Thread: Is this even worth the effort?

So, it depends on if you want a project. Most Chinese steel is pretty good, you will only know if you hone it and see if it chips. If you want to practice your reshaping skills, this may be a good project, worst case you mess up a $12 razor. If you go slow you won’t mess it up, and you will learn a lot.

If so, I would put a smile on it, the spine appears to have a slight smile. Here is a post on reshaping a blade to a smile. (Make me smile)

It is not as much work as it seems, just takes some time measuring and sneaking up on the final shape. Remember that once shaped it will still need to be honed, so stay on the fat side of your measurements, honing will remove a bit more material.

The heel is easily fixed by reshaping, about, five minutes on a diamond stone. It looks to be heel heavy, wider heel than the toe, that is due to honing on the stabilizer and keeping the heel half of the razor off the stone.

Take some measurements and make the width of the toe match the heel without removing any material from the middle. You also want to reshape the toe bringing the toe corner back for aesthetics, then blend the heel and toe and you will have a slight smile. Or you can trace the spine and copy to the edge at the marks, so the heel and toe are the same width and the edge matches the spine.

I have honed a few like that, China etched, and they shave well. Once you sort the heel it should hone easily. Looks to have some hollow to it and if not 2 layers of tape should get an edge on it.

Here is a post on reshaping an edge and heel. (How to correct/re-profile a heel)

Steel most likely crap anyway so why bother with shape of the blade? You could try to remove the scales and use them on a proper razor.

I think it could be done, but as someone has said... Polishing a turd doesnt make it no longer a turd. Or something like that.