Another very old razor

[brothers]

Today I met a gentleman who had 3 straight razors for sale. He wanted me to buy all of them. There was a time when I would have done just that. As a matter of fact I remember the last time I did it. However, I did choose one, a full wedge, completely original with pins, washers, and scales. The edge of course, isn't shave ready, and negligible hone wear, as far as I can tell. No rust other than that dark patina they usually have, and which will shine up well when the time comes. Or not, if I want to sharpen it as is and just use it as I have done with my R. Wade (1812) and the King razor (1856). This one, according to a reference I found, was made 1n 1830. That's 187 years ago. It's stamped on the blade "W. GREAVES & SONS"; on the tang it is stamped "CAST STEEL WARRANTED"; on the scale is stamped "SHEAF-WORKS". The blade measures 6/8. The tail has a few spots of surface rust. Also, one of the scales has some rot but not much. It'll be a pleasure to sharpen this old survivor, and shave with it when the time comes. I'll get a photo up in a day or two.

[drmoss_ca]

You might like to know that William Greaves started his business in 1775, and in 1816 added "& Sons" to his stamping on the blade of the razor. With the huge new Sheaf Works opening in 1823, he moved the "W. Greaves & Sons" stamp to the tang. This means your razor, if I understand it to be stamped on the blade rather than the tang, was probably a very early output of the Sheaf Works, or perhaps old stock from his Division Street business that was stamped Sheaf Works after the move to the new factory. Greaves was the first razor maker to concentrate on the American market and became very wealthy as a result. He died in 1830, and his sons continued the business until the company was folded up in 1850. Sheaf Works is now a pub/restaurant complex.
Cast steel was the term used for a form of crucible steel made first by Benjamin Huntsman around 1740. Rather than converting iron to steel by the Bessemer process, he mixed steel, iron and some flux in a crucible and melted them together. The resulting metal had a microstructure that consisted of interwoven strands of slightly different steels, rather like the ancient Indian wootz steel, although on a finer, invisible scale. At the time, it was the best steel available for durable cutting edges.
I would not polish that blade up to a mirror shine, but rather let it show its seniority. Keep the scales on it if they are original. Most of all, hone it and use it. You'll be shaving with a piece of Georgian history.

C.

[brothers]

This morning I put an edge on the 187 year old razor and shaved with it. I'm no Chris Moss! However, it did take an arm-hair-popping edge on the first stone, and the edge-polishing process with the other stones was efficient. Stropped it on the Jemico Red Russian and conducted a full 3 or 4 pass shave, laying aside my normal single pass against the grain. As far as I'm concerned it lived up to all of my perceptions and expectations. I am very satisfied with the result.

Chris, thanks for the additional information. I'm excited to know the facts surrounding the origin of this old razor. As you can see, I'm going to leave it in the original condition.

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[EL Alamein]

Beautiful razor, Gary! Use it in good health.

Chris

[brothers]

It's heavy. The pins and washers are impressive.

[brothers]

The previously posted but non-functional photo has now been renewed.

[drmoss_ca]

And my reply about it at SRP is available to all.

[brothers]

These and all of the other old razors are the source of a great amount of shaving history. The old lather-catchers and some of the early single edge (and double edge) safety razors are currently topping around 100 years old, while some of the straight razors are reaching 200. I'm in awe of the places they've been and the people who made and used them. Not to mention the historical events that have occurred around the world during their time of existence. And hopefully many more years to come.

[brothers]

You might like to know that William Greaves started his business in 1775, and in 1816 added "& Sons" to his stamping on the blade of the razor. With the huge new Sheaf Works opening in 1823, he moved the "W. Greaves & Sons" stamp to the tang. This means your razor, if I understand it to be stamped on the blade rather than the tang, was probably a very early output of the Sheaf Works, or perhaps old stock from his Division Street business that was stamped Sheaf Works after the move to the new factory. Greaves was the first razor maker to concentrate on the American market and became very wealthy as a result. He died in 1830, and his sons continued the business until the company was folded up in 1850. Sheaf Works is now a pub/restaurant complex.
Cast steel was the term used for a form of crucible steel made first by Benjamin Huntsman around 1740. Rather than converting iron to steel by the Bessemer process, he mixed steel, iron and some flux in a crucible and melted them together. The resulting metal had a microstructure that consisted of interwoven strands of slightly different steels, rather like the ancient Indian wootz steel, although on a finer, invisible scale. At the time, it was the best steel available for durable cutting edges.
I would not polish that blade up to a mirror shine, but rather let it show its seniority. Keep the scales on it if they are original. Most of all, hone it and use it. You'll be shaving with a piece of Georgian history.

