Thread: What do you guys use to restore horn scales?

I just got a Wade and Butcher barber with horn scales on eBay and I want to clean up the scales and polish them up but I don't know how to go about it. Anyone have any tips or suggestions?

http://straightrazorpalace.com/showthread.php?t=5598

I generally just use maas... they usually polish up nicely. If they're really scratched, a light sanding with a very fine sandpaper helps, then polish.

I'll take the scratches out with sandpaper, then buff with a stitched muslin wheel, loaded with white compound.

the white (ultra fine) 3M scotch brite pads work well for me

I think the sandpaper method is what's called for in this instance. They seem to need quite a bit of surface refinishing. I also have discovered (upon further inspection) that apparently someone put a rubber band around this razor at one point to keep it closed and it caused the scales to warp a bit at the back (where the blade edge lives) that causes the scales to pinch together. So far I've run it under extremely hot water for a few minutes and jammed a very high tech gentle spacing/spreading device between the scales (haha...Q-tips rock) and they already stand farther apart than they did when I got it. Does anyone have some better suggestions for this process though?

Horn is lovely, in that it responds well to boiling water, without crusting and shrinking like celluloid. There are limits, but I'd disassemble it, boil the scales until they're soft, then put them on something flat, with a weight on top, until they firm up. Treat with neatsfoot oil to maintain the flexibility of the horn.

I find cape cod polishing cloths do a great job on all scale materials from Ivory, plastic, celluloid and horn. I just finished using them on my Dovo mammoth razor and the scales are like glass now. If the horn needs more, then a dremmel with some yellow rouge will do the trick.