Just when I was about to give up on the rare razor for next to nothing, I found this yesterday. It was marked $12, but he gave it to me for $10 with no haggling. Here she is:
View attachment 296380
View attachment 296380
30's Aristocrat for $10? Yes, please.
- Thread starter RailroadMan
- Start date
That... 
Awesome man! Toggles, Aristocrats, what's going on here? Next we'll find the double ring quadruple dipped gold razor.
Awesome man! Toggles, Aristocrats, what's going on here? Next we'll find the double ring quadruple dipped gold razor.
This thing is worth like atleast 100 bucks in that condition and you just gave him 10 bucks and not the 12 bucks?
- Thread starter
- #4
This thing is worth like atleast 100 bucks in that condition and you just gave him 10 bucks and not the 12 bucks?
I didn't even haggle. It had $12 on it, he had a no name German DE and said $10 each. I passed on the other and found an Old Spice mug. A few cents over $16 bought both. I was amazed.
Very awesome! Congrats!
Great pickup - very nice indeed!
Man wish I had stores in Korea I could go picking in! This is quite the inspiration!
That's a beautiful find! I'm going to go hug my 34 now.
Dreams do come true!! Congrats.
Yep they do. Some cost more then $10 bucks though. A great razor. I wonder if the gold shaves the same as the Rodium one like mine?
That's one heck of a score! Enjoy it!
Congratulations!
- Thread starter
- #13
Thanks, everyone. Now tell me about what the date is. It is in a brown leather case that I can't find or see mentioned anywhere. Pretty sure it is the right case, though, it says Aristocrat inside the lid.
- Thread starter
- #15
Man, I thought I had a good set. That is very likely, Porter, thank you. Now can someone please point me in the right direction (or thread) for cleaning gold razors, please?
Congratulations.
A little scrubbing bubbles and a little Windex is all I would use to clean that.
The ammonia in the Windex will brighten up the gold finish.
It may need a touch of oil.
Don't be surprised if the doors need a nudge to get wide open.
I have three of those and they all have to be nudged open when adding or removing a blade.
A little scrubbing bubbles and a little Windex is all I would use to clean that.
The ammonia in the Windex will brighten up the gold finish.
It may need a touch of oil.
Don't be surprised if the doors need a nudge to get wide open.
I have three of those and they all have to be nudged open when adding or removing a blade.
- Thread starter
- #17
I tried scrubbing bubbles on a gold one once and got a little yellow tint to the scrubbing bubbles. It made me nervous about using it on gold. Also have a gold Slim Aristocrat and Gold Super that need cleaning. Are we all sure it won't hurt gold?
Nothing is certain. The yellow tint you saw while cleaning the other razor may have been some old lacquer melting or possibly old grime.
Warm water and dish soap for sure. If you're not comfortable with the Scrubbing Bubbles then don't use it. I would say that in general, regarding Scrubbing Bubbles, the kind with the green lid is better and safer to the finish than the yellow lidded variety.
The ShaveWIKI has a cleaning guide.
The open comb Aristocrat from the US is plated a little better than a New or other such later model. They are still plated VERY thinly. The safest route is to leave it on display, but you can't do too much harm with warm soapy water to clean it. Using it will remove the original gold a tiny bit every time.
I had one of the '34 Aristocrats replated in Rhodium and it doesn't shave the same now. I have a nice minty one form the BST here I have not used, and I have one that has brassed here and there that is outstanding to use. I had another I sold that was too pretty to use.
The one I had replated was totally brass and well used. Before being refinished it was very mild and shaved similar to a Super Speed. When I got it back with new plating it was suddenly very aggressive. I believe it is due to the plating being too thick and inside the TTO. A little bit of change to the blade angle and a little bit of stiffness that makes it difficult to close tightly and bend the blade.
The first place the gold will wear off is on the teeth, the edges of the cap where it rides along your skin while shaving, and the smooth bands of the handle at either end of the barber-poled knurling.
When cleaning something original though, less is more.
If it is in good nick than a little Windex will brighten it. Every razor I've seen in person from this era appears to have scratches on the doors though. It seems like they were deburred or sanded and then plated.
I would recommend that you avoid prolonged soaking though. If there are even the tiniest flea bites or imperfections to the gold, you can get verdigris leaching from under the gold. Plain water will make this worse and any cleaning products might too. Keep it dry when not in use.
Congratulations again, and ENJOY!!
Warm water and dish soap for sure. If you're not comfortable with the Scrubbing Bubbles then don't use it. I would say that in general, regarding Scrubbing Bubbles, the kind with the green lid is better and safer to the finish than the yellow lidded variety.
The ShaveWIKI has a cleaning guide.
The open comb Aristocrat from the US is plated a little better than a New or other such later model. They are still plated VERY thinly. The safest route is to leave it on display, but you can't do too much harm with warm soapy water to clean it. Using it will remove the original gold a tiny bit every time.
I had one of the '34 Aristocrats replated in Rhodium and it doesn't shave the same now. I have a nice minty one form the BST here I have not used, and I have one that has brassed here and there that is outstanding to use. I had another I sold that was too pretty to use.
The one I had replated was totally brass and well used. Before being refinished it was very mild and shaved similar to a Super Speed. When I got it back with new plating it was suddenly very aggressive. I believe it is due to the plating being too thick and inside the TTO. A little bit of change to the blade angle and a little bit of stiffness that makes it difficult to close tightly and bend the blade.
The first place the gold will wear off is on the teeth, the edges of the cap where it rides along your skin while shaving, and the smooth bands of the handle at either end of the barber-poled knurling.
When cleaning something original though, less is more.
If it is in good nick than a little Windex will brighten it. Every razor I've seen in person from this era appears to have scratches on the doors though. It seems like they were deburred or sanded and then plated.
I would recommend that you avoid prolonged soaking though. If there are even the tiniest flea bites or imperfections to the gold, you can get verdigris leaching from under the gold. Plain water will make this worse and any cleaning products might too. Keep it dry when not in use.
Congratulations again, and ENJOY!!
OldSaw
The wife's investment
Nice! 
Here's a link: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Safety_razor_maintenance
It's buried a little in the WIKI.
It's buried a little in the WIKI.
