What's a Roll's Worth?

[Darth Indiana]

last week i saw a Roll's Razor in an antique mall forrrrrr..i think $70. all parts present, in a box/case, with instructions. i've never even seen one complete before, it's not my thang, and i don't have a clue what they're worth, so i left it.
if i find myself back there, should i jump on it or leave it for someone to find?

 

[ShaveMark]

$70.00 is way too much, these things are extremely common. $15.00 to $45.00 is the average price for one in decent shape. Almost every antique mall that I regularly shop at has at least one of these.

 

[dpm802]

In one antique store I found 3 Rolls Razors, the best one was priced at $65 and included a hinged velvet case and lots of documentation ... when I was hesitant about buying it, the lady lowered the price to $40, and allowed me to pay it off over a few months on a layaway basis.

The weak part of the Rolls is the strop and hone. A lot of times the hones are cracked, but if the crack is near the ends of the stone, you can still use it. The strops are often dried out, torn, and scraped down to nothing. Sometimes you can bring it back to life with some leather dressing, but more often not.

Keep in mind that if you are interested in using a Rolls, even just to experiment with, you might have to buy 3 or 4 razors in order have all the parts necessary.

 

[luvmysuper]

That's a lot of dough for a Rolls.
They commonly sell on ebay for much cheaper.
Having said that, I found a Rolls in brand new condition, in presentation case, silver plated Viscount edition that I paid 55 bucks for, so it depends on if it is in great enough condition with "extras" to warrant it in your mind.
Anyone just looking for a decent example to shave with can find them much much cheaper.

 

[Oldguy]

I bought a Rolls about a month ago that looks almost new, has all the papers and is in the original packer for $46. My 1st Rolls in a very nice velvet lined case was only $33. It also came with an extra blade.

Len

 

[Darth Indiana]

that's a NO, then.

 

[Ski-Patroller]

Way too much, unless there is something very special about them.

I recently bought two NOS Rolls Razors (#2 Imperial) on Ebay, one for $35 and one for $32. They both had unused hones, strops and blades as advertised. I am using one of them now. It took a little work to get the blade sharp, since 70 years of sitting caused enough corrosion to dull the edge. Both came with boxes and instructions, one even had the bill of sale from 1947 ($15)

 

[Oldguy]

that's a NO, then.

There always seem to be a lot of Rolls razors for sale on ebay. It's a unique razor system and while there are members here that shave with them regularly, I don't. It's a bit of trouble to get the blades sharp.

Len

 

[MrGuy]

I used my Rolls this morning. They do require much more care, but that's a part of the fun. I don't think I've paid more that about $15 for any of mine. I have a total of 5 sets, but picked the best pieces from each set to make one set that I use. Good luck finding a decently priced one, they are nice

 

[Slivovitz]

I paid $25 shipped for a Rolls in decent condition with two apparently usable blades, one in its own little plastic box. It came with the cardboard box and the instruction sheet. Afterward, when I looked at other eBay prices, I wondered if I had paid too much.

I also have one where it turned out that the blade is partly rusted, and probably can't be salvaged, but at least the hone, strop, and handle are okay. Paid $15 for that, which was definitely too much, considering the state of the blade, but in the end, I have two complete usable sets for $40.

 

[spinyeel]

The very early Roll's in the dimpled cases go for a pretty penny.

 

[ThePossum]

I would think that $30 shipped would be the most I would pay for any Rolls.

 

[taffy]

I know they are a bit cheaper over here, but at 1 antique shop i visit, she has 3 rolls, one in a leather case, and i can have all 3 for £30, i bought a mint rolls, boxed, reciept, spare blade/hone and strop for £6.