Thread: jimps

Originally Posted by Tarkus

I once put jimps on a hand file razor that I made that was still hard. I used a surface grinder and a very hard grinding wheel (Too keep sharp wheel corner).
Worked like a charm...

Tarkus, that must be the most perfect blade bushing EVER!

Originally Posted by sharptonn

Tarkus, that must be the most perfect blade bushing EVER!

Yes, well that doesn't exactly qualify as DIY material
With a pro tool like that it certainly looks nice!

Originally Posted by Iceni

I think you would put them on with something like a "thread file".

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=th...w=1920&bih=996

My take on jimps,

If there smooth and not too abrasive to the touch then they make a razor better. If it's a choice of no jimps or rough/sharp ones I'll take no jimps any day.

I think a checkering file like this Grobet 6 Checkering File 40 Lines per Inch might be a better alternative, that is if the tang is soft enough for it to be doable by hand.

Max and Bruno have been trying to give you guys sound advice, they are makers of razors & know their stuff. Most straight razors have tangs that are as hard or harder than files unless they are annealed. Unless you have industrial type equipment adding jimps are really a no go if you want it to look pleasing to the eye...just use alum on your hands.

Originally Posted by shooter74743

Max and Bruno have been trying to give you guys sound advice, they are makers of razors & know their stuff. Most straight razors have tangs that are as hard or harder than files unless they are annealed. Unless you have industrial type equipment adding jimps are really a no go if you want it to look pleasing to the eye...just use alum on your hands.

With the sidenode that alum on the razor itself can cause discolouration.

Isn't there sure a thing as a diamond checkering file?

Originally Posted by Laurens

With the sidenode that alum on the razor itself can cause discolouration.

Isn't there sure a thing as a diamond checkering file?

Not that I am aware of. There are diamond files, but even then, filing steel at 1 rockwell hardness is going to be a chore, and might still oook ugly because initially, your cut is going to be so shallow the file will skate all over the place.

I did some digging and it has been done on at least one old Sheffie, he used a 30 lines per inch checkering file, as opposed to the 40 that I linked.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...er-photos.html

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30 lines per inch

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/677...lines-per-inch

I have put jimps on several old razors using Grobet Checkering Files from MidwayUSA. I have them in 20 lines per inch, 30 lines, and 40 lines. I mostly use the 30 line per inch file. They also have a 50 line file, but I haven't tried it.


I have not had any real problem cutting into the older razors, although I did round off the outermost line on the 40 when I got right up in the corner near one blade.

(I believe I did this one with the 20 line per inch checkering file.)




(This was the 30.)




The checkering files are easy to use. You just pick where you want to start, and then try to cut perpendicular to your tang. Once you get started, you just need to make overlapping cuts to widen the area of the jimps. If you cut from both sides it seems to help keep the lines perpendicular. If you curve the edges of your tang, you can rock the file to follow the curve.

On razors that I am making myself, I file the jimps before I heat treat, as I know the steel is annealed at that point. I do find that I need to go over the jimps again after heat treating, not to re-cut them, but just to clean out any scale or discoloration.

This is one I completed recently.




I have also been engraving my name and the steel onto the tangs before heat treating, but cleaning up the blade after heat treating tends to partially sand out the engraving. Therefore, on the batch I am working on now, I intend to soften the hardened tangs with a torch and then engrave them when they are otherwise finished. My intention is just to clamp the razors, blade down, in a container of water, with the tang protruding above the surface. That way the water will keep the blade from being overheated. I see no reason why this same technique couldn't be used to blue the tang on any other finished razor so that jimps could be cut in without damaging the checkering file. (This might not work on a stainless steel blade I suppose, depending on it's initial tempering temperature.)

Originally Posted by Bruno

Yes, well that doesn't exactly qualify as DIY material
With a pro tool like that it certainly looks nice!

But, of course!