My first straight & project - Wade & Butcher

[Absolute Mustard]

Dont know much about it other than it is old and from England.

It is in fairly good condition. Definitely not shave ready, so I will have to learn how to hone it...or do you suggest that I get it done professionally? If so who/where is best?

I plan on taking it completely apart to polish it. The scales are pretty warped as you can see by the last pic. The blade hits the side when closing. I have read on here that you can soak them in hot water and under some weights...not too sure on how well that will work. Should I just get replacement scales? Has anyone tried Hart scales on a non Hart blade? Is the hole for the pin larger on Heart blades?

 

[mycarver]

I've straightened both acrylics and horn scales with the hot water trick. I never weighted them, just applied pressure to the still hot scale to go a bit beyond straight and then very quickly run it under cold water.It is almost one complete motion as they cool quickly. One or two tries and it's usually spot on.

 

[Khay]

I have one just like this one, but the blade came in worse condition (more pitting), although the scales are nice and straight. I had to disassemble the blade from the handles, and put them in an ultrasonic cleaner to remove the dirt and leftover rust - it removed the gold paint from the logo just in a few seconds...I actually painted it back by hand and it looks quite good but just wanted to let you know that you might lose the writing on the handle very easily depending on how you treat them...

 

[Kentos]

Have you shave with a straight before? If not I would send it out for a honing.