Thread: On celluloid process - (Not exactly about straight razors)

Hi Neil,
Thanks for the clarification,

The first was used to make things like billiards balls - which problematically exploded when they hit each other, making for quite an exciting game I should think!

Haha !! I can see the faces in the billiard hall :P

So if I read you well both nitrate and acetate are called Celluloid and the one that razor scales are made of is acetate, hence the acetic corrosion ... then you say that an evolution of the formulation must have occurred in time, that brings me to a question : what about modern acetates ? do you know about it ? is it better stabilized ?

I'm often surprised of the actual age of some pretty well conserved vintage blades around, and considering that we could say that the razors have survived 2 if not 3 or even more generations before degrading ... what kind of hazard would it be to make new acetates scales with new acetate in 2013 ?

Lo.

Originally Posted by oxomoxo

Hi Neil,
Thanks for the clarification,



Haha !! I can see the faces in the billiard hall :P

So if I read you well both nitrate and acetate are called Celluloid and the one that razor scales are made of is acetate, hence the acetic corrosion ... then you say that an evolution of the formulation must have occurred in time, that brings me to a question : what about modern acetates ? do you know about it ? is it better stabilized ?

I'm often surprised of the actual age of some pretty well conserved vintage blades around, and considering that we could say that the razors have survived 2 if not 3 or even more generations before degrading ... what kind of hazard would it be to make new acetates scales with new acetate in 2013 ?

Lo.

That is correct, Lo, both types are called celluloid. Technically, Parkesine and Rhodoid are also celluloid, but are called by their tradenames in much the same way that Vax, Hoover and Dyson are all vacuum cleaners.

As far as modern celluloid is concerned, I have used material from Italy and a couple of places in the US. I believe there is also a factory in Japan. One of the US sources that sold me sheets actually sent something that reeked of fibre glass resin and refunded my money when I complained. Pity the import duty cost me more than the material!

One can only trust that modern celluloid will survive longer than the old stuff. However it is a material based on unstable chemicals and ultimately it will degrade - the question is not if, but when.

Regards,
Neil