About two months ago I sought out and purchased a Dovo and had it honed. Its quite nice. Then I began to read the threads here even more, about restoring, honing, ebay, etc. I watched ebay for a while, and purchased a Shumate Barber. It has had a good cleaning, and is in great shape, but eventually will need some polishing and some new pins. Then....(my girlfriend thinks I'm obsessed) I went down to the Antique market in Toronto early on a Sunday morning....to find a JR Torrey 258 in excellent shape.

As a chef, I have been honing my own knives for a long time, so I thought that after a bit I'd give it a try on my razor(s). My knives have all been through a series of Nortons; 1k, 4k, 8k, and a Dickoron steel. It's a good progression, and has always worked well. So....I brought out the combo 4/8, pulled out the Shumate and gave it a whirl, paying attention to my strokes, frequency, and bevel coverage. I'm very proud to say that it passed a HHT, and this morning I took it to the whiskars. I've had nice shaves with the DOVO, but this Shumate was above that. Very comfortable, sharp, and exciting.

Now that I've patted myself on the back.....

How can I, in a tiny condo, restore the blade, remove a very small amount of rust on the tang, and re-pin, without investing in crazy tools? I'd like to be able to get the Shumate and JR Torrey shining and beautiful, without spending a fortune, or having my loving and supportive girlfriend think I'm insane.

Thanks in advance,