Help identifying old straight razors.
- Thread starter Beeman
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- #2
On the back side, the black scaled razor with the stamp FALCON has stamped "MACON SHEAR CO" the middle line says "MACON", the last part of Macon is so worn its barely readable, and its off center so it looks like another word comes after it that's worn off. The bottom line says "MADE IN GERMANY"
it's so worn its hard to read.
I would greatly appreciate if anyone could identify these two razors for me. The first class was my dads razor he bought in 1978 I believe it was. The black handled I bought from a guy selling antiques. I would really like to know the age, quality, and value of these razors. I honed the falcon yesterday. I didn't quite get all the fine nicks out, but the heel of the blade will now pass the hanging hair test at the level of "silent killer" it is an extremely hollow ground razor. Both ring like a bell when I slip my nail off the point.
When I soaked the falcon in 70% rubbing alcohol, while I was at church, I came home and it was turning the blade black.
Anyone?
Thank you I'm new here. But I did put this in the general hoping more people would see it.
I posted this in the general category. Here's the link. I need help identifying these two old razors. http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ing-old-straight-razors?p=5339771#post5339771
I put a link to it in the straight razor talk section.
it's so worn its hard to read.
I would greatly appreciate if anyone could identify these two razors for me. The first class was my dads razor he bought in 1978 I believe it was. The black handled I bought from a guy selling antiques. I would really like to know the age, quality, and value of these razors. I honed the falcon yesterday. I didn't quite get all the fine nicks out, but the heel of the blade will now pass the hanging hair test at the level of "silent killer" it is an extremely hollow ground razor. Both ring like a bell when I slip my nail off the point.
When I soaked the falcon in 70% rubbing alcohol, while I was at church, I came home and it was turning the blade black.
Anyone?
Thank you I'm new here. But I did put this in the general hoping more people would see it.
I posted this in the general category. Here's the link. I need help identifying these two old razors. http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ing-old-straight-razors?p=5339771#post5339771
I put a link to it in the straight razor talk section.
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The First Class is still in production I think. Here was a sale from an old thread http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...t-Class-Original-Solingen-Straight-Razor-7801
I am not familiar with the Falcon, but it looks like it will shave just fine. Macon Shear Co. was a Hardware company in Macon, Missouri.
The black was from oxidation leaving it in the solution too long. An alcohol dip should just be seconds and then wiped off.
I am not familiar with the Falcon, but it looks like it will shave just fine. Macon Shear Co. was a Hardware company in Macon, Missouri.
The black was from oxidation leaving it in the solution too long. An alcohol dip should just be seconds and then wiped off.
- Thread starter
- #4
They were in business in 1905, not sure when they went out.
Looks like they went bankrupt in 1907. They could have been bought out, but 1898-1907 sounds good.
http://newspaperarchive.com/moberly-weekly-democrat/1907-04-19
http://newspaperarchive.com/moberly-weekly-democrat/1907-04-19
- Thread starter
- #7
Vintage German blades from an unknown maker, for a hardware store that went out of business 100 years ago would not be high on any collectors list. Will make a great shaver, but it is not a collectible. B&B policy is not to provide valuations.
These are all highly subjective questions, and you are unlikely to get a satisfactory answer here. I'm no expert, but here's my attempt to answer your queries:
Quality - razors stamped "Solingen" are generally considered to be of good quality, because Solingen, Germany has steel purity laws that ensure a baseline level of quality. I'm not sure whether the absence of "Solingen" on the FALCON razor necessarily suggests it's steel does not meet the Solingen standards. Both razors look like they've held up pretty well, and are probably capable of at least another 100 years of shaving.
Price - who knows? on this board, we tend to price things as you might between friends, rather than to charge what the market will bear. I've seen crap go for insane amounts, and vice versa, on eBay. Shave-ready straights typically start at around $40, and go up from there. Those look like they're both in pretty good condition, and I'd be surprised if you couldn't get at least that if they were made shave-ready by a reputable honemeister. FWIW, a similar-looking First Class (but in near-mint condition) sold for $65 on this board a couple of years ago. Assuming the First Class you have there is about 5/8, the Falcon looks like it might be at least 6/8. Bigger razors tend to price a bit higher than their smaller cousins.
Desirability - some names (Wade & Butcher comes to mind, or Dubl Duck, Puma) have a reputation that means many people want to own one and you can usually get more for one of those razors. To the best of my knowledge, neither of the razors you have has any such "cachet".
