Baja #2 Barber Style

[John Rose]

I said to SWAMBO "check out this handle", and she agreed that it was nice, and so was the brush.
They do make a lovely couple.

View attachment 785544The seller was not knowledgeable regarding shaving stuff, but assumed that anything made of Bakelite is "collectible" and therefore commands a premium price.

Yup. Even if it isn't, strictly speaking, "Bakelite".
For vintage radios (my former hobby), "Catalin" is code for "add a zero to the asking price".

 

[Spang]

When working with a vintage handle you can't always just open it up to fit the knot, you need to be able to buy a knot that you know will fit the hole you have.

That is a very valid point. I've used enough of the VS knots to be able to pretty accurately calibrate which size will fit a given handle, but you're absolutely right when it comes to vintage handles. Usually you've got what you've got, and there ain't no more. To compound, most vintage brushes used smaller (sometimes much smaller) knots to begin with, so it is sometimes a challenge to get a good performing modern knot into a great old handle. But, through restoring I've come to appreciate the performance benefits of smaller knots. Now, I don't regularly use anything larger than 22mm, and I have some quality knots as small as 16mm that are terrific performers.

 

[BSAGuy]

Cool score. Love the butterscotch.