Thread: King Double Temper restoration

Very Nice! You and other restorers just blow me away!! I can be very proud of a 'clean up' that I'd just done and then see this!!

I've often told guys who I've offered to help that I 'clean up' razors, I'm not a restorer!

Thanks for sharing such great work!

thank you gentlemen I appreciate it.
But cudarunner you bring up a topic I've been mulling over recently. Maybe it's the subject of a post in itself but it relates to restoring vs. as you say "cleaning up" a vintage blade.
Now I won't get into it here but I've been wondering just what is happening with these 'relics" ..
Should we polish them till the cows come home, slap some current fad of a scale on a 100 yr old blade and go Wooooo,, awesome scales. Shiny blade!
Do they really belong on them or is it just eye candy where we're attracted to shiny things.
I don't know.
Maybe it falls into the same thing that happens with cars. Some will say , "restore it to what is was" and others will say, " Put some fancy paint and wheels on it and build a hot rod out of it" I think there will be two camps on this.
All I know is there is a certain challenge to bring a razor back to what it was ( provided it it salvageable ) to what it was in it's glory or as close to what it looked like when it left the factory.
You want me to do bling with polish so my wife can put her makeup on using my blade, easy. Want G10 or Micarta scales,, give me a half hour. Where is the artistry in that. A band saw and some sandpaper and you have scales in no time.
But the time it takes to research and build these things to what they were takes a different tack.
It's harder in many ways if you want to do it properly and authentically.
Sorry, I'm rambling trying to make heads or tails out of my thoughts about such things.
Just trying to come to terms.
Most clients want mirror finishes. A current client sent me a J. Rodgers "Cutlers to their Majesties" blade with a beautiful etch on it reading "Reliable" and he wanted me to make up some wild scales, remove the etch, sculpt the spine, do a Spanish point on this blade.
I sat on it for ages until I said " I'm not your man" I'll restore this great blade to what it should be or I'm sending it back.
I'm sorry,, the client isn't always right.
I'm restoring it for him.

This subject was in a pretty heated thread recently. I don't think we should ever stop thinking about it. +1 on your Joseph Rogers decision.

Thank you guys!
I missed that discussion . Do you know where I can find it.

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Originally Posted by mycarver

Thank you guys!
I missed that discussion . Do you know where I can find it.

I appreciate the link .

Now that I read the thread I feel rather silly for rambling on like I did when this has been covered .Sorry about that guys.

I think this is an important discussion. I agree it has similarities with the car hobby - I've build a couple of hot rods, but they were made from an unresortable hulk and a car that had no historical significance whasoever. Charlie posted a progression of changes to razors, from cleanup to full out custom a year or two back that spoke to this. I personally would not make a full out custom out of a razor that had any historical significance, or was older that 1892. And you are right, Carver, that's a lot more work, including research. That's just my two cents worth. I suppose the most extreme position would be that all full outs should be made from scratch, or Gold Dollars. I don't mean to stir the hornet's nest here. Ultimately, it is a decision each of us makes, and there may be no right answer.
Peace

I had a feeling you'd show up . Who do you think I was talking about when I said someone put a bug In my ear? Haha. Glad you did as I am very happy with it. Now let's see if they're more difficult to hone as you mentioned. Cannot be worse than the &@&'% wedge I did last night. Good heavens! But I beat it into submission.