Wolf Stub tail restore

Hi all,

Let me show you this exceptional, very old straight razor.


WOLF & crown, Acier Fondu, 6/8”, wedge type, made by John Shepherd in Sheffield between 1770 – 1795.
This razor can be seen in the very famous booklet written by old judge Lummus.


Attachment 169319


The blade is still in very good, almost perfect condition. The honey horn scales were very dirty and a bit rotten,
but finally I managed to preserve them, as well as the lead wedge and iron washers. Only one brass pin was replaced.


Feel free to look at the pictures.


Attachment 169320

Attachment 169321

Attachment 169322

Attachment 169323

Attachment 169324

Attachment 169325

Attachment 169326

Is it to be a collectable only, or will you shave with it? I find the blade shape very interesting and can see how it can help give an excellent shave. Beautiful resto.

Very cool looking razor. Awesome restore!!

Outstanding! What a great 'vintage restore' on a very old razor. Just my style! I absolutely love it...Great Job!:tu

Very nice vintage razor, well done on the refurb.

GREAT looking blade! good work!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Razorfeld

Is it to be a collectable only, or will you shave with it? .

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I surely will hone it and hope it will be an outstanding shaver.
Thank you for viewing and comments.

Very nice indeed, a great save. Really liking the old razors.

That is an amazing looking razor. Great work!

turned out great, I also am interested if you are going to use it or is it going to be just a showcase piece,.. btw (question for all :) ) do these old ladies generally shave well (I never tried one)?

Beautiful job. I'd love to hear the steps you went through on restoring the scales.

Joe

Blades of that shape really didn't do.it.for me until seeing your restore! What a fine piece to shave with. The scales, man, who woulda thought that they are the originals? BEAUTIFUL....


In Christ
SB

Nice restoration. How did you restore the scales?

Very fine work...amazing result....
I also want to hear how you managed to pull off the scale job...did you unpin them or worked on the razor as it was?
What about the exfoliation? surely you used something to fill the cracks/exfoliation:) ca??

The scales turned out awsome...and so did the blade.

Anyway this is a realy nice save. Hope is shaves great.

Speach...Speach!:))

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ovidiucotiga

I also want to hear how you managed to pull off the scale job...did you unpin them or worked on the razor as it was?
What about the exfoliation? surely you used something to fill the cracks/exfoliation:) ca??

How did you restore the scales?

I'd love to hear the steps you went through on restoring the scales.

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Well, thank you very much.

First of all, I did it very carefully. After unpinning the blade, I washed them with warm water and then dried with hot air.
The dirt inside the scales I tried to remove with a small cotton cloth soaked in rectified petrol.
Then I wetsanded the scales with 800, 1200, 1500, 2000 and 2500 grit sandpaper. A drop of rust remover on iron washers and I cleaned them up with a bit of fine steel wool. Then I polished the scales manually (with my fingers only) using the German polishing paste called Autosol. At the end, to give them some shine, I used the Turtle wax.

The big and only secret of successful restoration is the patience, lots of patience.

I'm amazed at how the horn turned out. Nicely done.

Thanks for detailing that sequence. That's good to know about. I had never heard of rectified petroleum. I'll order some.

Joe

Quote:

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Originally Posted by carrolljc

Thanks for detailing that sequence. That's good to know about. I had never heard of rectified petroleum. I'll order some.

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Hmm. I checked online. Doesn't look as if rectified petrol is available in the USA. There's a Spanish company that sells it in Europe. I wonder if it goes under some other name in the USA.

Joe

Quote:

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Originally Posted by vaga

Hi all,

Let me show you this exceptional, very old straight razor.


WOLF & crown, Acier Fondu, 6/8”, wedge type, made by John Shepherd in Sheffield between 1770 – 1795.
This razor can be seen in the very famous booklet written by old judge Lummus.


