Straight Razor Ideas

[Jatte]

Hey all,
so as some of you may know, im going to try my hand at forging a straight razor or two, and have some members who would be kind enough to take a bullet for the team and once finished , hone up and test shave with the razor so i can get some info back on them , pros cons and such,
and since my new anvil is finally set to arrive here on friday , i can get started again


anyways, i cant send pictures through pms so i am going to post them here,

ive made knives for a while now, and am probably going to do a bunch of blanks and get the original profiles down, (wedge, hollow, ECT)

i think wedge will be easiest because it will be like the skandi style hunting knives ive made, just one primary bevel , then i will be going into the more dificult grinds,

this is more a hobby thing for me than anything else, so mr ellis please dont worry

anyways, this is the first one ive been seeing in my head recently,

im going to either call the tail style Viking, or dragon, this is a 7/8 spanish Pointed, Dragon < or Viking,

feel free to comment on what you do and dont liek about it,

it will be forged from high carbon file steel, and when file steel is forged it leaves a very cool pattern in the steel, as the filings are hammered down, ive included a photo of a viking fire steel ive made recently to illustrate what i mean,

enjoy
Cameron

i was thinking viking knot carved bog oak for the scales
i get to practice my knot carving too , woohoo

 

[mdunn]

very cool!

my only worry would be how best to hold that razor with the funky tail (which i really like, btw)

 

[Jatte]

i will be making sure the funky tail, is easily held, also, the grip on it will be great

cause of the file texture,
but yeah, when i have it in my hand, i will make it so its comfy and easy to use,

thanks for looking

these "forged" ones will probably be left with a straight from the fire scale , only wire brushed and bees wax and a light oil, should last a few years, and blades will probably be polished to mirror, or "satin" type, ,

makers marks will be the only distinguishing feature, and at some point soon im going to try to make one out of some damascus i have cooking at the moment

 

[gugi]

making a functional razor is more challenging than a knife because it needs a much more delicate edge. so, heat treatment is rather important.
then you should have a plan for honing it - a single bevel on the whole side of the blade is probably rather impractical.

good luck, the pictures look promising.

 

[Fnord5]

For the monkey tail, having the bends, and the intricate twisties where you have them, will make for a slightly awkward finger placement.
However, with making a long tail, you can move the metalwork further away, and keep a traditional finger placement, and allow for the traditional grips along the tang and tail.
Something more along the lines of this, with your twisties being at the end, instead of next to the pivot.

Also, maybe a deeper thumbnotch?

I do love the idea of you using files, the hammered over teeth look great on the knives I have seen.

 

[Jatte]

Fnord5 said he wanted a handforged monstrosity,

so this is what i came up with,
dont laugh

10/8 french tip wedge Lol,
3 pounds of razor sharp face ripper,
just kidding , but it will be big,

i call it Brut de forge, and that is because thats the french name for a blacksmith knife,
google it , thats my inspiration when he said 10/8 french tip wedge

to help with the balance and such, it will have a slightly wider handle, than the spine and will also have an integral ring finger hole, to give it some more stability, and i personally think it looks pretty cool,
to make it thinner the wedge portion will only be about a 3/4of an inch up, and the rest will be flat and crowned on the top, it will have a slight concave on the blade, and this top peice shouldnt affect honing,

here it is fnord,
remember, this will be made so that it is comfortable and easy to hold , just, that is something that i need it in my hand to tweak

 

[Fnord5]

Ahh!
Excellent.
That tail is something I had not thought of, making it bigger to allow for a finger to slip into it.


The thing certainly is a brute too.
The only thing I might suggest, is have the french point not quite so long, maybe extend the spine part 1/2 a square, to a whole square. The point as is looks pretty vicious.

But, as this is your craft, and I am but a humble guinea pig, I shall leave it to you, and your hammer.

 

[Jatte]

i can make the point be at the same angle that the blade notch to handle is,

that owuld make it look better too

 

[Fnord5]

i can make the point be at the same angle that the blade notch to handle is,

that owuld make it look better too

Ya know what? nevermind.

That point is pretty scary, but why not go for broke?
I know that as you are working the steel, the design will change, so let's just leave it as is for now, and see how it turns out.
If it isn't quite right for me, I'll just have to commission you to forge another.

 

[Jatte]

easy peasy

anyways, its not called BRUT for nothing


im going to go to sleep and dream up some more ideas,

if anyone else here has a cool idea draw it out, and post it here,

i;d love to seethem,

always good to have ideas,

thanks B&B

 

[Bushranger]

I'm very excited about this. the tail is innovative. I will write back with more when I have more time. Great Cameron. So far, favouring the Viking, lines and knots. Interesting as they are the forgers/ironsmiths I told you about in PMs. As you know, I'm not after a spike/french or round. THe notch out of the spanish/irish/barber's notch etc or slight recess into the blade suits. nothing less than 6/8 for me, maybe a half-hollow. Great to read the 'gunea pigs' comments and learning lots

 

[paul.c]

Wonderful work. I am very excited. I looked at the pineapple twist and the other twist, and I have to say that they are both fantastic, but the pineapple looks to be a little more reasonable for handling. However I am always up for a challenge.

 

[SavantStrike]

Those are HOT!!!

I like the tail with a space for a finger to slip in it best. The viking knot should stay however you do it, it makes it unique.

 

[Bacchus]

Hey you make it and Ill try it Though my honing isnt the greatest, it works lol

 

[Jatte]

your from oakville?
thats where my anvil is coming from as we speak im excited, yeah im sure i can make something for a fellow canadain, remember though, you need to leave me a good review so people will buy i cant just keep giving them out lol

 

[adonnellyr]

The redrawn tail looks incredible. Good luck!

 

[Bacchus]

Hell if the razor is free and can at least shave, you'll get a raving review! But ya, Ill test it out best to my ability. Also, now Im curious, whats the company name that you got your anvil from?

 

[Brodirt]

Hell if the razor is free and can at least shave, you'll get a raving review! But ya, Ill test it out best to my ability. Also, now Im curious, whats the company name that you got your anvil from?

Where else but here, in 2009, could a discussion such as this thread, be found? I love it! The thread and the craftsmanship!

 

[Jatte]

i bought it from a guy in oakville, not a company its a 350 pound mouse hole forge anvil, and speaking of 2009 it was made in 1809 so its 200 years old this year,

please be aware everyone, that those are two seperate designs, but i like thesecond one alot better

im gonna re draw the first one soon and make it better,

and also, these are going out free for samples for a couple people,

cause, they are fairly labour intensive, and i will be needing to charge people to get them made after the samples go out,

i just wanted some samples out there for people to try out and give me reviews for ,

anyways, thank alot for the compliments,
on saturday i will start the forging of possibly 3 razors,

i will keep photos of the progress and everything for you all

 

[joshmpdx]

Great looking sketches!

i really like the 1st one! and think it would look great in bone scales