New Batch of Custom Razors

[DE Shaver]

Definitely a man's razor. I would like to see the end results. Any idea what the scales will be like?

 

[Jsteele]

Bill.. how do you figure out the witness lines? What is used to find this? And how much space is needed in between the lines? I am very curious to know how to make a straight razor from scratch.. and i have been following this thread. And some of your other ones,such as the filework thread

 

[BillEllis]

Awesome, 8/8! that is SWEET! Thanks for the well documented pics as well. Very cool to see the transformation. Thank you!

Thanks. Hope the info is entertaining... or possibly helpful.

Thank you for these posts. I have been kicking the idea around of making a razor for myself... I had cut out the profile but didn't think to draw the parallel lines. what a great idea.

The witness lines are an ABSOLUTE must! A symmetrical blade is impossible to grind without them... as is, in my opinion, grinding a blade with anything less than a variable speed grinder... You have the ability, for sure. All you need is the equipment.

Hey there, I am as new as they come for razors but I do make knives. You said you didn't know how to just harden the blade - I don't know if it is the same process as a differential heat treat on a knife but I would imagine it's similar. Here's how I do a differential heat treatment on 1095 steel: heat to 1500F, soak for 15 minutes and quench, edge only (about 3/8 of the blade height) in quench oil (I prefer parks 50, but to each their own). Ed Caffery (a great knife maker) uses a torch (a #3 rose-bud tip to be exact) to get the steel past the curie point (non magnetic) and then edge quenches in heated oil (about 130F) and repeats 3 times, cleaning off the scale between cycles and then tempers the blade for 3 cycles at 400F for the proper temper. Now, this temper is for a knife which ends up around 59rc, I don't know what the correct rc for a razor would be, I would imagine significantly higher but like I said, I'm VERY new to the game.

Anyway, just thought I'd mention it and say thanks for the WIP!

Thanks. I think you may have not caught my drift when I made reference to heating just the blade. I am a firm believer that the entire blade has to be the same RC. I have a recollection of trying to "enlighten" someone who thought it was possible to successfully weld a crack in a blade, repair it, and re-heat treat the thing. I think that's where your reference was directed, anyway. You are in the ball park for temps and RC. Mine usually are in the 58-61 hardness scale. 1,500 is my target for 0-1 and in the 1,900 degree arena for ATS and such.

That meat cleaver is going to be one heck of a blade! Are you going to do any spine work on this one?

Oh, yeah! And then some...

Bill.. how do you figure out the witness lines? What is used to find this? And how much space is needed in between the lines? I am very curious to know how to make a straight razor from scratch.. and i have been following this thread. And some of your other ones,such as the filework thread

"Guess and test" the width until it is right. I use very good quality dividers and actually scribe the farthest line from one edge and then flop the dividers to the other edge for the second line which will be on the opposite side of the first line drawn. I shoot for around .040/inch width. I usually just scribe the lines in the steel without using the blue "Dykem". I did it this time for picture clarity. These same lines are used to mark the boundaries of the tang where the taper meets the tail as well. It's actually easier to show someone than try to put it in words... for me, anyway. I used some of these things for years tto mark witness lines.

Photo from http://store.harryepstein.com/


I think you could find similar gadgets by searching "edge marking gauge"

 

[Aussieshaver]

Oh, yeah! And then some...

Its going to look brilliant Bill! Hopefully one day I will be able to afford one of your razors. Everytime I see a new post for you I have to go and check under the couch to see if there are enough pennies for one

 

[amcardon]

Thanks. I think you may have not caught my drift when I made reference to heating just the blade. I am a firm believer that the entire blade has to be the same RC. I have a recollection of trying to "enlighten" someone who thought it was possible to successfully weld a crack in a blade, repair it, and re-heat treat the thing. I think that's where your reference was directed, anyway. You are in the ball park for temps and RC. Mine usually are in the 58-61 hardness scale. 1,500 is my target for 0-1 and in the 1,900 degree arena for ATS and such.

Weld a crack in a blade and think it's gonna be ok? No chance! Like I said, I'm as new as they come to straight razors, on a fixed blade I do like the differential heat treat to keep the spine softer than the edge to allow for a tougher blade but on razors I don't know how/if that would benefit. I haven't seen too many straight razors but I've never seen one with a hamon and maybe there's a reason for that

Anyway, this is your show so back to it! Keep the pics coming, we're all really enjoying getting to watch.

 

[BillEllis]

Weld a crack in a blade and think it's gonna be ok? No chance! Like I said, I'm as new as they come to straight razors, on a fixed blade I do like the differential heat treat to keep the spine softer than the edge to allow for a tougher blade but on razors I don't know how/if that would benefit. I haven't seen too many straight razors but I've never seen one with a hamon and maybe there's a reason for that

Anyway, this is your show so back to it! Keep the pics coming, we're all really enjoying getting to watch.

Straight razors need to be the same RC throughout because the honing process requires that the spine edge be used as the guide for setting the bevel on the cutting edge. If the spine is softer, the razor would quickly become unuseable because of the lopsided proportion of wear on the blade at the spine.

Also, to clarify for the boys here on this razor forum who may not know what a "hamon" is. To put it simply, fellas, it is those knife blades that look almost like they have wavy flames in the reflection of the steel near the cutting edge. It's a great appearance. Some manufacturers cheat the look by etching the "hamon" on the blade rather than go through all the hard work of using the heat treat process correctly to attain the appearance. Although the "hamon" is very functional as amcardon said, it also makes for a very artistic touch that many collectors like a lot.

 

[Jsteele]

Straight razors need to be the same RC throughout because the honing process requires that the spine edge be used as the guide for setting the bevel on the cutting edge. If the spine is softer, the razor would quickly become unuseable because of the lopsided proportion of wear on the blade at the spine.

