How to bevel new scales??

[mycarver]

We all have our pet tools to use.I, being a full time wood worker have your “dragster” belt sander as well as several others.

Ironically when it comes to restoring razors those are the last tools I’d use for restoration.

Yeah, they have flat surfaces, curved roller ends. Can be clamped in a vice.

But I won’t use them. Better options, in my opinion, are available and more versatile . And much cheaper .
A basic drum sander I can use to thin blades, add bevels, and do 99 % of work on a razor or blade . Small ones can be used to clean up hollow grinds as well. Making a belt sander, just in my opinion, useless.
Now I’m assuming someone owns some sort of drill ( cordless or plug in, c’mon , you do own a drill right?) or drill press.
Even if you invest in a basic , cheaper bench top drill press , all it has to do is spin the drum. And you have the benefit of being able to drill pin holes in the scales you’re making at a true 90 degrees or have the ability to drill out old pins. Why buy a belt sander?
If you own a drill, secure it to a bench / table top and you’re good to go.

I’ve used a drum sander for decades and it’s my go to tool for restorations hands down.

I walk right past my belt sanders as for me, they’re not what I find useful for the job.
They can and do work. Just not for me

 

[mycarver]

Just checked and Harbor freight has one for $80.00.all you want to do is spin a drum or drill bit.
With a drill press you can do so much more , at a
Comparable price , of a belt sander.
Why use that?

 

[Legion]

I can buy a range of optional small wheel attachments for my belt grinder. I don't have any yet, but I've thought that they might be handy.

½” (12.7mm) and ¼” (6mm) Small Wheel Belt Grinder Attachment

½” (12.7 mm) and ¼” (6 mm) Small Wheel Belt Grinder Attachment. For 84 Engineering belt grinders. Great for grinding small precision areas. Shop now.

www.artisansupplies.com.au

 

[mycarver]

I own a 2”x 72” Beaumont belt grinder with wheels running from 3/4”. 1,2,4,6,8 inch.
Perfect for making blades. Plattens for flat grinding. I bought everything. About 30 different belts. Got over a grand tied up in it.
Restoring?
Never use it. It sits and gathers dust. I have better control with other means.
Just my way. It seems to work. Maybe I’m wrong. But I’ll keep doing it. I like what I make. They seem to turn out OK. I can’t really argue with my results.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Just checked and Harbor freight has one for $80.00.all you want to do is spin a drum or drill bit.
With a drill press you can do so much more , at a
Comparable price , of a belt sander.
Why use that?View attachment 1649845

I have that particular drill press, and also a Wen vertical mini mill (rebranded Sieg, like many of those machines are) that I now use for most of my precision or semi precision drilling that calls for better than a hand drill. These days I only use the drill press when I already have other tooling set up in the mill, and I don't want to change out the collet or whatever, for a drill chuck, or move a part clamped in the vise that I am still working on. The rest of the time the drill press stands idle. It is quick and convenient for punching a hole in something where general eyeball precision is good enough. I find that with the little HF drill press, without having any sort of drawbar arrangement, any lateral forces increase runout a lot and eventually the chuck drops out of the spindle, so not sure how you would secure a sanding drum in that drill press. I was considering modifying a spindle to take a threaded chuck I have laying around but couldn't find one, and so rather than risking messing up the only spindle I have, I bought the mill. I was trying to use an end mill in some aluminum and it was driving me bananas. The chuck held the end mill securely, but it would drop out of the spindle, still spinning like a top, after about a minute of cutting. I still like a belt sander but a drum sander does indeed work. Like you, I had belt sanders, anyway, for other jobs. I still would buy a belt sander just for razors, myself. If I perceived other needs for a drum sander then maybe I would have one, and I'm sure I would try it out on scales and sure, I would probably like it for that. Probably not better than a belt sander, though.

I was actually so pleased with the mini mill that I pulled the trigger on a mini lathe to go with it. Not sure how I will use that for razors, though I suppose I could turn some brush handles with it. I think I still have some ebony pool cue blanks somewhere...

 

[Gamma]

G10 is miserable stuff. Bulletproof but just hellish on tools, hands, and lungs.
I usually chamfer the edges of scales with a dremel using a sanding drum. Easier to do when starting with thicker material, which I almost never use the thick stuff these days. last 3-4 razors were done in 1.5mm G10.
I just eyeball a 45˚ chamfer all around. Then sand by hand to soften the lines. If I had a drill press I'd use it for almost everything scale-wise, but all I have is a dremel and it works well enough for me.
I've also used a file, works fine with the right one, like a rasp-ish kinda cut.

 

[Slash McCoy]

G10 is miserable stuff. Bulletproof but just hellish on tools, hands, and lungs.
I usually chamfer the edges of scales with a dremel using a sanding drum. Easier to do when starting with thicker material, which I almost never use the thick stuff these days. last 3-4 razors were done in 1.5mm G10.
I just eyeball a 45˚ chamfer all around. Then sand by hand to soften the lines. If I had a drill press I'd use it for almost everything scale-wise, but all I have is a dremel and it works well enough for me.
I've also used a file, works fine with the right one, like a rasp-ish kinda cut.

A Dremel is like the duct tape and coathanger wire of the razor world. If you are careful and have already made your beginner booboos, there isn't much that you CAN'T do with it, even if it isn't the fastest or easiest method to get the smoothest results. And hand sanding, there really isn't anything better for smoothing up angles and edges. The first razor I ever made from bar stock I ground out with dremel, cutoff wheels and sanding drums, then hand sanded. Then lots of hand sanding after the HT. It took a while but it got there. I don't use my Dremel (knockoff, actually) a lot these days but I can't imagine life without it.

 

[Frank Shaves]

Just as I am about to press Buy on the rubber blocks (sanding pads) on woodcraft.com, I started looking at the half-round coarse rasps.

Mark (@mycarver), Can you recommend any rasps for shaping scales?

I ask because I currently use the half-round coarse portion of a 4-in-1 rasp and wonder if a full-size rasp would provide more control.

 

[Frank Shaves]

Kutzall makes this one in 6 and 8 inches.

 

[mycarver]

Just as I am about to press Buy on the rubber blocks (sanding pads) on woodcraft.com, I started looking at the half-round coarse rasps.

Mark (@mycarver), Can you recommend any rasps for shaping scales?

I ask because I currently use the half-round coarse portion of a 4-in-1 rasp and wonder if a full-size rasp would provide more control.

I’m sorry I can’t. I don’t use rasps for this process. But depending on the material I think I’d lean towards a fine to medium cut to have the ability to sneak up on the bevel and not make deep cuts and leave a rough surface to clean up.
A flat file/rasp will do the outside radius and a slightly round will go the concave side easily.

I could see myself using a long stick , one flat , one curved where I could simply use varying grits of sandpaper to gradually shape a scale. Kinda what I do now but only with power.
This will give you nice clean angles/ bevels that will clean up nicely.
Just remember.
Finish the scale first , then add the bevels

 

[Frank Shaves]

I forgot to mention that I use the rasp for rounding the tops of scales for old Sheffields - to match the round tops of the scales made by Wade & Butcher, Joseph Rodgers, et al. It seems counterintuitive to me to use a half round rasp to form a round top, but I have not found a better tool for shaping the round tops. After the rasp, I use a cabinet scraper and then sandpaper.