Some advice please.. Blade etch... more trouble then they are worth?

Hi everyone, I am quite new to straight razor shaving/restoring, and there are sooooooo many questions I would like to ask, but I would be here typing all day,, and probably bore evrybody literally to death, so I will just ask one newbie question if thats alright, and hope somebody will be kind enough to give me some tips.
Well its simple really, I am a carpenter and have been restoring old tools for years,,, now lately razors aswell. I have no problem bringing a rusted pitted bit of steel back up to scratch, but the razors that have things etched onto the blade are another matter

I have a nice Joseph Rodgers 'The Celebrated HOLLOW GROUND' razor, and it is the first straight razor I ever purchased,, and I love it and shaved with it this morning... It is in quite good condition, well very good really,, virtually zero pitting but it does have water marks in spots on the back of blade, quite a lot on the spine and a few spots on the face side of the razor,,,
The blade etch is very clear and there are pretty much no water marks on the etch part,,, but if I was to go down the sanding at progressive grits road,,, I would want to do the entire blade, (not just work around the etched part) as It would otherwise turn out quite uneven,,, and crap frankly.
So my question/questions is this.... Will sanding over the etch (and cleaning it how I would normally clean a blade) rub it away?
If so then how do you guys go about cleaning a blade that has a nice blade etch that you would like to keep as is?

Any hints/tips would be greatly appreciated :)
The razor really is in great condition other then the water marks, and I have just left this razor as is, coz it was my first and besides I am not in the 'mirror polish for all razors' club, but when I shaved with him today,, I dont know if the water marks have got worse, (I doubt because I always clean and oil my razors after every use), or if it just bothered me more then usual because I am not in the best of moods today, (long story and a totally different subject lol),,, but anyway, for the first time today I looked at my beloved Rodgers razor,, and thaught,, hhhmmm,, maybe you could do with a little clean after all :(

sorry for the long text,,, Any advice wud be Great,, if you would like me to add some pics of the shaver in question, then I can do that,, will need to charge up my phone, but that needs doing anyway so.....

Thanks in advance guy,, (unless you all blank me up, in which case you are all Mean mean MEAN!! Took me ages to write this... If I wernt a man, It would be my time of the month lol.. Nothing is going right today :( :(

Well if the etch is NOT a gold etch then I would use a non abrasive polish such as MASS or Blue Magic. If you find the "water spots" are actual light pitting, then try using some 0000 steel wool with the polishing compound mentioned above. This will clean out the pitted areas very well. If it is a gold etching then al most any cleaning you attempt will destroy the gold.

BTW, pics would help steer you in the correct direction, but the above will be a good start regardless.

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So my question/questions is this.... Will sanding over the etch (and cleaning it how I would normally clean a blade) rub it away?

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Depends of the depth of the etch, really. When working with felt or cotton wheels and polish compound, or with micro mesh for example, you won't brush enough metal to reach the etching in most cases, if it's deep enough.

Picture ?

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If so then how do you guys go about cleaning a blade that has a nice blade etch that you would like to keep as is?

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Either I do, or I don't. If there is too much rust or pitting and it hides completely any other detail, then yes, I will.
If I have some small black spots, and brushing them to have a clean blade would ruin the etching, then I don't.

Personnal rule, not to take as a general advice.

But once again... Picture ?

Attachment 181859Attachment 181860Attachment 181861Attachment 181862Attachment 181863

just took some pics,, sorry they are not the best,, I know threads can be boring without pics of the razor in question so there you go,,, was very hard to show the water marks but I hope they give some reference,,
cheers guys, all the best

Thanks for your quick response guys ,, I have not figured out how to reply with the quote marks above ect,,
what do you think from seeing the pics?
I agree that if the tarnish is not soo bad,, perhaps its best to leave it as it is?

Looks like a surface etching. But then again I never actually had a W&B CHG in my hands, hard to judge, you'll get better advice.

As for myself, I wouldn't touch it. Or, worst case scenario, I would cut precisely some adhesive tape, and only use finishing polish cream (don't have the technical term, but something like Puma pink)

If I were to do anything, it would be to use 0000 steel wool with a polish like Flitz/Mass/Mothers mag polish and see where I wind up. Would almost bet that would be enough.

Bob

[QUOTE=Aggelos;1405183]Looks like a surface etching. But then again I never actually had a W&B CHG in my hands, hard to judge, you'll get better advice.

Yes it does look like quite a shallow etch, most of my razors have plain blades so I am not very sure of how deep/shallow the etches on razors go, but I do get the feeling with this one, that if I was too sand even on a high grit,, it may fade quite a lot :(
Thanks, yes I think for now, just a very light clean, no sandpaper on this one

I hope so, thanks for the advice Bob,, I think I will go gentle and see what happens. Think I just got a bout of razor envy at all the perfect mirror polished ones I see on this site! I guess I can live with a few water marks if it comes down to it,, rather then a clean shiny razor... with an all but invisible etch (which I think will be the result if I do clean too aggressively)
Its a shame, I was hoping for some gentle miracle cure that cleans all water marks/shallow pits without damaging the etch...... But I guess if that was the case then people would use this 'miracle method' on all razors etch or no etch! :(
Thanks for your response , all the best
George

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Originally Posted by ToolFiendG

I hope so, thanks for the advice Bob,, I think I will go gentle and see what happens. Think I just got a bout of razor envy at all the perfect mirror polished ones I see on this site! I guess I can live with a few water marks if it comes down to it,, rather then a clean shiny razor... with an all but invisible etch (which I think will be the result if I do clean too aggressively)
Its a shame, I was hoping for some gentle miracle cure that cleans all water marks/shallow pits without damaging the etch...... But I guess if that was the case then people would use this 'miracle method' on all razors etch or no etch! :(
Thanks for your response , all the best
George

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If you can feel the etches depth with your thumb nail then I would not think it is a surface etch like done with a laser today. For sure I would shy away from sanding but still go with a polish paste for the water spots. Your razor and your call though.

