How to clean and polish a dirty gold plated razor without damaging it's plating

[Medivh]

I'm about to recieve an Aristocrat and from what I can tell the plating seems good, but it's definitely not great and i'm not sure if I should just try my best to clean and polish the razor or just send it for replating.

I'm not a huge fan of the gold plating, since it's the least durable plating material, but the Aristocrat came with a gold plated case and blade bank and it would be very awkward and silly of me if I replate it in anything else but gold and I also doubt that i'm going to use the razor all the time, so the plating should be ok with light use.

 

[romsitsa]

Polishing removes gold, just skip that part.

 

[Medivh]

Polishing removes gold, just skip that part.

Is there any way to shine it a bit? Like using a microfiber cloth or something.

 

[Dyllern]

Is there any way to shine it a bit? Like using a microfiber cloth or something.

There sure is. Try to clean it really well and after that use a polishing cloth with a mild rouge.

I have had great results that way. Obviously you won't be able to do magic and remove all scratches, but you will most likely be able to make that gold shine quite a bit more

More potent polishing compounds like Flitz or Autosol will strip the gold plating right off so stay away from that.

 

[santamariasteve]

I'm very conservative when it comes to polishing gold. I'd just use soap, warm water and a soft flannel cloth.

Be accepting of the notion, what you got is what you got. Above all, be gentle. Remember that the gold plating from the factory was very thin to begin with, so you don't have much to work with.

Your Gillette Aristocrat is at least 70 years old. What does that tell you?

 

[Medivh]

I wish I had it so I can tell for sure whatever it needs replating or not. From what I can see from these two photos, it looks good enough and I might just send it for a tune-up service, since I doubt that I would be able to clean and polish it like a professional would as well as tightening and adjusting the mechanism if needed. Or I might just send it for replating.

 

[KeenDogg]

It looks fine to me. Just like a 80 something year old razor should. Give it a dawn and hot water bath and see how she goes. She doesn't look like she's seen much use.

 

[santamariasteve]

Re-plated razors can look snazzy, to be sure, but I also suggest a clean vintage razor with worn gold plating can have a certain charm.

I've done both, with no regrets.

 

[ERS4]

From the photos it looks like it's in good condition, even better than expected, not like a razor that's over 70 years old.

Any polishing is grinding and removing the surface, for soft gold plating I would recommend leaving it as is, just moderate cleaning.

 

[Graydog]

The 1936 is one of my ATFs
The look is amazing but the shave for me is outstanding.
Your razor looks too be in fine shape.
and I would use it and enjoy looking at it .
To most serious collectors once you have the razor replated it loses its value as a collectible.

 

[Graydog]

I have seen some people who have had firearms plated with titanium nitride, makes it look very shiny gold and it is very durable finish.

 

[Medivh]

I'm going to send it for a tune-up service and evaluation to see what it's possible to get it cleaned up as well as slightly polished without damaging original plating. I'm sure the razor inside is very dirty and it would probably need some proper adjustment as well.

 

[steveclarkus]

I'm going to send it for a tune-up service and evaluation to see what it's possible to get it cleaned up as well as slightly polished without damaging original plating. I'm sure the razor inside is very dirty and it would probably need some proper adjustment as well.

The razor is very clean inside and operates smooth as butter. I wouldn’t let anyone mess with it. You have a real winner in this one my friend.

 

[Medivh]

The razor is very clean inside and operates smooth as butter. I wouldn’t let anyone mess with it. You have a real winner in this one my friend.

My main concern with open comb twist to open razors is that most of them have slight issues with the blade alignment or/and blade gap. The early models are very fragile and prone to all kinds of issues that might affect the shave. There are a couple of really good professionals that can fix those issues as well as clean and bring the shine of the razor much better than me. Aside from cleaning it, I wouldn't dare trying to open it or even try to buff the gold plating. If you have any used DE blade around you can use it to see if the blade exposure and alignment is symmetrical on both sides as well as the gap.

 

[steveclarkus]

My main concern with open comb twist to open razors is that most of them have slight issues with the blade alignment or/and blade gap. The early models are very fragile and prone to all kinds of issues that might affect the shave. There are a couple of really good professionals that can fix those issues as well as clean and bring the shine of the razor much better than me. Aside from cleaning it, I wouldn't dare trying to open it or even try to buff the gold plating. If you have any used DE blade around you can use it to see if the blade exposure and alignment is symmetrical on both sides as well as the gap.

The me mechanism is still very precise and I doubt there is any alignment problem. I haven’t shaved with a DE in years so I wouldn’t be a good judge of any alignment problems. There isn’t any area where the plating is worn through. The razor is in remarkably good shape. I believe you are are going to be a bit surprised actually.

 

[Medivh]

The me mechanism is still very precise and I doubt there is any alignment problem. I haven’t shaved with a DE in years so I wouldn’t be a good judge of any alignment problems. There isn’t any area where the plating is worn through. The razor is in remarkably good shape. I believe you are are going to be a bit surprised actually.

The photos I have from the seller are very bad and it looks like the plating is completely missing.

 

[BigJ]

It looks fine to me. Just like a 80 something year old razor should. Give it a dawn and hot water bath and see how she goes. She doesn't look like she's seen much use.

+1! Long soaks in Dawn and hot water are often all you need!

 

[steveclarkus]

The photos I have from the seller are very bad and it looks like the plating is completely missing.

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My photos were better than his. Anyway, I’m looking at it.

 

[Medivh]

My photos were better than his. Anyway, I’m looking at it.

Absolutely. From your pictures I see an entirely different razor. Mine look like the plating is almost gone .

 

[lasta]

Looks to be in pretty good mechanical condition. Personally, I'd be tempted to strip down to bare brass and getting a mirror polish.