Poor Man's Filarmonica Especial 14

I would say I'm too cheap to buy a filly (which is sort of true), but in the last month, I've bought almost a dozen NOS razors, all the way up to a tanifuji cape kennedy.

I am too cheap for the filly, I guess, but not for something particularly rare.

So I bought this off of ebay for $120 (plus another $18 to ship it here from uruguay), and thus it's not going to be a "look at what I got for $3" type of story:
Attachment 184105

And unfortunately I couldn't get most of the pitting out without getting rid of the etch, so the etch is gone. A full size 14 for $120+shipping doesn't have to keep its etch.

I spent an hour on it this morning and got most of the pitting out of it, and then another 15 minutes to get it honed. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

It had a tiny crack just forming at a nick near the front, but fortunately it hadn't progressed far, and I got that out without removing much blade.

Attachment 184107Attachment 184106

Still a little bit of pitting in it, as you can just make out, and that little bit of imperfection really shows up if you buff the mill marks out of the side of the razor (which I did), so I put the mill marks back.

The only thing I used on it was 220 grit wet and dry and a little cushioned drum that you can use on a lathe.

I feel bad about taking the etch off, but not because I care about the value, just because the maker put it on and it takes a bit of the personality away. But that's the way it goes.

I know nothing about the virtues of a filly, or the different types, just wanted one to shave with, and one that was not post jose monserrat.

No clue what size these things are, but the picture aspect makes it look like I removed more than I did. It's a little over 15/16ths from the top of the spine to the edge, I'd guess at the most, I removed a 32nd of an inch from the blade with a carborundum stone as I was getting rid of the nick.

You did well and saved a classic! The older ones were considered to be great shavers.
~Richard

Those old filarmonicas are indeed superb shavers, you did a great job!
Let us know how you like the shave.

I hope you guys are right (about the shave). this one rings like a bell when you're stropping it. It was probably already a fairly thin grind, but it's a bit thinner now.

Awesome find! That's no, "poor man's" Filarmonica...you got a great deal.

The shave with these is sublime...I feel that the razor literally sticks to your face, and I've never had a disappointing experience with any of the Filly's I own. IMO, the Filly's are one of those blades that are everything and more that they are cracked up to be.

Give it a few shaves, love to hear how you feel about it's performance.

You did a great job on it. Now i don't feel so bad on one I bought awhile back for cheap. I can't afford one of the nicer ones! Great find!

You did wonderful. I took a stab at one. $50
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Its top shelf plus a CMON to boot. You can go wrong nice job.

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Originally Posted by ultrasoundguy2003

You did wonderful. I took a stab at one. $50
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Its top shelf plus a CMON to boot. You can go wrong nice job.

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Now that's a treat! Thanks. You got a deal on that one!

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Originally Posted by ultrasoundguy2003

You did wonderful. I took a stab at one. $50
Attachment 184161Attachment 184159Attachment 184160Attachment 184156Attachment 184157


Its top shelf plus a CMON to boot. You can go wrong nice job.

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Nicely done! When I first started shaving, I came here from woodworking tools, where one expects to see an old tool looking like it's seen a little bit of rust or patina. It's strange how the razor market loves only NOS looking razors when it comes to driving the price high, because there sure isn't much different in the shave. Different market, different rules, but I'm happy in this case to refurbish one that doesn't garner much interest.

Crazy how much they bring even rusty, though!!

Shave this morning was fantastic. Really like any other nicely ground razor (by that I mean one that's accurate, straight and has a thin grind), but the size gets you persuasion that you don't get in a small razor. Brought a couple of weeps. Shaves a lot like the 7/8 razor I bought from some guy on ebay ("Frabil" branded), in that both are razors that have proportions of a smaller razor, except that every measurement is 25% bigger or so. Then can bring up weeps and razor burn if you don't remember that you have much more weight than an extra hollow 6/8.

There's a bit of sensation using a razor as large (it's long as well as tall) that it's sort of a sideshow act. Reminds me of the breakfast scene in pee wee's big adventure where pee wee uses an enormous tooth brush and then huge utensils. I could hear the crazy breakfast scene music in the back of my head this morning:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWd5D8wUc88

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Originally Posted by DaveW

Nicely done! When I first started shaving, I came here from woodworking tools, where one expects to see an old tool looking like it's seen a little bit of rust or patina. It's strange how the razor market loves only NOS looking razors when it comes to driving the price high, because there sure isn't much different in the shave. Different market, different rules, but I'm happy in this case to refurbish one that doesn't garner much interest.

Crazy how much they bring even rusty, though!!

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I would have bought it!

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Originally Posted by DaveW

Nicely done! When I first started shaving, I came here from woodworking tools, where one expects to see an old tool looking like it's seen a little bit of rust or patina. It's strange how the razor market loves only NOS looking razors when it comes to driving the price high, because there sure isn't much different in the shave. Different market, different rules, but I'm happy in this case to refurbish one that doesn't garner much interest.

Crazy how much they bring even rusty, though!!

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SHHHHHH whats wrong with you????
Oh no if its rusty its TRASH.
Dont even bid on that piece of junk.
It belongs in a scrap heap.
If it wasnt for these finds I would never have been able to shave with this quality and level of razor that and 10Pups mentoring me I have been able to enjoy blades way above my paygrade.
Seriously that junk pile holds priceless unloved PROJECTS.
Like reclaimed lumber out of the burned out houses in Detroit. Wood of a quality that is irreplaceable. Just have to go in with a crowbar and a sidearm but its free.

