A Sad Day - Corroded Bartmann 6/8"

[rambus007]

I wanted to share with everyone the results of not protecting your straight razors properly when in storage. I live in a very humid country and as soon as I saw my razors start corroding I immediately went and bought a dry box. I never needed such a thing in Canada but it's absolutely necessary in equatorial regions. After I oiled my razors I stuck them in the dry box and left them for many months. Recently I took them out to show someone and decided to check them all and re-oil if needed. The majority were still in great condition except for my Bartmann. I almost cried...

I gave the razor to another member here so that he can re-use the scales or practice stropping on newspaper with it. So fellas the lesson here is always make sure your razors are properly oiled. I apply one small squirt of Ballistol to each side of the razor and rub it all over with my finger. I make sure it gets to the spine and edge as well then rub my finger all over the tang. I hope this helps save your razors before they fall victim to humidity and rust.

 

[Heespharm]

Wth... Sorry to see that! *oiling my razors now*

 

[hillbilly pick]

Man! My condolences! I know what I am going to do tomorrow!

 

[kcb5150]

Do you think the scales may have been the culprit?

 

[Heespharm]

Do you think the scales may have been the culprit?

Oh yeah it may be cell rot... Looks like it's localized to the areas covered by the scales

 

[bassman314]

Yikes!

It also sorta looks like finger tips. Maybe the oils/acids from someone's fingers are the culprit?

 

[kcb5150]

That style of scale seems really prone to cell rot.

 

[silver]

Ouch, it pains me to see such a beautiful razor go down that way. I think it might have something to do with cell rot as well, considering all of your other razors held up fine.

 

[Doc226]

That looks like cell rot, mostly limited to the light areas.

Here is one someone sent me for honing, early stages


You can see how the corrosion matches perfectly with the light areas on the scales.

 

[global_dev]

Before I saw the comments, I was thinking cell rot.

Wow. That's just unreal. Condolences.

 

[life2short1971]

I think that is cel rot. You can lay another junk razor in the scales and seal the container . It will show rust in hours or days if so. Sorry for your loss Terry.

Just fyi if you buffed those scales on a machine and they warmed up it could have started the process back when you cleaned it up. Some cleaners will also start the chemical process that causes the off gassing too.

 

[oakeshott]

Yeah. That's cell rot. I'm as certain as one can be without some sort of scientific testing. There's just no other way that your Bartmann could have deterioriated that much more in comparison to the other razors if it were treated in the same way and stored in the same container. There's variation in high carbon steels and they can respond differently to the same conditions even though they appear identical or were formulated to be identical, but there's no scenario in which one behaves that differently in the absence of major environmental influences.

I am truly sorry for your loss. That's just an awful ending to a great razor.

 

[CanonSterVa]

That is horrible.
Need to take a look at some of mine I have stored.

 

[pmaster]

Ouch! It happened to me once, and luckily on a very cheap blade, and I caught it soon enough. It sure scared me though, but it seems it was only cell rot and all other straights were fine.

The razor might still be salvaged though no? It would have a few scars but...

 

[dmcconnell]

That sucks Terry - what a shame.

 

[Lmarkow]

Sorry for your "loss."

Question, though: Is it true that cell rot may be "contagious" in a closed container with a couple of razors? thanks

 

[life2short1971]

Sorry for your "loss."

Question, though: Is it true that cell rot may be "contagious" in a closed container with a couple of razors? thanks

The gas will corrode any thing it contacts. If the razor was in a coffin it likely did not escape.

 

[Klaasianer]

I'm sorry, its typical for Bartman-Cell-Scales. If you want to save the scales, cover them inside with aluminum foil ( superglue)

 

[garyg]

Sorry for the loss - I had a Puma oncet in my prior Straight time, that turned out the same. Same faux tortoise scales, or so it appears. I've seen at least one other example of rot with the falsie turtle .. Anyone ever notice the Rot with scales of natural materials, or modern plastics? Just seems too coincidental that the 3 I've seen all had the relatively rare fake scales ..?

 

[life2short1971]

Sorry for the loss - I had a Puma oncet in my prior Straight time, that turned out the same. Same faux tortoise scales, or so it appears. I've seen at least one other example of rot with the falsie turtle .. Anyone ever notice the Rot with scales of natural materials, or modern plastics? Just seems too coincidental that the 3 I've seen all had the relatively rare fake scales ..?

It is the celluloid used to make the scales and some colors deteriorated quicker than others but in the end all celluloid will self destruct. That is why so many old movies have been lost. the material breaks down and is also highly cumbustable. You set it on fire by sanding,drilling, or buffing too hard even.