Thread: Cattaraugus Green Lizard on the way

I purchased a Cattaraugus Cutlery Green Lizzard. The pictures weren't great, but the price was right. There doesn't appear to be much hone wear. I am excited to see if I got a good razor or not. Purchased from an antique dealer, not a shaver, so it will need to be honed.

Great find! I have several Cattaraugus razors and they are great shavers. I hope you enjoy yours.

There should be a Model # stamped in the tail let us know which it is when it arrives

Awesome American steel

Green Lizard B54GL model. So here is what I think, from looking at it. Not sure if I have all of this right, so please correct me if I don’t.
*5/8 Square Point, full hollow ground.
*Pivot pin doesn’t look to be original, because it is missing the washer. (It’s also lo0se.)
*Almost no hone wear, but the toe has been rounded off.
*Striations in the blade are indentations, that almost look like part of the forging. They do extend into the tang.
*Jimps on top and bottom of the tang.
*None of the corrosion appears bad.

So a few questions to the experts.
*What is the best way to polish the celluloid scales, especially the insides?
*If I sent it to someone to re-pin, would they be able to remove the old pins without damaging the scales?
*Thoughts on trying to keep the patina intact?

I think this might be a good candidate for a restoration. Pretty happy with what I ended up with, but wasn’t sure what it would look like when it got here from the pictures.

I have a 131C that looks similar to yours. Mine was a great find but the blade had been abused a bit...it looked like someone tried to hone it on some form of buffer or grinder with no success, but it cleaned up very well and took a fantastic edge. Those marks on the blade do not look original to me, but perhaps they are on that particular model, as I am not 100% sure. You will enjoy that blade. To get a bit of the dirt out from between scales, I use mineral oil and a cotton makeup pad.

Enjoy your lizard!

Originally Posted by Drygulch

*If I sent it to someone to re-pin, would they be able to remove the old pins without damaging the scales?
*Thoughts on trying to keep the patina intact?

I think this might be a good candidate for a restoration. Pretty happy with what I ended up with, but wasn’t sure what it would look like when it got here from the pictures.

It looks to be in a nice condition compared to many I've seen, including mine. As to restoration and repinning, patina, etc.. I'd look to the author of post #3. Welcome GemStar Customs - Gem Star Customs

Regards,

Howard

Edit: The corrosion lines with pitting looked like reflections on a small screen. Now seeing it on a larger screen, It'll need some TLC to get it right. I'd still reach out to the above. He's one that can do it, if it can be done.

I had one stamped B54GL on the tang but the rest have numbers & a letter on the tail itself. I have 131B on the tail of several others. Those are all light green. The two dark green have 131A & 132c. Those 8 have the Lizard on the scales. I have 2 that have the Lizard on the blade & one says 131c & the other says nothing!