Thread: What are you working on?

Some things I made today (I forged the blanks last week, today I did the grinding, HT, and some post-HT grinding.

Bruno, pushing the boundaries of conventional straights as always, awesome work. I love that last one, incredible!

Originally Posted by Bruno

+1. I've gotten fed up with the crap in my workshop and garage, and I've gone on a cleaning spree, taking no prisoners. Everything that I don't see a specific use for is going / gone. 3 loaded uhauls to the recycling park already, and there is more to do. I plan to clean up the entire workshop and continue with my approach where all related things go together in a box, even if that means buying more of the same thing. For example, I have a big box with padded enveloped, registration forms, stamps, duct tape, labels, etc. So that if I need to prepare a package, I only need to take out 1 box. And everything related to pinning is in a single multi-compartment box as well.

Sounds like what I need to do!!!

Definitely what I need to do! This cold front that pushed in should encourage me to get out and do some straightening...if work/job would stay out of the way.

a pair of Elias Batrus, Altoona PA.

Hmmmmm. Altoona! Isn't that where Aunt Una was from?

One of the first straights I bought was a ran tan ka rus from Sweden.
Ever since I bought it it rubbed against the scale side when closing. I presumed the scales were warped and figure I would replace them. They were not the nice ones with the red devil imp engraved on them, just black wood.
So I stripped them down only to find it was the blade warped at the tang, not the scales.


So I clamped the blade in a machinists vice just ahead of where the bend seemed to apex and gave her some love taps with a deadblow mallet. Scary how much I had to deflect her but she came back in line.
So on to the scales.
Sometimes an idea looks cooler in your head than in your hand but I wanted to try some scroll work, originally wanting to do a devils face in red stain on a black handle.
Then realizing I'm not that good, I settled for something else. Still as a nod to the red devil name of the razor.

So I started with some hardwood and tried my hands at one piece cutting, leaving lots to dremel out as my design took form.

I then traced out the original scale size as a reference and started to draw out my idea.
Then I went to the dremel, then to the steaming pot of water for bowing the wood.

I then stained her in ebony, and highlighted the tail in red stain. The tail took many coats and still looked muted so I grabbed some red paint and tried to dilute it down to allow some darkness through.





Turned out a lil more cartoony than I planned but WTF I don't sell or trade my toys and am still just learning what works and doesn't with straights, and their accessories.
Figured it was fun to do while I smoked in the garage and had a few drams of scotch..
I now have my 'go to' Halloween shaver.
Oh yea, and the wood I used? Ash for the devil, of course.. Hehe
Cheers.

This oughta keep me busy for a bit. They're all pretty much full restos. Bought at a flea market for $60.

When they're bent like that, sometimes you have to give them a little love to get them back to normal. I've had to do the same & give them a few light love taps with a brass hammer to get them straight again.