My first straight razor restore following your advice.IT WORKS!

[traps38]

Well i actually tried to restore an old vintage straight that i bought and used the advice of all you guys here.
I did not actually believe that it would work for me but to my surprise it went pretty well.
I bought different grits of sandpaper from the automotive department at Canadian tire and went at it.
Now the only thing left is to get my Norton stones to try learning the honing process.
Here are some before pics.



The steps that i took were:
1 hour(about)using 80 grit
1 hour(about)using 120 grit
I hour using 400 grit.
1 hour 800 grit.
1 hour using 1000 grit
1 hour using 1500 grit
1 hour 2000 grit.
and about 1 hour using 3000 grit.

Now i took day breaks so as not to go bananas doing this but it came out not too bad

I think i can do better as there are some flaws but i did not expect it to go that well.

Can't wait to try more and to see what i can do with replacing scales now.

I will add my after pics in my next post.

 

[traps38]

Here are some more after pictures from the straight.

 

[wherndon]

that looks pretty damn good to me

 

[newtobengall]

Your well on track m8, good job. I'd say that you prob didnt get enough out early ie the low grits. i use a low grit to sand mine perfect but scratchy, this takes awhile sometimes. then its only a matter of cleaning the last grits scratching, if that makes sense? the higher grits should go a bit quicker. Also if you sand from the spline to the edge (not across) the scratching will look like the factory grind, and looks pretty good even satin finished.
You did a great job, dont take me wrong. in a few trys youll be a pro. practice makes perfect.

 

[traps38]

Your well on track m8, good job. I'd say that you prob didnt get enough out early ie the low grits. i use a low grit to sand mine perfect but scratchy, this takes awhile sometimes. then its only a matter of cleaning the last grits scratching, if that makes sense? the higher grits should go a bit quicker. Also if you sand from the spline to the edge (not across) the scratching will look like the factory grind, and looks pretty good even satin finished.
You did a great job, dont take me wrong. in a few trys youll be a pro. practice makes perfect.

I figured that out later on as i needed to do more with the low grits as you said.
Now i didn't want to start over so i bought another one of ebay that also needs cleaning up.

So you say longer time on the low grits that's o.k..

Now what do you recommend to get one to a mirror finish just by hand sanding?

What grits should i use and which are the important ones for that mirror look?

Thank you again for your feedback.

 

[mdunn]

Mirror look is all about hard work at the low grits. Once you move up from the lowest grit you're not removing any metal, just polishing away the scratch marks from the previous grit and replacing them with slightly finer scratches..

After 2k, give it a good polishing with Maas or similar, too

 

[newtobengall]

I figured that out later on as i needed to do more with the low grits as you said.
Now i didn't want to start over so i bought another one of ebay that also needs cleaning up.

So you say longer time on the low grits that's o.k..

Now what do you recommend to get one to a mirror finish just by hand sanding?

What grits should i use and which are the important ones for that mirror look?

Thank you again for your feedback.

Yep i've been there too, but i eventually did go back and re-do a couple, and till they wern't perfect. depends on how bad they are.
Every1 says they hand sand, but i know allot have grinders, polishers ect. Imo by hand is, with a peice of sandpaper. my process on 1 that bad would be to hit it with say 400 for 10mins (just to see how bad it is) then id go down according. my papers range from 80,120,180,240,400,600,800,1200,1500,2000, and 3000. usually i dont have to start at the bottom, but it depends on the razor. for me getting the mirror is just a process (as mdunn mentioned) get the low grit right, it may take you 3 hours on 80, and, 120, or even 40. once all the bad stuffs gone youll know, just be careful you dont soften curves, loose engravings ect by using poor techniques. sometimes youll need a flat block to wrap your paper round, like tangs. once your at 2000 it will be near mirror, if you dont have 3000, go straght to polish, i use juice polish, but it like $50, before that i used mag polish from super cheap, think its solvo(comes in a gold tin, or tube) and is allot cheaper, get a tin cos youll use a tube quick. youll get a slurry from it so u know its working, by hand (fingers and thumb) 30 mins and it will shine, just dont look at it it could crack, lol.

 

[Marco]

That vintage razor has a new life now! Excellent job!

P.S. Did you also use any metal polish cream afterwards?

 

[jpcwon]

Wow, looks good! I will take some pointers away from this for sure as I am just getting into restoring razors myself...

 

[traps38]

Guys you are very helpful.
I did use Mothers polish at the end also.
It has a mirror finish on parts of it which is a positive for me but still has alot of small scratches.
I think i will go back to it and start off again at a low grit and see what happens.
this is my first practice razor so i am just getting the hang of it.
I will report back with some new pics when i am don.
Thanks again for the help.
I'LL BE BACK.

