Thread: My first restoration

I acquired a Germania Cutlery Works - Oxford Razor Warranted (blade only) that was in very good shape. Here is what I did with it. It is not perfect but I learned a ton and am very happy how it turned out. Now to send it out to get honed by one of the pro's (not ready to take on honing, yet )

Constructive criticism is welcome.

Fenster

looks nice. i like the shape and the color of the scales. only thing that i would have done different for my self would be to round or bevel the edges more. the scales look just a little thick JMHO. What kind of material is it and where did you get it?

That's a really good first attempt. How thick is the material? Aiming for a scale thickness of about 2.5mm is visually nice as well as contouring the edges. But you will pick this up as you go along.

Other than thinning the scales a bit more for honing and stropping sake... I say excellent job.

very attractive. good shavers, you shouldn't have a hard time honing and stropping if the pivot pin is tight enough, despite the scales being a tad thick. the problem is that the extra weight could throw you off a bit with trying to keep even pressure, especially when you go from this razor to another of different weighted scales. I bet that thing sits nice and stable like that though doesn't it? solid looking stance when its open, I like it. ill say one thing about the shave- if you can, open those scales up a little extra to have them lean a bit toward the toe. that little bit of extra weight can make a difference in how the razor handles and maneuvers. with heavier scale materials ill do this to keep the weight centered better over the blade so I wont tend to drop the heel or toe which can happen if the the scales are slightly heavier than your other razors. I recently honed up a razor with stainless steel scales...... no fun when honing and stropping I can tell you that, but opening the scales to lean forward more toward the toe during the shave really helped keep things balanced. obviously yours wont be anything near the weight of ss scales, but give this a shot, let me know if you notice a difference in the feel and maneuverability.

Originally Posted by tintin

looks nice. i like the shape and the color of the scales. only thing that i would have done different for my self would be to round or bevel the edges more. the scales look just a little thick JMHO. What kind of material is it and where did you get it?

Thanks. I agree, I am working on my second set of scales now and I am rounding them over more than these ones. The material is Kirinite, you can get it at USA Knifemaker.

I think the first picture makes the scales look thicker than they really are, the material was .140" to start with, not sure what they are now, I would have to measure them . I do agree that they are a tad on the thick side, but not bad.

Fenster

they are great shavers but definately doesn't look that nice

A very nice first project. Centering the blade is one of the hardest parts, and it looks like you have that nailed.

Enjoy the shaves!

how about some before pics. Lets see what the progress was. I think it looks good. I have a dovo pearlex that in my opinion has thick scales but I have no problem honing or stropping or shaving.

Oh yeah, looks good though.

Originally Posted by KindestCutOfAll

A very nice first project. Centering the blade is one of the hardest parts, and it looks like you have that nailed.

Enjoy the shaves!

Thanks, I had to get the blade pretty much dead center because I made the wedge too thin. Learned lots on this one though.