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I wont share a pic, because it is not near to the level that you guys turn out, but yesterday I put new scales on a razor for the first time. Thanks for all of the information and all of the tips that I read from you folks. What was once a rotten rusty turd of an Amendola Brothers General Diaz model is now a not rusty and fairly well pinned thing. And yeah peening is kind of tricky.
Pinning is a bit tricky. Took me a few before i got the basics down. Im still not making them as nice as other here.
Post your pics anyway. We all started with not know what we were doing. We might be able to point out a few things to help you along the way of getting better. I dont think anyone would tell you that it looks like %\$#. We have all been there. Well, maybe not Karl. I think he was born doing this stuff. Ha.
Attachment 276392
Its a first try, so why not share it. Hopefully I can keep working and trying. Bits and pieces that I scraped up so.......
BTW, i practiced pinning with popsicle sticks. Put 6 or 8 pins in to hold two sticks together. Cut off one side and do it again.
Getting nice peens took me a while too. It took me a long time to get the length right. For the first many I would start to peen and get it to start to dome over but still way too long to ever expect to tighten up, so I would file some off and then peen and file and peen until it all tightened up.
It looks like you have a good start. When working on little skills like this it is all about practise.
Every journey begins with but a single step.
Now that you have started, welcome to the restoration obsession.
The length is a problem. I peened the first side in my vice and then installed the pin and washer. Then I cut the pin using a dremel tool, but I left it a shade too long. Practicing on popsicle sticks sounds like a good idea. Thanks for the help, the inspiration, and the advice.
Grats on your first succes, hoping you have many many more
Congrats! Looks better than my first rescale........................
Welcome to the club Mr. Z! Jerry's correct. There's a learning curve involved, and if you are at all a perfectionist (like many of us) you'll find that you learn something new on each project. I just recently took up restoration because there are so many cool, old razors that can be made into great shavers! It is a bit of a rabbit hole though--you'll want a "hobby fund."
Setting aside the pinning, the scales themselves look great from the picture. Pin hole placemen looks good and balanced too. There's a load of information in the threads on just about everything you need to know plus a lot of good videos on youtube. Thanks for sharing!
I have had good luck using a cheap drill chuck from Harbor Freight.Quote:
Originally Posted by MrZ
1-2-half-inch-jacobs-keyed-chuck-45731.
Other places have them but higher cost.
Good on Ya!
~Richard
Richard, do you put that in a vice or just work with it on a bench?
Beats my first pinning and scales.
Your work is to be proud of, and will only get better with time and practice.
Looks like we have another in the group, fellas.:tu
Nice!
I remember my first pinning, took me a bit to get the hang of centering the razor perfectly
Also, your first razor is always something special, I wish I still had mine and I wish I had the same knowledge then than I do now
Nicely done!
If the bench is solid, I just set it on the bench to pin. If not, I have a plate of steel that I can use.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gasman
If you wish to use your vise, the same unit comes with a shaft if you search for "drill chuck" there.
Have fun, they are time savers and don't mess up the pins.
Cheers!
~Richard
Im always afraid when using the vise of putting gouges or lines or making pin oblong. I might have to pick one of those up. Thanks Richard. And sorry to the OP for butting in. You did a lot better than my first set of scales. Mine is ugly but ill keep it forever! Might hide it from site but it was my first. Wood from the hardware store and a wood rasp. Then sand paper for hours. Ha.Quote:
Originally Posted by Geezer
You did a fine job.
You have to love the little tips that you get here. I hadnt thought about my vice making the pin go oblong, but that is a very distinct possibility. Neat idea from Geezer.
Thanks for sharing this. I think it looks great for a first attempt and much better than I would do. I am trying to get into a little bit of restoration, but don't have many tools or much time. So on the odd occasion I have had to put new scales on a razor I have used micro bolts.
Now that I have seen this thread and the lollipop sticks idea I might have to have a go at this too.
Nice work on the rescale job! Looks really good... kinda makes you want to do another, and another... Looking forward to more from you.
I have a FBU that has a chip in the heal of the blade and no scales. Thats next, I hope.
Nice job! Better than my first.
Very nice! Did you reuse the old wedge or make your own? What did you put on the wood to seal them?Quote:
Originally Posted by MrZ
I reused the old wedge. I figured I would mess it up, so I reused what I had. To finish I just used Poly that I had from some furniture that I did before.
I dunno, I find this acceptable. Certainly for a first scale build. Looks pretty darn good to me.Quote:
Originally Posted by MrZ
Pics or it dont exist ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by MrZ
The FBU is at the top. The rest are a bunch of other things I have accumulated.Attachment 276649
That FBU started my problems. I got it at a yard sale for 3 dollars. I really like it, but that chipped section is kind of a mess. Now I have RAD pretty bad and just gobble up blades left and right.
Just think how bad its going to be in a year. Ha. Great start on collecting. Now you need to learn what to get for keepers and what to get to sell. And what not to buy. Thats the biggie.
Everything that I have is under 20 bucks. I figure that I don’t drink or gamble, so it’s not that bad of a vice.
Dude, been collecting for a couple years now and I still have trouble with this.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gasman
Especially the sell part.:hmmm:
Attachment 279301
So, I have pinned a lot of razors over the past few years, but this was my first attempt at actually making some scales from the ground up. I think it turned out alright, but I know I can do better. Griffon Antelope blade restored quite nicely. Then I used some black streaked buffalo horn for the scales with small dome washers. I don't have any machinery so I do everything by hand, which makes it very time consuming but still fun.
What a gorgeous razor.
That is nice looking razor! Great job.
Man, thanks a lot you guys. I really appreciate the encouragement. I'm gonna try the tally ho over the next couple weeks. Got some honey horn for that one. I think it's gonna turn out pretty nice.
Z,
Great job on your first resto. Welcome to RRAD.
Peening is tricky as other have said. I use a modeling vice (looks like a regular bench vice but it's tiny) to hold the pin while I peen the first side. Two things are important.
1) You must sand the pin first so it's flat or you'll get an ugly rivet.
2) Go SLOW and gentle. You can always tap a little harder if needed. If you wack the sh!t out of it, you can ruin your project. (Been there, done that) I use the back of a spoon to peen.
Good luck,
D
Good job, sir.
