My dad's dad's straight razor

cheese_dave

cheese_dave

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I was talking to my dad about my new found hobby of shaving with a safety razor, and he mentioned that his dad had used a cut-throat when he was alive. My dad dug the blade out and tried to clean some marks off it with a tissue, cutting himself as he did so :lol: (I'm 46, I never knew my grandad, so I'm guessing that blade has been stored un-oiled and unused for at least 46 years, and is still sharp enough to cut a man easily - though it didn't pass the hanging hair test.)

It's says "Solingen" on it (which I believe is good), but then also Lindbergh (or Lindenbergh, not sure).

Is it an ancient and valuable antique??? Or should I just get it professionally restored and turned into a working family heirloom do you think?
 
Get in touch with Neil on here, I am sure he will sort it out for you.It would be a great shame not to get it fixed up and use it, sentimental value and all that.Let us know how it goes.
 
Grrrr my dad seems to have taken my "yes!" in response to his question, "do you want this old straight razor?" as a "no". I still haven't wheedled it out of him.

Assuming I do, would you say honing is not a subject to be taken lightly? I've read much on honing and stropping, and it seems that, with plenty of practice, any man should be able to undertake such an activity and bring a blade back to shave-sharpness. Am I missing something?
 
Hi with regard honing I can sharpen any knife that you put in front of me and have been doing so over many years. When I started honing I thought that it can’t be that hard. I can say that after doing over 75 straight razors now it is an art form in its own right. It is easy to get an edge on a straight but getting it up to shave ready is a skill. You have also got to take into account the cost of the stones that you will need to buy mine has run me to around £200. Looking back it would have been cheaper to send them off for honing however I really enjoy cleaning them up and honing so I am prepared to spend the time and effort it takes to learn these skills and foot the bill along the way. If you want your dads razor to shave with I would send it to Neil on this forum he will hone it for you and then you will know what sharp is.

Exile
 
Cheers that's good advice. I can see that I'm going to be pursuing this idea, even if it costs. I like the idea of having a skill that not many people have. So that when you're in some course and the guy running it says, "tell us something unusual about yourself that no one knows", I can stop saying, "I once killed a man", and instead say, "I use and can hone a straight razor".

I didn't really once kill a man, BTW, but it makes people sit up and listen.
 
Hi,

Firstly thanks for the recommendations fellas - much obliged!

All Solingen blades are potentailly very good shavers. The Solingen directories of 1932 list Linder & Co as razor blade makers, at the Linderwerk works, as well as A. Haag and co, Wald-Solingen which looks more promising - their brand name was "lindbergh" and they are recorded as open razor makers rather than razor blade makers.

I echo Exiles advice - if you aren't going to do it as an on-going hobby or to make money, there's no point in buying the stones - you will need a range from coarse bevel-setters to final polishing hones - easily running into hundreds of pounds as Exile notes. And then if you find you don't have a natural aptitude...

If you are going to keep it just to shave with and the minimum of restoration the cost shouldn't be too terrible, but you will definitely need a strop. A finishing stone for occasional light touch-ups would be good, but not totally necessary.

If you want, you could send me some hi-res pics of both sides of the balde and the scales, and I can give you better advice and a number of options from just honing to full restoration (if it is financially viable) to consider. Once I actually get to see the razor in front of me I don't "big it up" - I'd rather send it back to you than charge you for work that is in my opinion a waste of time or too expensive - I've been clobbered too many times myself by people seeking a quick buck to ever consider doing that to someone else. You could even have a go at restoration yourself and just have it honed - I can give you advice about that too.

Finally, in case you didn't know, the prices I quote online are not the prices I charge members of this forum - I can always do a better deal!

All the Best,
Neil

BTW, I think my wife is thinking of adopting the same jaw-dropping tagline as you - its taking a long time, but she'll get there in the end if the cooking is anything to go by...
 
Mr. Miller, thank you for your courteous and useful post. Judging by the way your name is used on these forums, I feel like I'm in the presence of greatness!

The razor in question, as I've stated, has been kept in a box in a cupboard for the better part of half a century it seems. I think it's had more interest shown in it during the last fortnight than it has since my grandfather bought it. I'll take some pictures and send them on to you, and then - assuming my dad is of a like mind (it is, after all, his father's razor, and therefore you would imagine holds some place of affection in his heart) - I'll send it on to you.

Watch this space...

Dave.
 
Steady on Dave, you're making me blush! :oops:
I'm looking forward to seeing the pics and, hopefully, the razor. I understand the way your dad must feel about it.
BTW - just plain old "Neil" is fine!

All the Best,
Neil
 
The good news is that I spoke to my dad today, and assuming I can fix his PC (see "Computers and Technology" forum), I can have that straight. If you gentlemen would excuse me, I think a "woot!" is in order.
 
Congrats on 'your' new razor! Get it sharpened and learn to use it. Lindbergh was the brand name of open razor manufacturer A. Haag & Co. of Solingen-Wald in 1932. Good luck with it!
Chris
 
Got my grandfather's razor back from Neil today, beautifully restored. Neil dismantled the razor, cleaned, buffed, polished, replaced where necessary, and finally reassembled it and honed it to shave ready. He's done a beautiful job, and I'm going to be learning to shave with this wonderful family heirloom over the next few weeks. Thanks, Neil.
 

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That is a great looking razor Dave. Good luck with your quest to master shaving with it. I hope to pluck up the courage to go straight shortly. That dos'nt sound right eh :lol:
 
I did my cheeks with it last night (not those cheeks). Lathered up and did a single WTG pass on both sides of my face. I'm naturally left-handed, but slightly ambidextrous, so it's easy enough for me to swap hands with the razor (I know some people have a problem doing this). It still terrifies me that as you approach "first contact" your hand and arm effectively block your view. Anyway, the single pass shaved easy as close as a DE, but left my skin noticeably more dry, so would have to be careful not to scrape scrape scrape.

After that I bottled it and returned to my DE for the rest of the shave (it was a bit late and I didn't want to rush things). But I'll be experimenting again over the weekend. More notes to swap, Fido!
 
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