Thread: Honing a ????????able Damascus Razor

Originally Posted by Mastershake

Was the metal breaking down just from the WD40??

They etch it with ferric Chloride,same chemical used on real damascus,it wipes off to a point.
Whoops,my bad,got in under the wire,sorry

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Shave:
Technically it shaved, there was hair removed, I did one WTG pass and gave up, looking at the edge revealed the problem, there was significant edge damage from just 1/2 a shave... The metal is just not where it needs to be...

This is exactly the experience I had with a regular M.I.P. (Made in Pakistan) razor. 1/2 a shave & it was in hacksaw mode.
Looking at the blade pic is hard to tell if it is forge folded or simply carbon steel that was heavily etched. I won't guess but there are plain & alloy carbon steels that will pattern that way given enough acid baths. It really depends on how the steel was rolled, what's in it & how homogenous it is.

The black oxide coming off the blade is quite normal. It is neutralised rust coming from the acid etching.
Tim Zowada refers to it on his website.
"For the first few uses, you may notice a black residue coming off the blade. This is iron oxide left from the etching of the Damascus pattern. The black layers are slightly pitted during the etching. These microscopic pits hold the iron oxide. After several uses the black residue should be completely cleaned out."

Yeah guys I own a couple of Damascus blades a Livi and a Harner, and I have honed quite a few but I have never seen this before... Granted many of the ones I have honed were used but not all...

is there a possibility of removing the blade from the scales and attempting a re-heat treat??

Originally Posted by Theseus

I didn't have high hopes for this razor. Especially after seeing that square point at the heel.

Why is that? The heel in itself does not tell you anything about the quality of the blade. Most of our esteemed razor craftsmen make a square heeled razor model, yet no one is calling their quality into question.... although I'm careful not to compare this piece to Livi, Harner, Zowada etc....

Nice thread Glen, interesting read.

Originally Posted by paco664

is there a possibility of removing the blade from the scales and attempting a re-heat treat??

Usually not, as when a razor is finished it is too thin to reheat without warping or cracking.

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Usually not, as when a razor is finished it is too thin to reheat without warping or cracking.

to be fair it ain't like it would screw it up.... it already is a POS...

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Why is that? The heel in itself does not tell you anything about the quality of the blade. Most of our esteemed razor craftsmen make a square heeled razor model, yet no one is calling their quality into question.... although I'm careful not to compare this piece to Livi, Harner, Zowada etc....

Nice thread Glen, interesting read.

I know that the great custom makers use heel points such as this and I didn't mean to call their quality into question. I should have worded my response better.

Originally Posted by paco664

to be fair it ain't like it would screw it up.... it already is a POS...

Yes but in its present state it will open letters.

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Yes but in its present state it will open letters.

lol.... well.... at least its good for something....