Wade & Butcher

5/8 Wade & Butcher
Ebony wood sales with Redheart wood wedge with CA finish
Silver pins and washers
The blade is hefty for it's size. The spine is tall and round, which is a pretty interesting look.
She also provided a nice shave.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas.

George Wostenholm & Sons, Washington Works

I had the pleasure of restoring this fine old razor.
It was his Grandfathers razor and while it had a little wear and tear was still in pretty good shape.
She cleaned up well and shaved even better.
Black horn scales, silver pins and washers, Lined horn spacer.

I truly enjoy restore these pieces if history but there is just something special about a family razor.

James Johnson, Cast Steel

James Johnson, Cast Steel, "Universally Approved".
James Johnson was in business from 1818 to 1853, I would guess that with as made in the last few years of the company. For a 150 yr+ razor it was in great shape.
The only thing I did to this razor was just hit it with a little metal polish. Something about it just said '"don't put me on the buffer". She has a few marker and scratches but delivers a great shave.
Horn scales, silver pins & brass washers. Lined red G10 spacer,

Clauss, Hess and a "no name"

Well it's been a busy past few weeks and it looks to be getting busier.
Here are a couple of light restores I've done. All of them, have proud new owners.
1)
Clauss covered tang.
Blade restored and the scales only need a good cleaning.

2)
Hess Hair Milk Lab. No. 1
Blade restored but stil showed some pitting
Original scales not in the greatest shape but not bad enough to trash.

3)
A no-name razor I got in a lot that happen to be in very good shape.
It had a name a one time and had just worn off.
This razor was a give away. A couple times a year I send a razor out for free.
I always was pick a beginner, that's asking questions about straight shaving. I pick them at random. I just see someone asking about it, I'll contacted them to see if they are interested.
In this case, It was a " no-name" 6/8 spike. Know the spike point isn't always a beginners friend, I made into a round point.
Hopefully the razor will turn someone that is thinking about straight shaving, into a straight shaver for years to come.
Before.

After

W. Greaves and Sons " For Barbers Only"

W. Greaves and Sons
"For Barbers Only"
Size: 7/8
I bought the razor "sight unseen". So I wasn't real sure what condition it was going to be in.
Other then trashed scales an a few rust spots here and there, it was in pretty good shape.
I originally made a set of black horn scales for this razor. The big blade set a little to deep for my comfort level. So I decided to make a new set. This time I grabbed a piece if translucent horn and used a horn wedge, nickel silver pins and brass washers. I think it turned out pretty well.

Hess Hair Milk Laboratories???

Funny name, don't you think!
A little history,
Hess Hair Milk Laboratories is located in Minnesota.
They Supply hair tonic that is distributed to barbers nationwide.  It has the consistancy of milk, so it’s called “Hair Milk.”  They use to also supply Straight Razors under the same name. The razor was made in Solingen, Germany for Hess.
Long story short, Funny name....Great razors that are well thought of.

Hess Hair Milk Laboratories
#45
Size 6/8
Scales are custom Horn, wedge is white liner with blue celluloid.

 

New Razors in for sale section

I've put up a few more razor in the for sale section.
The time change is killing my pic taken.
I should have more to add this week.

For sale section coming soon.

Well it's time to thin the herd a little. So within the next day or so, I will be adding a "for sale" section.
I will have a little bit of everything (price-wise). It will mostly be razors, but from time to time, I will throw on a few sets of scales. If you have any questions about a razor just contact me.

George Butler & Co.

Another nice razor that came out well.
George Butler & Co.
Trinity Works Sheffield
engraved blade, black micarta scales
I'm interested to see how it shaves.

Joseph Rodgers & Sons

I finished up a pair of Joseph Rodgers & Sons razors.
One I've had hanging around for a while, the other I bought last week.
1) Joseph Rodgers with engraved blade.
I only restored the blade, the scales happen to be in great condition. No reason to change them out.
2) Joseph Rodgers. At some point I believe someone cut a thumb-notch (they did a good job)
custom black horn scales.
Both are 6/8 blades

Dubl Duck

Well for a while now I've had a Dubl Duck that had a chip at the tip of the blade. Since it had the chip it just went into to a pile of  "I'll get to it sometime" razors. Well, that sometime was this week end. I reground the front of the blade and dressed it in white marble scales. It didn't come out to bad, plus she's a pretty good shave too.

Dubl Duck Special No. 1
white marble acrylic scales

DD with a Robeson Shuredge in Black Horn that I also finished up this weekend.

Late Nights

The last few weeks have been busy ones but to be honest it's enjoyable.  I've had more late nights then my wife would like but I'm blessed to have a wife that cuts me a good bit of slack.

Some of those nights I've had helpers...in the form of my 2 & 3.5 yr old boys. The oldest goes about doing his thing.  Things like clamping anything he can find in a vise, putting on the dust mask, etc. The youngest one is the one I have to keep an eye on. I get a million questions, "what doing?", "what's dat sound?", " can I help?", "can I hold it?" and it goes on and on. Now before someone thinks I'm working on razors with 2 rug-rats running around my feet, rest assured I'm not. When they are out with me, I'm either working on scales or braking razors down to be worked on. Having them around affirms one of the things that I really enjoy about straight razors. The idea that the razors I'm working on, at some point will hopefully be handed down to son, grandson or great-grandson. There are not many things that can be handed down for generations to come and still be used for it's intended purpose...but a straight razor is one of those things that with care, can last not only your lifetime but your children too. 

Big Blade....

This week I have a nice BIG Hollow ground posting this week.
Light Restoration with Custom Scales
George Wostenholm & Son
Washington Works,
IXL Barbars Razor
Size 8/8
Custom Horn Scales

On ebay this week

This week I'm listing a
Fredrick Reynolds
With custom horn handle and clear wedge
Blade size : 13/16"
Very nice condition

George Wostenholm & Sons
Celebrated IXL Razor
Washington Works
Original horn scales with lead wedge
It has a good amount of hone wear with the blade tapering 5/8" to 4/8"

Introduction

Restoring...a bygone era.

A little about me, I've been straight shaving on and off for the past 19'ish years. My interest started when I was a youngster and use to go to the local barber shop. Like most "real" barbers when I was a kid, he was old, at least he seemed old at the time. When he was done with the hair cut, he would lather up the back of your neck and around your ears. Then came the shiny blade that seemed like taboo to a little kid and the thoughts that ran though your mind, "If I move a muscle, he's going to cut my head off!!!"  It only took that one experience to set me on this path to straight shaving and restoring.

If you have a razor that is in need of a little help, feel free to email me. I'll be happy to give you a quote on restoring your piece at a reasonable price you can live with.  arazorstale@gmail.com