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Originally Posted by engine46

I would have bought it!

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What you did with the Dremmel IS amazing, that is high quality work Engine.

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Originally Posted by ultrasoundguy2003

What you did with the Dremmel IS amazing, that is high quality work Engine.

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I have mentioned it before & had some negative responses but all you have to do is be very careful with them & watch which direction the thing is turning. You never want it to turn against the edge. As I said before, I bought Lynn's dvd & he showed enough on there to learn how to use one correctly on a straight. Thanks for the compliment ultrasoundguy2003. I have made some really shiny razors from piss poor looking condition. Those little buffing wheel last about one per blade most of the time. They come 5-6 in a pack so they are cheap enough. I've had several that turned out real nice like that Boker Imperial as long as they weren't rusty & all pitted. You can still make them look good if they do but one w/o rust makes it so much better. The tarnish that you normally can't get by hand is so much easier using a Dremel & some Maas! I love it.

I'm using something a little different than you guys (I do have a dremel and one with a flex attachment, but...)..

It looks like this and I chuck it in a lathe and put 220 wet and dry on it. Woodcraft has them, I got mine at rockler. They're a bit cumbersome for paper, but the rubber top layer on the drum has a lot of give, which makes 220 wet and dry leave a forgiving finish. The downside is that you have to approach with caution on one side of a razor and avoid getting a catch or the thing could literally just rip a chunk out of a razor (I did that long ago with a dremel and pinged a chunk out of a razor, junking it instantly).

Attachment 184216

Of course, you have to have a lathe to use something like this - it's a heavy stable platform to use it and it allows you to keep control of the razor with two hands. I chucked it in a drill chuck, and not a jaw chuck - which would just have all kinds of spinning metal parts that could catch and fling a razor.

(I have no idea what the "right" way to do any of this is - I could stand to go back and run the drum into the top corner of the razor near the shoulder in the first picture, I see there's a spot that I missed a bit)

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Originally Posted by DaveW

I'm using something a little different than you guys (I do have a dremel and one with a flex attachment, but...)..

It looks like this and I chuck it in a lathe and put 220 wet and dry on it. Woodcraft has them, I got mine at rockler. They're a bit cumbersome for paper, but the rubber top layer on the drum has a lot of give, which makes 220 wet and dry leave a forgiving finish. The downside is that you have to approach with caution on one side of a razor and avoid getting a catch or the thing could literally just rip a chunk out of a razor (I did that long ago with a dremel and pinged a chunk out of a razor, junking it instantly).

Attachment 184216

Of course, you have to have a lathe to use something like this - it's a heavy stable platform to use it and it allows you to keep control of the razor with two hands. I chucked it in a drill chuck, and not a jaw chuck - which would just have all kinds of spinning metal parts that could catch and fling a razor.

(I have no idea what the "right" way to do any of this is - I could stand to go back and run the drum into the top corner of the razor near the shoulder in the first picture, I see there's a spot that I missed a bit)

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I use a Dremel for polishing blades on straights & it works well but like I mentioned above this, I have had some negative responses on here about using a Dremel on a blade but the secret is that you have to watch which way the tool is turning. You always want the Dremel to turn away from the cutting edge. If you go to this page & scroll down a little, you will see my Boker Imperial I polished with my Dremel:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...erhood-60.html
I have Lynn's dvd that tells how to use a Dremel in the right way which is how I started doing it & so far i haven't damaged any blades out of many I have polished! I have had some people say that they would never use a Dremel on a blade but I respect them for their suggestions.

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Originally Posted by engine46

I have had some people say that they would never use a Dremel on a blade but I respect them for their suggestions.

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I would, and I would do exactly what you're suggesting, using it so that it's turning swarf off the end of the blade while it's turning, regardless of where it is. I got in trouble with one early on thinking I was a safe distance from the edge and then I got a catch on a drum. Bang!!

I used the lathe drum in this case because I wanted fast due some relatively deep pitting. If I didn't have a lathe, I'd have used the dremel because it wouild've taken hours and hours to hand sand and I would've lost focus.

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Originally Posted by DaveW

I would, and I would do exactly what you're suggesting, using it so that it's turning swarf off the end of the blade while it's turning, regardless of where it is. I got in trouble with one early on thinking I was a safe distance from the edge and then I got a catch on a drum. Bang!!

I used the lathe drum in this case because I wanted fast due some relatively deep pitting. If I didn't have a lathe, I'd have used the dremel because it wouild've taken hours and hours to hand sand and I would've lost focus.

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I have done the same thing but luckily, nothing happened. No damage was done. It works great the way I say to use it or you can get into trouble.

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Originally Posted by DaveW

It's strange how the razor market loves only NOS looking razors when it comes to driving the price high, because there sure isn't much different in the shave. Different market, different rules, but I'm happy in this case to refurbish one that doesn't garner much interest.

Crazy how much they bring even rusty, though!!

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Yes, but you have to know what you're doing in order to take advantage of a razor in lesser condition. Some of you can recognize a razor that can be brought back and have the ability to do it. The rest of us look at those with skepticism knowing that we might not be able to tell one that is too far gone or we will have to calculate the cost of having it restored and rolling that into the overall cost. So there is greater demand for those in NOS condition. All that said, I'm very grateful for the price that I got my NOS Filly Muleta. Obviously it was a fraction of what is normally asked for this razor. And it IS a magnificent razor. Congrats on the purchase and restoration.

Anyone who engages in the preservation and restoration to use of old Filis is doing God's Work.

Well Done Fellows!