Thread: Straightening Scales

I've got a Bismarck Razor Works in it's original scales that say Bismarck Registered...but they're warped. I've read some of the threads and have a general idea of the concept, but still have some questions.
What scale materials can be straightened? I'm not sure what these scales are made of, so hopefully someone more knowledgeable can advise me on what I can do.
Application wise, I've heard of some using hot water and some using a heat gun...which should I use on these?

Here are some pics of the scales. The last one shows how the razor is closing.

i've had good luck with just a hair dryer. those scales are probably celluloid or Bakelite ( i'm still unsure how to tell them apart but one smells like camphor when heated and the other smells acrid). it will probably be easier to straighten them if you unpin at least one end. i then hold the dryer on my lap so i have both hands free and bend it in the direction i want while heating. it will probably take several tries of heating and cooling. sometimes it's necessary to let them rest a day before repining because they could flex back. if so just repeat until straight. hope this helps.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...ed-scales.html

A thread that shows how to do it...

I have a thin piece of wood that will fit between the scales. I heat the scale with a hair dryer and slip the wood between the scales and leave them to cool…

Hmm, I think I'm gonna have to unpin the scales completely and straighten each side individually, dip a side in hot water, and clamp in between two pieces of wood...seems the simplest plan

Originally Posted by bouschie

I have a thin piece of wood that will fit between the scales. I heat the scale with a hair dryer and slip the wood between the scales and leave them to cool…

I'd do something like this if there was just one bend, but there's two and I'm not sure how it would work out doing that. There's one bend on the end and then there's a bow on the one side further down