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VINTAGE WH MORLEY & SONS "VICTOR" STRAIGHT RAZOR~L@@K~ | eBay
So thats the razor I'm going to make my first attempt at restoring. I've read several people here saying the Morleys make good shavers. Its also a nice design and doesn't hurt that it has my name on it... ;)
Any tips or pointers people have would be appreciated.
One thing I'm looking for is a good place to shop for honing stones. Anyone?
Very pretty razor. Blade and scales are nice
As far as clean up per picks. Dont touch the swow side. Gold wash on the images look very nice. Back side, Play with mass or fltz to clean that black spot, but suspect needs deeper attention. Check wiki. In general, the backside, looks like hand sand start at 400 600 800 1000. From there depends on desired finish for backside.
Blade has a chip. I would recommend send off to vendor in classifieds. Those guys are passionate about the art, reasonable priced (i'd say cheap) and you know will be it's best. A set of stones may equate to 20 or more paid hone jobs. May be best to have pro honed blades first for comparison before you DIY. That chip may require a little advanced attention too.
Have a blast with it
What do you mean swow side?
hahaha that's my error for thinking could post from my phone
Meant "show side". Although sWOW side may apply. It has very pretty gold wash.
I might even use that phrase in the future, lol
Sorry...side of the blade face with all the fancy gold lettering. When pivot faces to the right, wedge on the left, manufactures often put the pretty stuff on the blade face in this position/side
Pics look clean on "show side". On back side I see a black dot. Images often not the same as in hand. I apologize if I sounded alarming. That dot likely will clean easy, but might be a pit. Even if a pit, the shave edge would be unaffected.
When I saw title for "restore" was looking for blemishes. Scales and all looks very nice. Only nit I see is the black spot. Of course honing too to make shave ready and the chip will easily be resolved with that
Ya I don't expect it to be an overly complicated one on my first go. Some simple polishing, honing and cleaning it up.Quote:
Originally Posted by dirtychrome
Anyone use diamond stones for honing?
DMT 6" Dia-Sharp Kit
looking at that kit.
First,
Great razor, and IMHO you did steal it.
For cleaning the blade, not to be contradictory or anything, but I'd hit it with flitz or MAAS polish first to see if they take off that dark spot on the back, then try 2k wet sandpaper if needed, and only work your way down in grit as needed. Once in hand you might find that spot comes off with a finger nail.
I would very lightly hand polish the front of the blade with a very mild polish; Meguire's, Turtle Wax polish, etc. You don't want to remove all that pretty gold wash. It's always easy to get a stronger compound...it's impossible to put back gold wash once you've taken it away. Then you can only hope to put down NEW gold leaf...and that's in no way easy!
I'm shopping for hones myself, and once I scrape the dough together I plan to purchase here:
Lie-Nielsen Toolworks USA | Norton Waterstones
I don't know if anyone else has used these guys but their prices are better by about 15% and they have a broad selection of Nortons.
Let me know if you decide to order through them. I'd appreciate hearing your experience.
Peace,
So I guess the gold is easy to polish right off. Is there any other techniques / methods to preserve the gold inlay?
Quote:
Originally Posted by BigJim
Thanks BigJim,
You just saved me some money. I am planning on buying a Norton 4000/8000 and Lie-Nielsen is $10 cheaper than anywhere else I have looked. Thanks for the info and the link. I will let you know how the purchase goes.
Thanks DLB. I was glad to have found them, but need to save up some dough before I can test their customer service.Quote:
Originally Posted by DLB
I'll let you know.. Just purchased the 4000/8000Quote:
Originally Posted by BigJim
Best advice I can offer is to tape it over with a good painters tape. Use a razor blade/x-acto knife to score the tape (score, don't cut or you'll mar the face of the razor) around the edge of the wash and tear off the excess. Then peel the tape off the blade and stick it on a cutting board. Lay new tape over it and cut to size. I'd do two layers if I were hand polishing, four if I were using any kind of power tool. Leave the first layer on the cutting board as your template. Wipe the blade with alcohol to clean it good, then stick your tape over the wash and polish away. If you need to replace your "sticker" you can easily cut more tape layers based off the one on the cutting board, and won't risk putting scratches in the blade around the gold wash (If you do, you'll never get them out without removing the gold).Quote:
Originally Posted by mopar44o
Best of luck!
Just got the razor in the mail today. Its in as good shape as the photos show. There is some minor spots in the gold which will be interesting to deal with but in great shape. Pins are nice and tight, scales are clean and nick in blade doesn't look to bad.
I also got my waterstone from that company. The customer service is great. They even sent me a email asking about the product and checking to ensure I got it.
As soon as I effectively hone my other straight razor for the first time I'll start working on this one and post some updates.
Glad to hear you had a good experience. Thanks for sharing!Quote:
Originally Posted by mopar44o
First I agree -you stole it for that price,second unless your confident about your honing skills ,you might want a pro to clean it and hone her up as it so nice and you ll still be under $50,and practice on something that's not as pretty just my 2 cents
I have Robsen that's fairly plane with only some etching I'm practicing on first.Quote:
Originally Posted by Grizzley1
Quote:
Originally Posted by mopar44o
Shaving with a straight is a lot to learn. You don't want to have to try and fight both your bad technique and your bad honing from the get-go... I would leave honing for 6mos or a year from now when you are comfortable with the shaving itself...
I've been saving for 6-7 months now with the straight. Technique is pretty good now. Homing is the next thing on the list :/Quote:
Originally Posted by BKratchmer
I picked up a norton 220/1k and 4k/8k set. It came with a lapping stone, honing tray and DVD for $119 at peachtree. So far they are entirely servicable.
Ahhh, good to hear. I was just afraid you would be another frustrated guy with no context for what shave-ready really means.Quote:
Originally Posted by mopar44o
Now, go forth and prosper. :)
Nope.. Just don't have the skill to get it back to shave ready :(Quote:
Originally Posted by BKratchmer