Bob

I'm a big fan of Cape Cod Polishing Cloths. They work way better than any polish out there. They will remove any staining on the razor. it will take time but they work.

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Originally Posted by thebigspendur

I'm a big fan of Cape Cod Polishing Cloths. They work way better than any polish out there. They will remove any staining on the razor. it will take time but they work.

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Thanks for the tip, I have never heard of this brand, do you know if it is for sale in UK? Or marketed as something else? Will give it a try if I can get hold of some,, I normally use pre-lim metal polish followed by ren wax or my own beeswax/walnut oil mix,, the waxes always work good, but I have always felt a bit let down by the pre-lim metal polish... its expensive and comes with a good reputation, but in my opinion it does absolutley NOTHING in the way of removing stains. NOTHING. Its almost at the stage where I just use it during restore/clean ups after sanding with mineral oil, just to 'go thru the motions' and because I paid soo much for it that I somehow feel I should use it even though I lately feel it is a complete waste of time and is nothing but a placebo t.b.h.
If there are any pre-lim fans out there, sorry, it just my opinion, maybe give me some tips to get better results from it.... but I personally have always felt very let down by it, even brasso does a better job, but I dont really like to use that stuff on razors, so I am stuck with the 'placebo pre- lim for now.
Cape cod polishing cloths? will google later today and see if I can get hold of some here in the UK

Sorry to hear that your current metal polish does not seem up to the task. A good metal polish such as is available for polishing car mag/chrome/aluminum wheels seems to work well when used with 0000 steel wool for me. That is followed up by a polish with cleaner and cloth, no steel wool.

Bob

You could try crumpled aluminium foil over the writing - it's much softer than steel but can remove some light oxidation - may be it would be better than that polish, if not it's still an extremely cheap experiment and wouldn't damage your writing.

What is your sanding progression? May be you could use only the finer abrasives, but let us know the numbers before you try that.
I've had that razor (may even still have it somewhere around) but I don't remember how deep the writing is.

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Originally Posted by BobH

Sorry to here that your current metal polish does not seem up to the task. A good metal polish such as is available for polishing car mag/chrome/aluminum wheels seems to work well when used with 0000 steel wool for me. That is followed up by a polish with cleaner and cloth, no steel wool.

Bob

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, yes I have heard that 'autosol' is quite good stuff, and not too expensive. I know a few wood carvers that use it after honing their gouges, to get a fine polish to the edge. Will try it out... anything has to be better then the polish I currently use.. I am sure pre-lim is good stuff in the right hands, and for the right job,, but yes it does not seem to give the results I would like on razors.
Thanks for the tip :)

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Originally Posted by gugi

You could try crumpled aluminium foil over the writing - it's much softer than steel but can remove some light oxidation - may be it would be better than that polish, if not it's still an extremely cheap experiment and wouldn't damage your writing.

What is your sanding progression? May be you could use only the finer abrasives, but let us know the numbers before you try that.
I've had that razor (may even still have it somewhere around) but I don't remember how deep the writing is.

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I see, yes I did not think of that,, and funny enough I have plenty of the stuff as I purchased a big roll of it the other day to cover a cottage pie I was making lol. So do you normally scrunch it up tight into a ball>? or just fold it loosely? I am interested to try because as you say, even if it does not work it wont cost me anything so....
with the sandpaper, I am quite well equipt, I have wet n dry ,, 90, 120, 150 180, 220 320, 400, 600, 800 , 1200, 1500, 2000,and 2500 but I am not too keen to go down that road with that razor yet. I was thinking to just sand the spine on high grits because that is where most of the water marks are, but I am worried it might make it not match the rest of the razor, so I will just try the foil for now, and a good polish and see what happens.
Oh, yes they are very nice razors, it was my first ever so it has sentimental value.. I only realised how much I liked it once I got a few more, and hence had other razors to compare it to.. its a 11/16" but quite a heavy blade because it is only maybe 1/4 ground or 1/2 ground>? I am not the best judge with that to be honest tho,, but it is quite heavy compared to my full hollow blades anyway. It came with the original box and I noticed months later that it has a sort of recipt/ticket thing inside which gives it a bit of character aswell I guess, like a little story to go with it.

gugi, what would you say was the age of this razor? I wonder sometimes because Joseph Rodgers where around for a long time

Toothpaste is a very mild abrasive which might work good for that. If it will polish our teeth, it should remove water stains. Try that! I also saw an article awhile back about chromium oxide to use to remove water stains. I heard it works really good. Someone was honing their blade with it & accidentally got some on the blade & so he wiped it off removing water stains with it.

The etch doesn't look very deep. There are ways to preserve an etch like that and get a mirror finish, but it would be a lot more work. There was a great thread a week or two ago where a guy was enhancing etchings, but I cant seem to find it right now. I personally have filled in etchings with nail polish and done light sanding over them with good results. I think that razor looks great as is though.

Thanks for all the suggestions I wud never have thaught of toothpaste or the nail polish but they both do seem to make sense in theory,,
I think what I will do is try some of these methods on another razor which I planned to restore, and try these methods on it, as it has less sentimental value,, and also has a blade etch of similar looking depth, and whichever works best I will try on the Rodgers blade pictured in this thread :)

It's a lost cause. You should send it to me for safe disposal.

That's a very nice looking blade as it sits, at most I would use something like Blue Magic or Simichrome metal polish and synthetic 0000 steel wool.