CNC milled razors?

[6Cuda6]

Any thoughts on this?
Anyone have one?

everything I have seen is stamped as a blank then finished or hand made....how about CNC ....thoughts, opinions?

 

[eastomjac]

CNC is awsome,i think it should work if you set it up correctly

 

[Mick]

Nice precision made tools.

 

[6Cuda6]

Nice precision made tools.

nice....was hoping the straight market had something though...

 

[Mick]

nice....was hoping the straight market had something though...

Never seen a CNC straight. Only DE examples

 

[6Cuda6]

Never seen a CNC straight. Only DE examples

Nor I ....hence the post.

 

[147_Grain]

I think getting the hollow grind right would be challenging with CNC, though you could certainly cut the outline from a sheet that way (or with a water jet cutter). The grind is the hard part, though (besides the heat treatment).

 

[Steve56]

There's a thread discussing CNC straights somewhere here. The comsensus is that thread is that the technology is close but can't replace a master grinder.

Cheers, Steve

 

[PF68]

milling a razor would be much more trouble than it's worth and would need to be ground afterwards anyway. It's just not the right process for the job.

 

[Jarrod]

We've had efforts produced in SE USA by CNC specialized firms from the auto industry sent to our shop by a firm wanting to develop this. They were wafer thin, scary sharp, and essentially inflexible. It costs a whole lot of money to make the first one exactly as you'd want it and thereafter they're cheap enough I'd imagine that even USA production could subsist awhile. But it just goes right where you point it in a hurry, and any leeway of the "keep on going where you're going and you're about to be cut" magic warning zone of the 'real' straight finished on natural hones is gone. I don't know the metallurgy behind why they don't flex, but it is this same issue that's keeping the Solingen makers producing entirely by hand grinding. But isn't the stiff/sharper model working fine for the Japanese interchangeable straight razors? There should honestly be a market for each because your need to stretch is diminished a bit with such amazing keenness.

 

[eKretz]

Actually this would be very easy to do economically once the initial outlay for machinery and tooling up was covered. The key thing would be to use a milling machine only to machine the blank prior to quench and temper. Ideally you'd want a machine specifically made to purpose though, that's not cheap. (Think machining both sides of the hollow at once - and grinding both sides at once). Grinding would still be the only process suitable for finishing after heat treat, but there are CNC grinders too. It would save a very significant amount of time per blade, as well as produce some seriously consistently straight and centered blades.

 

[Cambouis]

I would imagine, that to an experienced straight razor user, a blade cut from a piece of steel would feel rather different from a forged blade.

Metals have a "grain" (every motor engineer knows that a forged crankshaft or connecting rod is a better component than one machined from a billet). I would speculate that such a razor might "feel" rather different - maybe better, I couldn't say - but different.

C.

 

[eKretz]

Doubtful. Forging in the case of straight razors is used to get them quickly to near net shape. It is of little benefit otherwise for something like a razor. The main benefit of forging for those applications that require it for strength is that the boundary lines of the grain structures follow the contours of the part, and none of those grain lines need to be cut across the grain creating a weak point. This is pretty inconsequential for an item that's barely stressed at all like a razor - more important for things like crankshafts.

 

[Cambouis]

Doubtful. Forging in the case of straight razors is used to get them quickly to near net shape. It is of little benefit otherwise for something like a razor. The main benefit of forging for those applications that require it for strength is that the boundary lines of the grain structures follow the contours of the part, and none of those grain lines need to be cut across the grain creating a weak point. This is pretty inconsequential for an item that's barely stressed at all like a razor - more important for things like crankshafts.

Yes a fair point, but I have read on this forum that some individuals here have a preference, e.g. for the "feel" of Sheffield steel or Swedish steel &c. For such connoiseurs, I imagined that a milled as opposed to a forged item might have a different feel.

Of course tensile strength and shock resistance are not qualities one would need in a razor!

C.

 

[eKretz]

It would be more important to optimize the heat treat process for the steel used - the grain structure is very very small in fully hardened steel - it can even approach the sub-micron range. IMO there would be no discernible difference in feel between a forged blade and a machined blade that were properly hardened and honed. These connoiseurs are most likely feeling the difference in hardness or alloy and it's effect on the edge quality.

 

[Kentos]

Someone milled a few blanks that was patterned off of a WB FBU. Not sure if it was ever honed up. I'll try find the thread.

 

[Kentos]

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/276998-W-amp-B-9-8ths?highlight=

This was years ago. Labor and milling time proved to be quite intensive I believe.

 

[eKretz]

Yeah it's difficult to be economical when you're trying to put a double markup on things. Best way to do it is to cut out the middle man and the guy who would be machining them sells them. Dedicated machinery and tooling would also save a lot of production time/cost.