cleaning safety razor comb

[brewer]

Hi guys. I picked up another vintage safety razor at the local flea market this afternoon.
It looks like an older gilette model but I'm really not sure on specific type and make since there are no make or mark mentioned on it. I might post a picture if I get the chance later on. it Has a "gold" finish on it which has mostly faded away on the head and comb (you can still see that it was there before) the the barrel screws apart in 2 pieces and thus allows the head to be taken of. It's an open comb design. The barrel was pretty dirty and the head and comb were seriously scaled with soap residue. The barrel responded wel to a gentle cleaning and polish the comb however seems to be a problem even with serious elbow grease and using a toothbrush i can't seem to get all of the soap residue out.
Can any one suggest me a tip or trick to clean this up?
I'm thinking about maybe getting this razor refinished. Can any one suggest a good solution for this? I live in Europe so anything that wouldn't envolve sending the razor half way round the world would be good.

 

[Maxime D.]

That sound like an pre-1911 Single ring. Can you see any serial number on it ? On the barrel parts or on the baseplate ?


If there is calcium residue on the razor, boil some water, put an aluminum foil in a bowl, put your razor on the foil, generously sprinkle bicarbonate sodium over it and immerse it with the hot water. That should remove the calcium

 

[brewer]

just checked that model out you mentioned and it seems to have more than a striking resemblance. the serial number seems to have vanished however maybe through previous polishing or extensive use. is there a chance this might be a later issue or a clone?

 

[ateace]

a razor without anything stamped on it does not sound like a Gillette. Most likely a clone.

 

[Maxime D.]

If you could post some pictures, that would help.

 

[brewer]

Here are some pictures of the razor.
the only thing I can add about the state of it is that when closely examining the teeth of the comb they seem like the razor has been round for quite some time.
I have a few 50's and 60's safety razors and they are usually not as worn as this one

 

[brewer]

I actually got the razor cleaned up. I soaked the head in some acetic acid. Seams to work a charm on the soap residue. it didn't even damage the remaining coating. Just removed the residue with a toothpick and some mild sandpaper and it is pretty much clean. It

 

[Wingnut]

Please, for your sake and the sake of your razors, DO NOT soak them in vinegar or use sandpaper to clean them up! There are much less aggressive methods for cleaning a razor in the ShaveWiki, and the method that you used is SURE to remove plating and perhaps damage the razor to the point where it might become unuseable.

It sounds like you may have dodged a bullet with the one you just got, but this is a sure way to ruin a perfectly good razor--and perhaps a piece of shaving history.

 

[nemo]

Please, for your sake and the sake of your razors, DO NOT soak them in vinegar or use sandpaper to clean them up! There are much less aggressive methods for cleaning a razor in the ShaveWiki, and the method that you used is SURE to remove plating and perhaps damage the razor to the point where it might become unuseable.

It sounds like you may have dodged a bullet with the one you just got, but this is a sure way to ruin a perfectly good razor--and perhaps a piece of shaving history.

Oh, man! Heed this sage advice, please don't do this again. Your razor looks like a German single ring clone, they shave pretty well, I've got one or two.

 

[brewer]

just for the record. In general acetic acid is not that agressive of an acid. I actually use the stuff to do cleaning in my brewery and wash out bottles. The plating on the head was pretty much gone anyway so I thought that even if the rest was removed it wouldn't be such a great deal. and it didn't even get damaged. What plating was there still remains on the razor

 

[Mick]

It should be a nice shaving razor.

Use it for a while before you decide to spend any $$ on it for re-plating. If it is unmarked it would need to be an exceptional shaving tool to warrant spending money on it to "pretty it up"

 

[brewer]

just for the info. Can any one give me an estimate of when these were produced? Always nice to know the age of an item

 

[Gary H]

A sure fire way to clean the combs is this: first cake the combs with silver cream or brasso then grab a thin towel at least 18" long fold it in half long ways, put one corner in your mouth and pull down tight on the other end you will now have a nice edge on the towel. Next work the sharp edge of the towel while pulling it tight comb by comb working the razor up and down a few times like stropping. Once done with all combs both sides make a new sharp towel edge and repeat to remove the residue. I have used this method to clean over a dozen razors with zero issues.

 

[brewer]

I just checked the comb and it seems that round the teeth a bit of copper corosion set in. Probably due to the plating it had on. It has the typical blue/greenish color of corroded coper/bronze any idea how to best combat this?

 

[Sled Dog]

Try a fairly stiff nylon brush like a fingernail brush, wet the brush and razor, rub the brush on a bar of hand soap and scrub.
i have used a wooden toothpick with good success.
A soft brass brush will get rid of that blue/green corrosion if all else fails