Thread: Clark & Hall

Originally Posted by 32t

Just thinking out loud I can think of a couple of possible reasons for the extra or larger holes.

If the holes were made of expensive metal the holes would save material costs.

The other reason would be to change the balance point.

They're low-grade pewter, so cost is not likely the reason.

Balance is possible, but the difference in weight so so negligible that I doubt it. Plus, if anything, the later razors with a solid wedge were lighter than the earlier models with holes & cavities.

The reason that I'm pondering is that the extra holes were originally simply a guide to help with positioning. But I'm mentally shooting down my own idea by noting that these were made from a mold, so there wasn't really any reason to do that either.

So many features of razors are shrouded in mystery!

I can see that. Simply molten metal poured into a mold for the wedge. The holes you see are part of the mold to determine the angle of what was produced.
Or close?

Maybe the holes were there for after they popped the wedge out of the mold and needed to do final grinding adjustments on the wedge. The tool that held the wedge would have steel pegs that would go into the holes, when they felt the pegs grind on the file, they would stop.. knowing they had the correct angle..
?

Originally Posted by MikeT

Maybe the holes were there for after they popped the wedge out of the mold and needed to do final grinding adjustments on the wedge. The tool that held the wedge would have steel pegs that would go into the holes, when they felt the pegs grind on the file, they would stop.. knowing they had the correct angle..
?

This seems pretty plausible...

Nah, they would have just used double-sided carpet tape, like I do!

What do you mean they didn't have double sided carpet tape in 1790?

I can see a hinged mold....Not unlike a bullet mold.....With double-sided carpet tape, of course!

Then you see stuff like this....2 of them the same? Seems (again) plausible.

The main trouble I see with the steel peg idea is that every time you hit the peg you would make is slightly shorter.

Depending on the abrasive you used and the material of the peg.

Maybe they used a hot plate and melted it to the depth of the peg.

Na! Imagine it as a bullet mold, A peg from one or each side would set limit. I think some interchangeable 'pegs' were available?
Anyway, as a good setting for a series of scales came up they would have done the homework on raw wedges to use.

Look at the deep filemarks on that wedge. They just beat things into apparent perfection!

Not unlike what we do...

Wouldn't you use the sides of the mold to control the depth?

If you put a longer peg in the middle of the mold it would open up the sides and allow flash until to much would just be a leak.

Would be flash from all over! Hold the cooled mold over the pot and trim it off
The rest would go after pinning and trimming and tapping in a bit. Polishing.
They had to have cast the wedges, I think?


We seem to beat our brains out doing it. They had it down-pat.