Also, to clarify for the boys here on this razor forum who may not know what a "hamon" is. To put it simply, fellas, it is those knife blades that look almost like they have wavy flames in the reflection of the steel near the cutting edge. It's a great appearance. Some manufacturers cheat the look by etching the "hamon" on the blade rather than go through all the hard work of using the heat treat process correctly to attain the appearance. Although the "hamon" is very functional as amcardon said, it also makes for a very artistic touch that many collectors like a lot.

such as in Katanas.. right Bill?

 

[Jsteele]

Bill.. can you clarify what size wheel or wheels you use on your Burr King to do the master grind,the post grind,to achieve a 1/4 grind razor?

And if you don't mind answering what type of belts/grits you do this with?

Like i said,i am very interested on how this is done

 

[Seraphim]

Straight razors need to be the same RC throughout because the honing process requires that the spine edge be used as the guide for setting the bevel on the cutting edge. If the spine is softer, the razor would quickly become unuseable because of the lopsided proportion of wear on the blade at the spine.

Also, to clarify for the boys here on this razor forum who may not know what a "hamon" is. To put it simply, fellas, it is those knife blades that look almost like they have wavy flames in the reflection of the steel near the cutting edge. It's a great appearance. Some manufacturers cheat the look by etching the "hamon" on the blade rather than go through all the hard work of using the heat treat process correctly to attain the appearance. Although the "hamon" is very functional as amcardon said, it also makes for a very artistic touch that many collectors like a lot.

Here's a straight with a real hamon, which definitely requires honing with tape!:

razor crafted by Russell Baldridge 1095 steel

 

[L R Harner]

yep tape honing woudl make it no matter how soft the spine is ( i hve a planned Ti clad san mai that will have to be taped )

 

[BillEllis]

Its going to look brilliant Bill! Hopefully one day I will be able to afford one of your razors. Everytime I see a new post for you I have to go and check under the couch to see if there are enough pennies for one

I never knew they made couches on stilts...

Bill.. can you clarify what size wheel or wheels you use on your Burr King to do the master grind,the post grind,to achieve a 1/4 grind razor?

And if you don't mind answering what type of belts/grits you do this with?

Like i said,i am very interested on how this is done

Mostly, I use an eight inch diameter contact wheel for the master grinds. Occasionally, I use a ten inch diameter wheel. The larger one is mostly for my knives. For belts, I normally stick with 3M and Hermes brand belts. 3M for their excellent Cubritron zirconia grits and Hermes for their superflex belts in the higher grits. 3M has a yellow Cubritron belt I love. Really love. It cuts really smooth and lasts for about 3 blades. It is not a cheap belt. Dang near $13.




I mostly use the following grits in this progression.

• 50
• 80
• 120
• 180
• 220 (this is usually where I pick up after the heat treat/tempering)
• 400 (new - good for two blades)
• 400 (worn)
• 600 (sometimes - depends on level of my OCD at the time )
• 40 micron (only for mirror finishes)
• 15 micron (only for mirror finishes)

Here's a straight with a real hamon, which definitely requires honing with tape!:

razor crafted by Russell Baldridge 1095 steel

Excellent example... thanks for the pic. It saved me from hunting one down...

 

[Aussieshaver]

I never knew they made couches on stilts...

I spoke to SWMBO and she told me I am not allowed to sell one of my limbs so I guess I am back to sitting on my exceptionally high couch

 

[Jsteele]

Thanks Bill for your wheel dimension and grit progression... i guess the only thing left to do is to go buy a Burr King 960-272 1.5hp variable speed

 

[BillEllis]

Thanks Bill for your wheel dimension and grit progression... i guess the only thing left to do is to go buy a Burr King 960-272 1.5hp variable speed

And devote maybe 3 or 4 days to figure out how to use it... right?

 

[Jsteele]

And devote maybe 3 or 4 days to figure out how to use it... right?

At least... unless you would be so kind enough to email me a how to video...

 

[BillEllis]

So... what suggestions we got for scales?

If anyone suggests a set of Dovo scales, I'm gonna slap them...


How does buffalo horn sound? Light, or medium color? Don't have black.

Wood? Light color, medium, or dark? Figured like amboyna, striped like curly maple, or plain like yellowheart or ebony?

Acrylic?

Oosik?

Walrus tusk? Never mind... I'm saving that for something else...

Ivory?

Aluminum? Engraved, of course.

 

[Isaac]

So... what suggestions we got for scales?

If anyone suggests a set of Dovo scales, I'm gonna slap them...


How does buffalo horn sound? Light, or medium color? Don't have black.

Wood? Light color, medium, or dark? Figured like amboyna, striped like curly maple, or plain like yellowheart or ebony?

Acrylic?

Oosik?

Walrus tusk? Never mind... I'm saving that for something else...

Ivory?

Aluminum? Engraved, of course.

Im a sucker for any type of burl, but ive never seen anything made of Oosik, and since its a manly razor, an Oosik is very fitting

 

[BillEllis]

Im a sucker for any type of burl, but ive never seen anything made of Oosik, and since its a manly razor, an Oosik is very fitting

Here ya go...

I did that one a few years back. I actually wish I had that razor back. It was a dandy...



You can go here to learn how. It's also old info on my part.

 

[Isaac]

Yeah..i would go with that personally

 

[honed]

I'd say thick slabs of horn, maybe translucent?
Ivory is very nice, but IMO its best on more nimble razors.

Why not just find a big brute of a Buffalo & cut a horn of & stick the blade right in it, leave it like it is.
That would be a MAN's razor

This thread is just so exciting to watch!