1st Satinedge restore

The Blacksmith · 08-20-2008, 10:32 PM

My sister-in-law, back in TN, recently sent me 2 razors that she got at an estate auction. She told me that she didn't get the 2 that were in good shape. She was right. She sent me a Dubl Duck Satinedge and a J.A. Henckels Twin. I started with the Satinedge. Unfortunately, I didn't do the 'before & after'. The blade had to be sanded from 320-2000 grit then polished w/Maas. The scales were warped, cloudy, loose, and filthy. With some very unselfish phone help from Glen aka gssixgun, I believe that the results were worth the time I spent. Comments and suggestions are welcome.

gssixgun · 08-20-2008, 10:37 PM

Danny that came out beautiful

Those scales really cleaned up well, as did the blade......
Great job my friend, let us know how she shaves after ya get her honed & stoned

The Blacksmith · 08-20-2008, 10:40 PM

I'll do that Glen. I plan on honing tonight and shaving tomorrow... unless I cannot wait till tomorrow.

icedog · 08-20-2008, 10:44 PM

Ockham · 08-20-2008, 11:07 PM

Excellent! She does really look nice!

BeBerlin · 08-20-2008, 11:11 PM

Stunningly beautiful. Great job!

The Blacksmith · 08-20-2008, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by icedog

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ockham

Excellent! She does really look nice!

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeBerlin

Stunningly beautiful. Great job!

Wow, thanks for the encouragement!

Ditch Doc · 08-20-2008, 11:28 PM

Absolutely beautiful. Worth the effort!

jimmyray · 08-20-2008, 11:29 PM

Can you elaborate on what you did to the scales? They look great!

The Blacksmith · 08-21-2008, 12:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimmyray

Can you elaborate on what you did to the scales? They look great!

Thanks.

First, after I took them off, I used soapy water to clean them. Then, because I had never used it before and wanted to see the results, I used "Scratch X" on the scales and was simply amazed at the results. You can find it in the auto/wax section at Walmart. These scales were warped two different ways. One, the '3rd pin' was bent and the scales were offset... much like someone had sat on them. Two, the scales had too much curve to them. The edge of the blade could be felt from the 'bottom' when closed. So, having read that celluloid could be boiled, I had at it. I cut three short pins, long enough to go through both scales and simply mated them flat together. Due to the warping, the pins weren't about to fall out. With the water boiling, holding on the the butt of the scales, I put 3/4 of the scales in the water for about 30-45 seconds. Using a hand towel, I altered the shape of the scales by bending them against the counter top. Looked at them saw what else needed to be done and repeated the procedure again.
When I got the scales shaped like I wanted, I noticed that the scales had white residue on it from the boiling water (probably as a reaction to the heat). I used wet/dry paper from 320-2000 grit then used the Scratch X again as well as Maas on them. That's it.

kevint · 08-21-2008, 01:16 AM

Thanks for the pics. I never knew how appealing a clear handle could be. I really like the way it looks folded, real pretty

Jimbo · 08-21-2008, 01:21 AM

That looks sweet! Good work!

James.

IsaacRN · 08-21-2008, 01:35 AM

Very Very nice work on that blade

bpave777 · 08-21-2008, 03:05 AM

<rubbing eyes> AMAZING! Holy smokes that's a pretty razor!

Chris L · 08-21-2008, 03:54 AM

Excellent job. I didn't know celluloid could be boiled to reshape it. That's good to know. I DID know that you can't soak celluloid overnight in rubbing alcohol to remove ink form a nice celluloid pen top that was filled with dried ink from a leaky roller ball. The celluloid melted. So.....don't put celluloid scales in any similar solvent.

Again, very nice looking razor.

Chris L

The Blacksmith · 08-21-2008, 04:01 AM

Again, thanks for all the kind & encouraging comments. I tell you... it's amazing, the information available on this forum and the willingness of EVERYONE to contribute, encourage, teach, and enable others in our desire to learn this 'art' of shaving and restoration. You do a little research and then ask ONE question and you get 10 different people responding. This is a GOOD thing. Thanks to all...

The Blacksmith · 08-21-2008, 07:32 PM

Well, life is good! Just got thru with the first shave with the Satinedge and although the blade probably needs just a smidgen of 'touch-up' on the 12K then stropped again, it really was a good shave. No pulling... just not a smooth as I'm used to. I must say that my DD_Dwarf is probably pouting now. I (all to myself) kept saying how much fun I was having with the Satinedge. The Dwarf has been my overall fave but

we'll see...

Edit: You know what? After thinking about it... I believe that it is more a matter of getting used to the razor and getting used to the stropping of the razor. I ended up with about 85% BBS shave. I've got to call my sister-in-law and tell her that, now, she is one of my favorites (ain't they all?).

I got the bolsters mounted to the new Yellowheart scales for the Henckels this morning. Now just have to continue the process of coating with the poly and alternating sanding. Maybe mount the blade Saturday.

sebell · 08-23-2008, 04:38 AM

Way cool! Well done Danny, that's a great razor to be sure.

Regards,

- Scott

smythe · 08-24-2008, 11:05 PM

Now that’s amazing… (so shiny... don sunglasses, step back from the screen)…
Transparent scales with shiny bolsters are my favorite vintage… Nothing like a good shave with a razor you just restored. Looks like you got everything right with this one… fine job!

Sharp&Shiny · 08-25-2008, 02:55 PM

Truly STUNNING .
It makes me want to make an effort & rescale My Wade&Butcher 7/8 Diamond edge wedge.Paul