Thread: Looking for some opinions on a new ebay find

Unless you rely on the kindness of strangers it looks to me like this could be a very expensive razor. Just guessing you want to keep costs down. Good luck, a lot of excellent advice from members covering a span from ditch it to giving it to a master to work a miracle.

I'd send it back and see if you can get atleast part of your money back. Offer a red tacking fee.

Looks like an amateur has tried to regrind this razor. They may have destroyed the temper in the process. This razor needs a serious restauration job to get it back to working order. I wish you luck.

For the newbs,we have on SRP Mentors,Pls link the ebay blade to them before buying,They are here to help,contact them Via PM.
Granted, you may get a beater blade on the cheap.But also realize that some are not viable Blades,They are dead,cannot be revived.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

For the newbs,we have on SRP Mentors,Pls link the ebay blade to them before buying,They are here to help,contact them Via PM.
Granted, you may get a beater blade on the cheap.But also realize that some are not viable Blades,They are dead,cannot be revived.

Words to live by for a newbie. It is not easy to get a good blade on the bay especially when you are starting out and not really aware of what to look for. Take all the help you can get before you buy.

Bob

I agree that blade has been seriously compromised. Of course you can only tell so much from a photo however to someone starting out that's a bad beginning point.

Based on the idea that, at some point, no one had an expert to go to, and so had to figure it out for themselves, and using the info I've gathered from the wiki; I've tried to put a new edge on it myself. I have a set of micro mesh pads from 1500 grit to 12k, and a block of polished granite tile so I have a perfectly flat honing surface. I've also had a lot of practice honing wood carving knives and chisels. I know they aren't razors, but I've also almost cut off the end of a finger with a freshly honed knife and didn't feel it till it started to bleed (sorry if that was a little graphic).

The razor seems to have taken a good edge, though I haven't tried to shave with it yet (I did do the other sharpness tests from the wiki). I'm waiting for my shaving brush to arrive (an omega pro boar bristle) and the soap from Bumblewood (My fiance got some stuff from them and really liked it)

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

For the newbs,we have on SRP Mentors,Pls link the ebay blade to them before buying,They are here to help,contact them Via PM.
Granted, you may get a beater blade on the cheap.But also realize that some are not viable Blades,They are dead,cannot be revived.

I spotted the blade when there was only a half hour left on the auction, so it was kind of an impulse buy. And it also only cost me $15. But I will definitely remember this for the next time I go trawling the bay.

Originally Posted by GC7

Send a PM to Bayamontate. You will never shave with a better edge after he is finished. He is nearby. Better still or in addition join us at the March 1st meeting in Valley Stream. You can meet him and many of the others in the area. Good food, good coffee, better company and trust me you will learn A LOT. It got me going last fall when I started with straights.

Thanks for the suggestion! I'll definitely send him a message. I'd love to come to the meeting but I don't know if I'll be able to, my schedule is pretty crazy. If you could PM me the details of when and where, I'll definitely try to make it.

Looks like you've chosen to take the expensive road - it's your money and your work though, so it's up to you.

I'd say cut your losses while they are still small and buy a nice already honed razor.

Given the condition I don't think it makes any sense to spend the hours it's likely to take to hone this one, especially as old as it is it may not even take a good edge.
The horn scales are the easiest to fix - dump it in neatsfoot oil for a week and then 10-15 min of sanding progression should get them back to nice and pretty.

Originally Posted by Razorfeld

Step one is to send out to a pro honer.

Getting that thing honed will be more expensive than what it cost to begin with. There's only so much we can do without a total regrind. And honestly, that razor is not worth it.

Originally Posted by GC7

Send a PM to Bayamontate. You will never shave with a better edge after he is finished. He is nearby. Better still or in addition join us at the March 1st meeting in Valley Stream. You can meet him and many of the others in the area. Good food, good coffee, better company and trust me you will learn A LOT. It got me going last fall when I started with straights.

Thanks for suggesting Bayamontate, I just got the razor back from him and he has managed to put an incredible edge on this blade. I now know who to send my future razors to until I learn to hone.