C.

Chris, your knowledge is awesome and I'm grateful for your willingness to share with us. Thanks! As a matter of fact, your information above tells me there's only one razor I should pick for my next SR shave tomorrow if I like the edge as it comes off the stones. ( IF I can find it! )

[drmoss_ca]

Just think of all the faces it may have shaved over the years!

This is what's left of the Sheaf Works today:

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Imagine this: it cost £430,000 to build in 1823! That's £66.5 million today. After Greaves died, it was bought by Thomas Turton & Sons and ten years later they were bought out by F.T.Mappin, later to be Mappin & Webb.

Chris

[brothers]

That's a remarkable piece of history, for sure.

This razor is 203 years old now!
It hasn't been used (by me) for 9 years.
This morning I shaved with the usual General safety razor.
I was happy and lucky to remember exactly where the old razor was resting.
I gave it a few laps on the leather and softly ran it through the hairs on the back of my hand.
I'm pleasantly surprised how sharp it is. Next time I shave this week I'm going to use it.

[brothers]

SSA Eskilstuna-Sweden

SOTD 04March2026.jpg (1.01 MiB) Viewed 125 times

[drmoss_ca]

Nice Swedish steel!

[brothers]

This beautiful razor says "FOR BARBERS USE WARRANTED" on the blade. The neck says "JOSEPH RODGERS & SONS / CUTLERS TO THEIR MAJESTIES" / "No- 6 NORFOLK STREET / SHEFFIELD".
The language paying respects to the ruling entities could not be before 1840 and not after 1861. Please don't hold it against me if I've got the dates wrong. This old razor is probably between 186 and 165 years old. I have no memory of when I got it or how much I may have paid for it. It's in excellent shape. I used it this morning and it was excellent.

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[drmoss_ca]

I shan't hold it against you, but you do have the dates wrong! I think you are using 1840 as the date of the marriage of Albert to Victoria, and 1861 because he died then? But whilst he was given the title Prince Consort in 1857, he was never styled 'His Majesty.'
"Cutlers to their majesties" is a curious phrase, isn't it? Majesty refers only to the monarch, and there has been only one at a time, except for the reign of William & Mary (1689 - 1694, when Mary died) who were appointed joint monarchs by parliament after James II fled the country during the Glorious Revolution. So it either refers to selling cutlery to the courts of several countries, or to successive monarchs, and it is the last sense in which we must understand it.
We know Joseph Rodgers was working in 1730 as that was when he handed the business over to his two sons. At this time their business was in pocket knives and pen knives. Around 1800 he started to make razors and table cutlery, and in 1821 Rodgers got their first royal warrant. George IV came to the throne in 1820 so he must have granted it (famous for being a fat dandy and building the Brighton Pavilion). In 1830 William IV acceeded and reigned until his death in 1831. Now Victoria took over then and whilst she had no personal interest in razors, she did require cutlery of other types. Rodgers kept their royal warrants, in fact, for five successive reigns: Geoge IV, William IV, Victoria, Edward VII and George V. They were proud of this and used it in advertising:

under-five-sovereigns-1000.jpg (70.42 KiB) Viewed 75 times

Rodgers were one of the Sheffield cutlers who exploited the international market, and America was a large market. When did Rodgers first use the term 'Cutlers to their majesties'? That I do not know, but logically it cannot have been before 1830 and is probably later. You can find a great deal of information about the firm here.

[brothers]

Chris, I knew you would be someone who really knows how to look into such detail about the old razor! THANK YOU.
I didn't want to ask you first, but I really was hoping you could provide some excellent information, and you came through!

[drmoss_ca]

My pleasure! I haven't made much headway though in dating your razor. I note the tang isn't as short as in really old (~1820 or earlier) razors, but not as long as it would later become. There are bevels on the lower corners of the shank, it has a barber's notch, and it is a smiling blade; these are all "old" features. We have to remember how Sheffield makers kept old designs going for many years (esp. W&B) as their customers were conservative and wanted a razor like their father's. So I can't pin it down by the blade to anything closer than 1840-1880. The scales are unlikely to be original since they look so clean! If they are celluloid and original, that places the razor in the second half of that range as celluloid was first introduced as a manufacturing material in 1862. If they are modern replacements, I would compliment them on using bullseye rivets and preserving the old shape of period scales (see how the scales at the point of the razor are slightly pointed? Another old feature.)

PS it was cheeky of Rodgers to make an issue of their 'Star' and 'Maltese cross' trademarks being granted in 1682, as they were not granted to them at that time! They were registered by Benjamin Rich in 1682, and either transferred or lapsed, as they were re-registered by Rodgers in 1764.