Restoring Blades With Ornamentation on the Front

[Shutterbug57]

I just purchased the razor in the picture for less that $9. My main purpose for the razor is to use it to learn to hone blades. Once I have gotten that down, I thought I may take a whack at restoring this razor. The scales will get replaced, but my question for this thread is how does one polish up the front of the blade and leave the ornamentation on it - or can you? I appreciate y'all's input.

 

[global_dev]

are the etchings deep ?

 

[Shutterbug57]

are the etchings deep ?

I am not sure yet. I just won the auction today. I will report back when I have hands on the blade.

 

[global_dev]

etching doesn't look al that very deep, probably pretty hard to keep it.

 

[mycarver]

I kinda' think it'll clean up just fine.

 

[smalltank]

yes that should clean up just fine...but since youre wanting to learn how to hone it can be a good practice razor anyways...

 

[JonM]

That etching doesn't appear too deep in the photo. I'd proceed with caution if you're looking to restore it. Maybe a little light polish would be useful. Then again, you may want to look at it closely before even doing that.

 

[global_dev]

I kinda' think it'll clean up just fine.

I wonder if there is a difference between your clean-up and OP's def'n of restore.

Are you saying that the front of the blade can be easily restored to like new without losing the detail of etching? if so, i'd like t know for my personal knowledge gain. what would you use?

thanks! appreciate the help

 

[jred]

I think mycarver must use a toothpick with polishing compound. I don't see how he does it!

 

[smalltank]

broken scales=restore
dull edge but everything is near perfection=re hone
rust/pitting/tarnish=clean up

 

[global_dev]

broken scales=restore
dull edge but everything is near perfection=re hone
rust/pitting/tarnish=clean up

fix broken scales doesn't equal restore to me.. thats just a rescale.

restoration, to me at least, has a couple different meanings based on the outcome, like keep patina or not, not just salvage scales to more than quick repair, but it's making that thing look way way better than it did.

i'd give a few examples, but i think the hobbyist thread does it more justice with the pics.

 

[mycarver]

I've done several pieces with etching that are like this one, and mine has a very similar crown as well. They are deceptively deep. Since there isn't much damage around the etch , in my opinion,, it will clean up beautifully. That bit of rust along the spine is the only real issue that I see here and even that isn't a biggie.
Even if this isn't a deep or crisp etch, it will still clean up just fine.

 

[ladykate]

Mark is the sensei on this - I think the blade shows a bit of hone wear but my experience with etchings is that they are fairly robust if they aren't eaten with devil's spit or abbreviated by honing or some other way. Hell - it takes a while just to get a sandpaper scratch out of a blade - the etchings are much deeper than that. I am a +1 on the recovery - should be easy enough. 'course... I'm not doing it so it looks damn easy. ;-}

 

[tomjr]

Mark is the 'MAN' that is 4 sure. i'd listen to him.

 

[Shutterbug57]

Well, I just got my hands on the razor. The printing on the front is pretty deep. There are some surface scratches - front and back - you can see the ones on the front in the picture. They appear deeper in the picture with the light reflecting than they do in person. The rust spot on the spine is the only really bad part. I am tempted to use some mag wheel polish and see what it looks like. I know that I will still have to address the rust, but if this hones up well, it may be a good travel razor that I can leave in a hotel room and not worry about the staff making off with it. For that use, I may not clean up the rust area - just a thought.

For under $9, so far I am impressed. I can't wait til my stones get here to give this thing a go.

 

[mycarver]

Yup,, pretty much what I thought. You'll have fun with it. Enjoy the process and the learning curve.

 

[Shutterbug57]

Well, after 15 minutes or so with mag wheel polish, this blade looks very nice. The "rust" spot, that even looked like rust in person, was dirt, I guess, as it mostly came off. The surface scratches are still there, but the blade looks much nicer and cleaner.

The scales, well they are OK. It looks like somebody named Max carved his name in the front scale in a not too artful manner. For now, that is not an issue and neither are the surface scratches. If this thing hones well and I can put it shave ready, I will give it a try.

Does anybody have any info on the Howard razor company? Here is a quick snap shot after the cleaning.

 

[mycarver]

Very cool!