Attachment 169319


The blade is still in very good, almost perfect condition. The honey horn scales were very dirty and a bit rotten,
but finally I managed to preserve them, as well as the lead wedge and iron washers. Only one brass pin was replaced.


Feel free to look at the pictures.


Attachment 169320

Attachment 169321

Attachment 169322

Attachment 169323

Attachment 169324

Attachment 169325

Attachment 169326

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Just had to have these pics on the next page, gall darn exceptional...

Really, thanks for sharing this beautiful piece with us, Vaga!

Edit: Not sure what I'm doing wrong, previewing before posting shows the pics... Anyhoo

In Christ
SB

Quote:

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Originally Posted by carrolljc

Doesn't look as if rectified petrol is available in the USA. . . . I wonder if it goes under some other name in the USA.

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If rectified petrol is unavailable, what would be the best alternative? I'd like to hear what others use to clean old horn scales.

Joe

no rectified petrol in USA! need to know alternatives!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by llalm

no rectified petrol in USA! need to know alternatives!

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I went to the hardware store and explained to a man that I needed something like rectified petrol. He suggested denatured alcohol. I don't know if this is good advice or not. I haven't yet tried the denatured alcohol on scales. It is billed as suitable for cleaning glass: "fast evaporating cleaner."

I suppose one could also use a de-greaser. Unless I can find better ways, I'll probably start with soap and water, use a de-greaser, and then once they are clean soak the scales for a couple of days in neatsfoot oil. Then filling holes with CA glue, sanding, and polishing with Maas.

Joe

Kinda sounds like Naptha to me. Very gentle. Will even clean acrylic windows without harm. Great for removing tar from vehicle paint safely. Coleman camper fuel is pretty much the same stuff. If you run it through your weedeater/chainsaw engine (with the appropiate amount of added oil) it will clean up carbon from piston/ exhaust port. Bla Bla Bla.
Absolutely beautiful razor! BTW

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JimBC

Coleman camper fuel is pretty much the same stuff. I

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Yeah, the writing on the denatured alcohol can identifies two main uses: fuel (marine stoves, alcohol burning stoves), and cleaning glass. I'll definitely try it on some dirty scales.

Joe

Hard to find the exact equivalent. Could be the extraction naphtha ?

Here is the chemical formula:

CnH2n+2 where n = 7 - 8

Quote:

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Originally Posted by vaga

Hard to find the exact equivalent. Could be the extraction naphtha ?

Here is the chemical formula:

CnH2n+2 where n = 7 - 8

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One website reports that naphtha is sometimes added to denatured alcohol:

What Is Denatured Alcohol?

"I've been asked that question often, so here's the answer: Denatured alcohol is ethanol (ethyl alcohol) that has been made unfit for human consumption by adding another chemical to it. Denaturing refers to removing a property from the alcohol (being able to drink it), not to chemically altering or decomposing it.

There are hundreds of ways ethanol is denatured. Denatured alcohol that is intended for use as a fuel or solvent typically contains 5% or more methanol. Methanol is flammable and has a boiling point close to that of ethanol. Methanol is absorbed across the skin and is highly toxic, so when I recommend people not use denatured alcohol for making perfume or bath products, my reason is that you usually don't know what has been added to the ethanol. Denatured alcohol for use in cosmetics often contains water and a bittering agent (Bitrex or Aversion which are denatonium benzoate or denatonium saccharide), but other chemicals are sometimes used. Other common additives include (but are not limited to) isopropanol, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, pyridine, benzene, diethyl phthalate, and naphtha. In some countries, denatured alcohol must be colored blue or purple using an aniline dye, in order to distinguish it from consumption-grade ethanol."

Wikipedia says that "rectified spirits" are in fact alcohol:

Ethanol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Rectified spirits

Rectified spirit, an azeotropic composition of 96% ethanol containing 4% water, is used instead of anhydrous ethanol for various purposes. Wine spirits are about 94% ethanol (188 proof). The impurities are different from those in 95% (190 proof) laboratory ethanol.^[91]"