Thread: Friodur 8/8 Spanish Point in Lignum Vitae

Greetings everyone,

I finally picked up a Friodur 8/8 in a Spanish Point (the were on sale). I bought mine with the low budget black plastic scales so that I could put a proper handle on myself.

I decided to use Lignum Vitae for this one. I've never used it before, but it's supposed to be very tough stuff. I had no problems working, although I wasn't sure how to finish it. Apparently, it's very oily, so some finishes might not stick. I ended up using Danish Oil on it. It came out all right, but it doesn't have a really high shine at the moment. The wood actually has chatoyance at certain angles, but I don't think you can tell from my photos. (Oh, the spacer is Bocote.)

I usually use barrel pivots on my razors, but the pin hole was too small for them in the Friodur blade. I don't mind drilling out old blades, but I was hesitant to do it on my new stainless steel blade. Therefore, I decided to pin it up. I chose stainless steel pins, which turn out to be a PINTA to peen. They mushroom okay, but you need to be very close to your final dimension because you can't tighten them much (Not even with a 4lb sledge hammer... Not that I would know... )

Without further ado, here are the images;

Man, that thing is hot. Love the contrast of the wedge.

I really like this. I can't wait more and more to get mine in the mail!!!

I really like the double pinning on the bottom end. Seen it on a couple of of redos tonight. Let us know how the big Friodur hones up.

Don J.

Nicely done!

I got one of these, too and look forward to putting some nice scales on the sucker. Thanks for the inspiration!

I cheated and bought my razor pre-honed, so I'm looking forward to shaving with it today.

Since the plastic scales (at least the cheap ones) these razors come with are really too small for the blade, I had to trace the blade and design my own. In case it helps anyone else, here is a copy of the tracing. The darker blue squares are one inch.

Thanks for posting I have a whole bunch of Ipe which if I'm not mistaken is the same wood? I was wondering how hard it was to work with but your description sounds hopeful. it is some dense stuff!!!

Just curious what color was the wood when you started because mine has a greyish color to it but might be lighter as I cut into it they are 8" x 14" x 3/4".

TIA

Love how the spacer both contrasts and complements the scales. I like the finish too - IMHO, that looks better than a high-gloss finish would for the same blade. Looks great!

Thanks guys!

Shooter, I bought mine in a 1.5" x 1.5" x 6" piece from Woodcraft. The outer layers were covered with wax and the wood showed a much darker brown. As soon as I cut into it I hit the lighter color. I used a band saw to cut up the block and a smaller band saw to cut out the shape. I didn't have any problems working it with either hand or power tools.

I'm no expert, but it looks like Lignum Vitae and Ipe are different woods. The Janka hardness test gives them different ratings anyway.

Originally Posted by ChrisMeyer

Thanks guys!

Shooter, I bought mine in a 1.5" x 1.5" x 6" piece from Woodcraft. The outer layers were covered with wax and the wood showed a much darker brown. As soon as I cut into it I hit the lighter color. I used a band saw to cut up the block and a smaller band saw to cut out the shape. I didn't have any problems working it with either hand or power tools.

I'm no expert, but it looks like Lignum Vitae and Ipe are different woods. The Janka hardness test gives them differently ratings anyway.

Your right I thought they were the same. Damn lignum is harder than ipe so the ipe should be a cake walk.

Thanks Chris