No, it's not THAT bad, but the whole episode was horrifying to me. Basically I damaged my Hart razor through ignorance and/or neglect. Some of the details are a bit intriguing to me and maybe to you. I try to highlight what I think are the important details. Please provide your input.
I started out as a newbie with the Hart and love(d) it. Used it, wiped it down and dried before putting it away in its little leather case. I would use it every 2-3 days and had no problems except for one water stain that appeared relatively early on.
About two weeks ago, my tube of Maas showed up and I went to work taking out that little stain. For good measure I worked took the scales off (little hex screw on the Hart) and cleaned/worked the whole blade. Put it back together, put it in its leather case and put it away, *in the drawer in the bathroom*.
I then did my next shave with my Bismark, and it went well. A bunch of new soaps arrived and I wanted to test them out and compare them without adding in the razor variable. Long story short, the Hart was untouched for two weeks.
Sunday, I went to the Hart and took it out. HORROR. Little whiskers of *stuff* were growing out of the metal on the sides AND the spine. I immediately grabbed a cloth and started rubbing (and cursing of course). I should have examined the growths more closely, but like a mother protecting her child I acted first and asked questions later.
I now have blemishes on my razor. They are not deep, in fact I don't even think I can feel them at all. The growths occurred *only* above the portion of the blade that was exposed above the scales (but it was in its leather sheath??). There is a distinct line along the blade that demarcates where the scales lay along the blade when it is closed.
Now I am not a metalsmith, but I do have a materials background and have a basic understanding of metal. These growths did not look liek normal rust to me. They did not grow parallel to the surface, but grew out of it. It looked like the Hart had a few days beard (an ironic insult to a razor!). The growths almost looked like short zinc whiskers, but I don't think O-1 steel (Hart steel) has any Zinc.
My colleague who *IS* a metalurgist wonders whether the razor was differentially hardened and that the relatively coarser grain structure along the upper sides and spine allowed for these growths at the grain boundaries.
Does anyone have any ideas? I definitely didn't treat the lower part of the razor any different than the upper.
Any suggestions on how to proceed to take out these unsightly blemishes? They don't seem to be pits, and are now shiny. It's like I have a macroscopic view of the microstructure.
I started out as a newbie with the Hart and love(d) it. Used it, wiped it down and dried before putting it away in its little leather case. I would use it every 2-3 days and had no problems except for one water stain that appeared relatively early on.
About two weeks ago, my tube of Maas showed up and I went to work taking out that little stain. For good measure I worked took the scales off (little hex screw on the Hart) and cleaned/worked the whole blade. Put it back together, put it in its leather case and put it away, *in the drawer in the bathroom*.
I then did my next shave with my Bismark, and it went well. A bunch of new soaps arrived and I wanted to test them out and compare them without adding in the razor variable. Long story short, the Hart was untouched for two weeks.
Sunday, I went to the Hart and took it out. HORROR. Little whiskers of *stuff* were growing out of the metal on the sides AND the spine. I immediately grabbed a cloth and started rubbing (and cursing of course). I should have examined the growths more closely, but like a mother protecting her child I acted first and asked questions later.
I now have blemishes on my razor. They are not deep, in fact I don't even think I can feel them at all. The growths occurred *only* above the portion of the blade that was exposed above the scales (but it was in its leather sheath??). There is a distinct line along the blade that demarcates where the scales lay along the blade when it is closed.
Now I am not a metalsmith, but I do have a materials background and have a basic understanding of metal. These growths did not look liek normal rust to me. They did not grow parallel to the surface, but grew out of it. It looked like the Hart had a few days beard (an ironic insult to a razor!). The growths almost looked like short zinc whiskers, but I don't think O-1 steel (Hart steel) has any Zinc.
My colleague who *IS* a metalurgist wonders whether the razor was differentially hardened and that the relatively coarser grain structure along the upper sides and spine allowed for these growths at the grain boundaries.
Does anyone have any ideas? I definitely didn't treat the lower part of the razor any different than the upper.
Any suggestions on how to proceed to take out these unsightly blemishes? They don't seem to be pits, and are now shiny. It's like I have a macroscopic view of the microstructure.
