can mount it and use it like a wedge. Nice shave, just make sure it's sitting straight in the holder.

Enjoy!

The Wilkinson Sword Empire sets are very cool. Congrats on the score, especially one so nice and from your dad. That is a real coup.

Let us know how the shaving goes.

Sweeeeettt! Gotta love the Wilks! That really looks to be in great shape, so congrats on your find.