J. Wiss & Sons Co. - Straight Razors

J. Wiss & Sons: Straight Razors

Jacob Wiss founded the company in 1848 as Jacob Wiss Cutlery. The earliest mention of razors is this Newark Business Directory 1852-53. The 1911 catalog claims that the Wiss razor has been the standard of razor excellence for 60 years. Production of Wiss razors ended in the latter part of 1923. Wiss razors with tangs made by Wade Butcher and other European (e.g. German) manufacturers appear on eBay. Apparently after production stopped they continued to fill orders for razors with tangs made by others. Razors no longer appeared on the 1924 price list. The 1925 catalog lists razors on the cover, but they are not shown within. The market for straight razors collapsed after WWI. They gave all the GIs safety razors, and they returned home in 1919.

Catalogs With Razors

1907 Catalog has 23 pages on razors on p. 37-59. It lacks the models starting with 2.
1911 Catalog has 26 pages on razors on p. 46-71, and 5 pages of strops on p. 72-76.
1912 Catalog has 25 pages on razors on p. 46-70, and 6 pages of strops on p. 71-76. This catalog debuts the Automatic Razor Stropper on p. 71. See patent. And the Safety Razor Sets in boxes on p. 82.
The 1917 Catalog has 19 pages on razors on p. 54-72, and 13 pages of strops on p. 73-83 and p. 89-90. This one pictures 39 different strops, including the auto-strop. The most strop pictures of any catalog. Plus two strop display units. This is the first catalog to show the razors with names on the tangs. It is the first with pictures of the models starting with a 2. This, and the next, have the best pictures showing the different blade styles.
1919 Catalog has 20 pages on razors on p. 62-81, and 10 pages on strops on p. 82-91. It is down to 22 strops and not the auto-strop. Down to one strop display unit.
A 1921 Catalog with razors is in the Smithsonian American History Museum Library. Price lists for it are on the 1920s page.
1922 Catalog is the last known catalog with razors. It has 16 pages on razors on p. 78-93, then 9 pages on strops on p. 71, 94-101.

Scale Materials

Buffalo Horn is the earliest scale material seen.
Vulcanized rubber was patented in 1844. Bowling balls and hockey pucks are made from vulcanized rubber. The early Wiss razor scales were all vulcanized rubber.
Celluloid was invented in 1869. It took a few years for it to get into production.
Bakelite was first produced in 1910, and Wiss started using it right after it became available. Bakelite is very hard and is very shiny.
A razor with aluminum scales appears as Style Y in 1907. Earlier Style Y was dark blue on the outside and white on the inside. The first aluminum smelter was in 1889 in Switzerland and the second in 1896 in Scotland. After watching eBay for 12 years the first one appeared.
Bone was always available. Probably bovine. Styles N, P, R, S and T.

Wiss Razor Ads

I have come across only a few ads for razors.

Pictures of Wiss Razors

I started harvesting pictures of Wiss razors that passed through eBay in March 2008. With the catalogs I have tried to match them against their style names. The best example of each variation was selected for here. Once into the picture pages, you can scroll between the razors.

One Page has all 65 razors.
Or, see the razors split up into six groups:
- Razors With Etched Names. The models with names etched onto the blades only came in one configuration. Some of the models included a leather case. There is no pattern to the names and what you get. And they changed. Names in 1907 are completely different razors in 1911. Then after 1912 the names switch again. This section also includes a few that have names and were not found in the catalogs.
- Razors with Plain Black Rubber Handles. By far the most popular were Oval and Flat Black Rubber Handles. These are actually part of the Style Letter group, but are letterless and only have a number from the below charts stamped on the tang. This is where all the single shoulder razors are.
- Razors with Style Letter. They went through the alphabet twice for these. For the second there is a 2 stamped before the letter on the tang. Some Style letters were dropped along the way. These were sold by the dozen. You picked your handle and then had a choice of 48 regular blades (3 concavities, 4 sizes, 4 points).
- Names on Tang [to come]
- Unidentified. These are the ones I could not find in the two catalogs that I have, did not have an etched name, and had a handle with style. With the auctions passed I can't ask about a letter stamped on the tang. Update: The 1919 catalog has eight razors with the names stamped on the tangs. Some of them are in here. [To be reorganized.]
- Sets. Wiss sold weekly sets and travel sets. The offerings varied over time. Pictures include a sales assortment canvas pouch and a full seven day set.
- Strops and Safety Razors. Wiss sold many different strops, including an automatic one. There are very few pictures here. The strops probably deteriorated and were never really collectibles. There are six pages starting on page 71 in the 1912 Catalog. And there was a safety razor and blades, presumably towards the end.

