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Straight Razor Restoration Thread

Luecke3262

Luecke3262

“I am the Grail Razor Hunter”
Hobbyist
Hi Guys,

I could not find a thread specifically for Straight Razor Restorations, so I'm creating one! Please share your current, past, and future restoration projects.

I'll go first!

I got lucky in picking up a lot on Friday, but was sad to see a George Butler's KEEN Razor show up with rally horrid scales that didn't fit. The scales were horn, but badly shaped replacement scales with a thick piece of brass wire holding it all together (the toe even hit the lead wedge). Of course I forgot to take before shots, so here is the best picture of it from the lot.
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SO, I went to my broken razor pile and low and behold I had an old Sheffield razor with some wonderful old Ivory scales that were a perfect match for the Butler. CRAZY! I've owned these scales exactly 3 years to the day that I did this restoration (I had to look it up in the archives).
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It took lot of time filing and lightly tapping the old pin out. Then I took a bit of time lightly sanding with 3K sandpaper the inside and outside. Next, I replaced the interior washers and spent about an hour and 15 minutes (1000's of hammer hits) lightly tapping the pins until just snug. I think it turned out pretty great!
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I love the thumb notch too, it feels great in hand. This guy has a date with the Escher Barbers Delight this evening, I really want to shave with it tomorrow morning!
 
Fenster said:
Nice job, looks great.
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Thank you sir!

Dave in KY said:
That is absolutely AMAZING work on that restore. Congrats on a real beauty you can be proud of. (y)
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That means a lot! I am proud of it and really looking forward to honing it. Unfortunately, it may be the only real looker from the lot I bought late last week. There is a Wade and Butcher that needs a little work to polish up some black spots. Also an M, Jung and CASCO that need some work. The rest are a bit rough, but should make good practice razors for newbies or scale donors.
MilkCrate said:
Great restoration!
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Thank you, do you have any restorations to share??
 
Worked on this old guy last night.
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It took a bit of filing and tapping with my pinning hammer to remove the pin from the ivory scales. They came free without incident!
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At this point I used my Dremel brush to clean up some of the surface rust. There was a lot of rust and unfortunately all I had on had was a brass brush(I typically use steel brushes).... The rust laughed at my feeble attempt to dislodge it, and turned a brassy color... at this point I realized it is a Joseph Elliot.
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At this point I resorted to using the Dremel sanding drum and a large file. I also started working with 60-320 grit sand paper. At this point I stopped trying to get rid of all the pits and decided to embrace the rat razor that it has become. I took a break and tonight, I’ll try to work it up to about 2000 sandpaper and start buffing it.
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I restore in spurts, but when I really get into it I knock out a bunch of razors all at once. This week, I cleaned up and finished 15 razors.

After 3 years of waiting, I finally found a fantastic set of scales for my Great Grandpa’s razor!!! I’ve been looking to finish this razor for some time, these scales are the last piece of the puzzle. I think I’ll buff them off, then brighten up the Stars and Stripes with some fresh enamel paint. I need to finish hand sanding, up to 15k then I’ll buff it off and set the bevel. I’ll repin with nickel silver wire and washers.529D0C94-8CD0-401F-831E-A496C668A478.jpeg
 
Jaro1069 said:
@Luecke3262 did I see a dubl duck in that pile of razors ? Which was it ? It looked okay I think from what I could see too.
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Yes sir, I think there are 3 Special 1’s, 2 Dwarfs, and 3 satin wedges. Yeah, they don’t look too bad, I’ve been a bit lazy these last two or three weeks and haven’t gotten to them yet. A couple will need new scales and a sanding progression, the rest of them will need high grit sanding and buffing and repinned.
 
Luecke3262 said:
Yes sir, I think there are 3 Special 1’s, 2 Dwarfs, and 3 satin wedges. Yeah, they don’t look too bad, I’ve been a bit lazy these last two or three weeks and haven’t gotten to them yet. A couple will need new scales and a sanding progression, the rest of them will need high grit sanding and buffing and repinned.
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Very cool. That's one brand ive been interested in after hearing others praises about. Good luck with them.....and all the others also....
 
Just cleaned up this George Butler's Rapid razor. I definitely could have done much more to it, but I prefer to do minimalist restorations to full scale sand all the etchings off restorations.

All I did to this one was use the steel brush on my dremel to knock off the red rust, then I hit it with 3K WD sand paper. Then took it to the buffing wheels, used emory, Green stainless, and white rouge. It had very little to clean up in the pivot, so I didn't unpin it. I still need to clean and polish the scales, then I'll repaint the gold into the key logo on the scales.

Like I said, I like to keep it minimalist.
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Matt, I have to comment on the scales you chose for you Great Grandpa’s razor. They are beautiful in their current state, but with your love and care they will be stunning after your restoration. There is something intangible about family heirlooms that is unique to each person’s heart. I know you to be a true family man and your restoration will add to the history and lore of your Great Grandpa’s legacy.

Mike
 
So, not sure where i should post this but...

During Wednesday's TSC Zoom call we had a discussion about using Kirinite for straight razor scales, so i thought i would post a picture of a few i did a while ago.

@BarberDave, the top 2 are Bengal Tiger, middle 2 are Vintage Pearl (looks better in person), and bottom 2 are faux Ivory.
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By the way, if you haven't already joined one of the Zoom calls yet, you should, usually lots of fun.
 
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