Thread: Why must bad things happen to good people?

one of the first things i learned after I chipped the tip off my first 6/8 TI on the bottom of the sink, was, always rinse the lather off blade edge UP and spine down....if it happens to smack the bottom of the sink then the spine wont break, chip or ding like the edge will. I haven't chipped a tip off since. I also concentrated on making sure I always have a secure grip on the blade, I dropped a couple blades and ruined the edges on them as well. One more tidbit that has helped me avoid chips and ruined edges is when immersing the blade in the soapy water to warm it up...fold it completely...and when rinsing or drying, keep the blade nearly completely folded, if I do the butterfingers thing,the blade wont land on its edge but will be reasonably protected by the bulk of the spine and the scales.

I also found something I couldn't pass up at an antique store today....it's a J.A. Henckels. The tang is stamped Twin Works 401 on one side, and Platinum on the other. Figured it would give me something to do while I waited on my other razors.

It has a coffin which is pretty trashed, but the blade and scales looked decent. Blade was black but didn't look to be rusted or anything, and the edge is finde. Actually popped a few hairs off of my hand with it right there in the shop. Got it for $35, not sure if that was good or not.

I've hit it with some sandpaper up to 1000 so far, the wife ran out to get some stuff so I'm having her pick up some 2000 and some MAAS so I can try to get this thing shiny.

I've never restored anything before....also picked up some kind of stone with it. It doesn't have any markings of any kind, but it feels very smooth. The guy said it was from around the turn of the century, but how he would know that I have no clue.

He also had a Keen Kutter barber hone, but it had some really bad nicks in it and I don't have a lapping plate. Even if I did, I would have had to take a ridiculous amount of material off to make it smooth.

The stone I got felt about as smooth as the Kutter. I'm gonna see if I can get this thing to shave with it. The edge is in remarkably good condition and seems to have a decent bevel, it just isn't as sharp as it should be.

I'll make a thread for it and post some pics when I get a chance.