Thread: Scale durability

Do some scales have more issues vs others? I never soak mine and just rinse the blade and am using TP when I'm finished. Mine currently is the black plastic so I'm sure that's the most durable, but is wood or horn more prone to problems?

They all have their own issues. The only one that comes to mind that might not , is G10. But I haven't ever worked with it, mainly wood scales are my thing.
JMO

Agreed.

Most scales are very hardy. Celluloid can have problems with deterioration. Some say cell rot is a question of when and not if.

Excluding G-10, any scale material will benefit from regular maintenance. A product made for plastic will help preserve your scales.

Most of my razors are at least 140 years old and have the original horn, bone, or ivory scales. Aside from some insect damage or being broken, I've never personally encountered a horn, bone, or ivory scale even over 200 years old that just wore out or failed from age.

Best thing you can do for any scales is keep them clean , dry , and cool. If you don't then each material is going to react differently yes. Some will be a little easier to fix than others. Forget trying to fix celluloid.

With any horn product warping can be an issue. If you want bulletproof G-10 is the way to go or maybe carbon fibre. Plastic is cheap and stands up well.

Good to know, I figured plastic would be tough as well as horn, how about wood, feel like you'd have to be careful to keep that dry otherwise it would swell and create issues. Any experience feedback on the wood scales?

I'm leaning towards the wood scales on my new one, it has snakewood. Do you need to treat the wood scales directly at all or just try and keep them dry. Also I put a coat of mineral oil on the blade after every use. Would that hurt the wood b/c part of the sides are going to be touching the wood?

Yes, wood scales can have issues if not well sealed from moisture. You can go several routes with wood scales. You can use stabilized wood, back wood scales with a liner like copper or seal them well with crazy glue finnish.

Bob

All current synthetic materials suitable for scales should be fine with time IMO.
Horn/bone/wood may have issues since you never know with natural materials.