Fixing The TTO of a Super speed (please help!

[bbauer09]

Hey guys!

So I recently bought a lot of de safety razors off of the bay (for a great price) and for the most part I am really really happy with my purchase. I am the proud new owner of a 40s SS, an aristocrat, a tech and a schick tto razor. They all look pretty good and I cant wait to shave with them.

The one concern I have is with the 40s SS (black tip). It opens and closes, however it is very difficult to do so. I really have to bear down and twist hard to get it to open or close. Even though it is difficult, it is still works as it should.

My question is.....is there something that I could do that might be able to allow it to twist open and closed easier? can I clean it or screw something looser or do anything?! I really like the look and feel of the razor and would love to get it working even better!

p.s. I can post pictures if they are needed....but im not sure that they are necessary to fix this problem.

 

[alex2363]

Soak it in hot water and dish wash liquid for few days.....

 

[BBrad]

+1 on the soak Alex recommends. If you are lucky it is just gunked up and the very hot water and dish soap soaks will help loosen and flush out the gunk.

Some guys have reported good results with a mineral oil soak. I've never tried it myself.

The Black Tip SS has a compounding issue, however. The handle tube is made of aluminum, with the handle neck made of either steel or aluminum. The baseplate is made of either brass or steel. The center rod, I believe, is brass, and of course, the TTO knob is plastic. All these various materials were used to save brass during the Korean War.

The dissimilar metals causes a galvanic reaction, which leads to corrosion and binding of the parts. In some cases, the head actually corrodes "loose" from the handle top.

 

[tubeandplate]

Other stuff with it could be that I've had them where the butterfly doors and linkages were out of alignment....from being dropped and slightly bent.

It is MADDENING to figure out exactly what is binding and/or bent...you just have to open and close and look at it inside the doors and underneath and on both capped sides to find what is wrong....

Then the harder part...trying to bend it back...I've used a mallet, a screwdriver as a prybar, a vise (pad the jaws), whatever the needed remedy dictates.

Don't boil it to to clean it...may disfigure the bakelite/plastic black knob.


Yours indeed might just be gunked up, but if not, i would stare at it while workign it open and closed to see if anythign is binding....patience and gentleness is key if you have to "fix" it......


Chris