 

[mycarver]

You didn't exactly choose an easy one to start with but you did an admirable job. Great work!
Did you ever think such a small piece of metal could eat up so much time?

 

[traps38]

You didn't exactly choose an easy one to start with but you did an admirable job. Great work!
Did you ever think such a small piece of metal could eat up so much time?

Mycarver you are right this little guy ate up so much time.
I have seen some of your straights and you are a Master so i appreciate and thank you for the encouragement.
Wanted to get even more of a mirror shine and went at it again from 180 grit and on.
Here it is a little better.



What did i get myself into?
Now i got to see if i can hone and change scales.
OH BOYYYY.

 

[newtobengall]

See, what a diff that made well done! Its all practice and time but advice on here is priceless. Any questions you have just ask mate, all the ppl here will help.
Don't pay too much att to Marks razors, He uses satanic powers to conjour his awesomeness. So he literally cheats, lol. Only jokes He's imo the best restorer/scale designer out there. scales are easy have a crack at it, I'll give you a set of my blanks if you pay the post.

 

[traps38]

See, what a diff that made well done! Its all practice and time but advice on here is priceless. Any questions you have just ask mate, all the ppl here will help.
Don't pay too much att to Marks razors, He uses satanic powers to conjour his awesomeness. So he literally cheats, lol. Only jokes He's imo the best restorer/scale designer out there. scales are easy have a crack at it, I'll give you a set of my blanks if you pay the post.

Thank you again.
Couldn't have done this without you guys.
I would love to see if i could make scales.
If you think i could do it, i would gladly accept your offer and i would pay for the postage to here(Canada)

 

[notary]

Hey there, great restoration. Not to shabby for your first time out. Keep up the good work and Happy Shaving

 

[newtobengall]

ofcoarse you can do it. All you need is the sand paper you already have and patience, which you just learnt, lol. Just pm me your address and i'll post you a couple of sets when i post the next batch out. just have a play, post is $6AU the scales are free so you can only lose $6 if you stuff them, But you wont.
All you do is stick the pair together with some double sided tape (i sand to 2000 on the inside b4 i tape). then go for gold, i use a grinder with a wood disc to match the blanks and take some off the sides (this whole step can be done by hand, use the really low grits), then its the same as a blade, work your way through the grits i go to 3000, then seal, drill, and peen. Easy, All this stuff is covered much better in the sticky, but thats how i do my scales.

 

[coolbus18]

nice work!! I just bought 2 to restore. Enjoy your shave!!

 

[traps38]

Well guys i wanted to take a chance on making scales and as i am not very handy i took a lot of notes from you guys here.

Newtobengal which is a member here offered to send me some scales to try but only paying the shipping cost but it has been over a month and still haven't got anything or reply to my emails,so i couldn't wait any longer.

So went out to my local hardware store and bought the cheapest piece of thin wood.

I used this straight to restore with the same procedure as my previous one in this thread.


Did the same procedure with sanding from 80 grit till 3000 and then mothers polish.

I then followed step by step your info and a lot of youtube videos on making scales and pinning the razor.

Sanded the scales from 180 grit till 2000 to get them smooth and then put on about 8 coats of amber shellac.

The part that drove me BANANAS was fixing the wedge.

And also playing around with the tiny washers and pins.

But all in all NOT THAT COMPLICATED.

This is my final product.



Please be easy on me but i will accept all constructive criticism from you guys.
Thank you for all the great stuff you put out there also.

Now you all know this ain't no Mycarver straight but i would really like to be able to make one like his Reaper he has out of wood but that is a long journey for me.

 

[mycarver]

No,, it's YOUR straight! And doesn't it feel great after all the work and figuring out the problems to sit back and see what you have created? And then the best part is heading to the bathroom for that maiden shave with it. That's a connection that's hard to beat.
And seeing the progress you're making you'll be knocking out a Reaper before you know it. All the steps you're taking now will lead you to that point. The most important factor in all of this is,,,, you did it. That's cool!

 

[traps38]

No,, it's YOUR straight! And doesn't it feel great after all the work and figuring out the problems to sit back and see what you have created? And then the best part is heading to the bathroom for that maiden shave with it. That's a connection that's hard to beat.
And seeing the progress you're making you'll be knocking out a Reaper before you know it. All the steps you're taking now will lead you to that point. The most important factor in all of this is,,,, you did it. That's cool!

Thanks a lot,that really means a lot to me.
Can't wait for my next.
Well first i got to start on my honing though.