Wiss Scales Available

Going through the catalogs I have been able to make a chart of what razor scale styles where available when.

Wiss Blade Variations

In the razors with the Style letters you picked your handle and matched it with your choice of blade.

Points. Double shoulder blades (the standard) were available in any of these points. Single shoulder blades (rare) were made only with square, honed or round points. The first image comes from the 1907 catalog, the second from the 1917 and 1919 ones.

Concavity and Width. For the lettered styles there were three concavities and four sizes. Thin commanded a 25% premium over Medium Thin, and Very Thin had a 50% premium over Medium Thin. These numbers can be found stamped on the tip of the tang for most models.

Numbers stamped on the tang for Double Shoulder models:
Med. Thin Concave (Half Concave)		Thin Concave (3/4 Concave)		Very Thin Concave (Full Concave)
No.	Size	No.	Size	No.	Size
43	3/8	63	3/8	83	3/8
44	4/8	64	4/8	84	4/8
45	5/8	65	5/8	85	5/8
46	6/8	66	6/8	86	6/8

The 1912 catalog gives recommendations as to which blade for which person. It states that generally a 5/8" blade, Thin Concave gives the best of satisfaction. The more specific recommendations are:

For exceptionally tough and heavy beards: use a razor 6/8" wide, Medium Thin Concave (1/2 Concave).
For wiry beards, not very heavy: use a razor 5/8" wide, Medium Thin Concave (1/2 Concave).
For heavy, soft beards: use a razor 6/8" wide, Very Thin Concave (Full Concave).
For medium soft beards, which are possessed by most men: use a razor 5/8" wide, Thin Concave (3/4 Concave).
For soft beards, not heavy: use a razor 5/8" wide, Very Thin Concave (Full Concave).

The 1919 catalog they had a simplified table:
Kind of Beard	Width of Blade	Concave
Med. (average)	5/8"	3/4
Heavy	6/8"	3/4
Very Heavy	6/8"	1/2
Light	5/8"	Full
Very Light	4/8"	3/4

Single Shoulders. Most blades had two shoulders. A single shoulder was generally shipped with an Oval Black Rubber Handle, but they could be attached to any of the lettered styles. Once you know what to look for you will easily be able to distinguish between them. There are a mix of the two blade types on the Black Razor Page.

Numbers stamped on the tang for Single Shoulder models:
Med. Thin Concave Thin Concave Very Thin Concave

No. Size No. Size No. Size

144 4/8 164 4/8 184 4/8

145 5/8 165 5/8 185 5/8

146 6/8 166 6/8 186 6/8
Single Shoulders, Alternate. These are not in any of the catalogs I have. Some have Sure-Grip only on the bottom edge. Some don't. I have a picture of a 245 and a 285. I have also seen some with the cloud logo.

The numbers stamped on the tang are:
Med. Thin Concave Thin Concave Very Thin Concave

No. Size No. Size No. Size

244 4/8 264 4/8 284 4/8

245 5/8 265 5/8 285 5/8

246 6/8 266 6/8 286 6/8
"Sure Grip" Blade. The ad copy for this option: "Will not slip from your fingers while shaving no matter how moist or wet your hands may be, for the construction of the tang prevents it. The under side of the tang has fine cuts like a file, while the upper side is finished with fine ridges." It was generally shipped with a Flat Black Rubber Handle, but they could be attached to any of the lettered styles. These grooves are called jimps by straight razor people.

For the "Sure Grip" the numbers stamped on the tang are:
Med. Thin Concave Thin Concave Very Thin Concave

No. Size No. Size No. Size

344 4/8 364 4/8 384 4/8

345 5/8 365 5/8 385 5/8

346 6/8 366 6/8 386 6/8
"Sure Grip" Blade 400 numbers. A 464 blade appears on a Wiss Special and a 466 appears on a Wiss Sure Comfort (both with cloud logos). A 465 was also seen on a Wiss Favorite (flat black rubber, no logo, sans serif font). I do not know how they differ from the 300 numbers.