Take everything above with a big grain of salt, but hopefully it is somewhat helpful to you.
- Thread starter
- #10
I paid $18 for the falcon. There was another razor with an Indian head engraved on the blade. I problem shoulda bought it, but he wouldn't go down on prices and The edge on it needed a lot of nick removal( he wanted more for it), and I just wanted one good old razor to shave with. The steel does seem really good. I just got done removing all the nicks (worked me down to fine, honed n shaved with t last night great shave!) an I've taken it to my translucent Arkansas n it's starting to cut hairs on the hanging hair test. I'll take my surgical Arkansas and then my barbers razor hone stone to it an it will be passin the hangin hair Test by then.
- Thread starter
- #11
Maybe you have a different barber hone that I have never heard of, but I think you would be working backwards taking a razor that was finished on a surgical black arkie and run it over your barbers hone. I had a surgical black and it was much finer and put a nicer edge on my razors than any barber hone I've owned.
- Thread starter
- #13
You sir are correct. I took it too the surgical arkie n it was silent cutter on the hangin hair test. Took it to the gone n it wouldn't do anything on the test!!! Took it back to the surgical n I'm about to go shave now. My only guess is the ceramic seems to catch the valse alot more, so it's pullin on the edge more than the surgical n ain't polishing it as much. Cus it does feel finer than the Arkansas, but it won't put as keen of an edge on. I use the Arkansas surgical to polish the edge on all my knives because a well polished edge cuts and lasts longer.
- Thread starter
- #14
It sounds like you paid about what it was worth. Congratulations to you! Most antique stores tend to have greatly inflated prices on straight razors these days.
- Thread starter
- #16
Steve56
Ask me about shaving naked!
The forum I think prohibits valuations of specific items, but as a general class you can buy decent hardware store Solingens all day long from $10-30. I don't know of any that would be considered rare or valuable, though there may be some. Hardware and supply stores in the mid-century were sort of like Wal-Mart, good for staples but if you're looking for luxury (which is what makes old stuff really valuable), you're looking in the wrong place, a hardware store isn't it. If you can find a stunner with little wear, no rust and fancy scales, maybe $45 on your lucky day.
I bought a few hardware store Solingens off eBay for test razors, they're mostly all good shavers with plain scales and some with blued tangs and spines. They are largely excellent razors finished plainly and simply for farmers and rural folk of the middle of the last century. That's not a recipe for value even though many were made by top shelf makers but were rebranded for the store. What appears to be a recipe for value is upscale fancy scale materials ("cracked ice", genuine tortoise, genuine ivory...), attractive scale inlays, worked spines, and attractive artwork on the blade. On a pristine or near pristine blade. Other things that might indicate a better quality razor are jimps, jimps top and bottom, 3-pin scales, and the like that represented a greater investment of labor since all decent razors are to some degree hand made.
But if you want a good shaving razor and to have some fun, they're great. I bought a rebranded supply store Anton Wingen Jr that actually came in the Wingen box for $15 and it had never been sharpened. It has some pitting, but it's also a singer and it shaves as well as anything I have.
I agree about the antique stores, where are they getting their ideas for pricing? I looked at one in a store near me, rusted beyond use and priced at $75.
Cheers, Steve
I bought a few hardware store Solingens off eBay for test razors, they're mostly all good shavers with plain scales and some with blued tangs and spines. They are largely excellent razors finished plainly and simply for farmers and rural folk of the middle of the last century. That's not a recipe for value even though many were made by top shelf makers but were rebranded for the store. What appears to be a recipe for value is upscale fancy scale materials ("cracked ice", genuine tortoise, genuine ivory...), attractive scale inlays, worked spines, and attractive artwork on the blade. On a pristine or near pristine blade. Other things that might indicate a better quality razor are jimps, jimps top and bottom, 3-pin scales, and the like that represented a greater investment of labor since all decent razors are to some degree hand made.
But if you want a good shaving razor and to have some fun, they're great. I bought a rebranded supply store Anton Wingen Jr that actually came in the Wingen box for $15 and it had never been sharpened. It has some pitting, but it's also a singer and it shaves as well as anything I have.
I agree about the antique stores, where are they getting their ideas for pricing? I looked at one in a store near me, rusted beyond use and priced at $75.
Cheers, Steve
