Thread: Need help figuering out if a straight is worth it...

Hello gents :] Long time since my last visit here ..

I started working on a straight I got from a package of 20 scrap razors...
It's a Buck&Ryan in a poor condition, and it had cell-rot on it's scales that did a number on it.
The main damage that concerns me is on the end of the blade, above the toe. There's some nasty pitting there going 1-2 mm into the metal, with [literally] microscopic chips on the bevel that can be taken care of in a minute.


Now I'm wondering if hand sanding that part is worth it, or should I just shorten the blade..?
The above picture is after 2 hours of sanding...

When sanding your are essentially removing metal fro the entire blade to make everything the same thickness as the bottom of the pits. In this case it is on the tip and really deep. I am not sure you would have enough steel left for the blade to be strong enough. You can certainly start down that road and decide when you can tell a little better. It looks to me like shortening that blade will be the only way to save it. The rest of the visible blade looks like it needs tons of work too. You should be able to kern a lot trying to get this one back in action.

Originally Posted by Haim

Hello gents :] Long time since my last visit here ..

I started working on a straight I got from a package of 20 scrap razors...
It's a Buck&Ryan in a poor condition, and it had cell-rot on it's scales that did a number on it.
The main damage that concerns me is on the end of the blade, above the toe. There's some nasty pitting there going 1-2 mm into the metal, with [literally] microscopic chips on the bevel that can be taken care of in a minute.


Now I'm wondering if hand sanding that part is worth it, or should I just shorten the blade..?
The above picture is after 2 hours of sanding...

I would suggest sanding down the blade until the rest of it is good - in other words, don't bring the rest of the blade to the point of the toe, bring the blade to good, taking that same necessary amount off the toe even though it won't be enough for the toe -then re-evaluate. At that point you can decide if the pitting has been taken care of enough for your liking, or if you should get practice shortening a blade that is not honestly good for that much else than practicing on, and perhaps saving it! Sounds like this is a good blade to practice on. Enjoy!

I would be hesitant to put more work into the blade until I was sure that the blade had enough good clean metal to set a bevel. At that point reshape the tip to your liking and blend in the pitting a bit. This blade may end up being chalked up to a learning experience. There is nothing wrong with that, just don't put to much effort into polishing a turd

I wouldn't put any more work into that razor,,,

If you have already scaled it, then I would make a tool out of it, slap a 1K edge on it, open packages with it, display it, anything but shaving. JMO

thanks, everyone :]
I guess this blade will make a good practice blade for cutting, although now I discovered some cell-rot damage on the spine, so I think I'll just clean it, oil it and keep it for display... just until I get a buffer and then it will make a good practice blade for it :]

Too bad.. The scales had the initials of a previous owner on it.. Made me connect to this blade more than the others...

Hone it, see if there is any good metal there.
Why do you want to save it?
Sometimes, you just have to stop CPR.
There are other patients that require your attention.

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Hone it, see if there is any good metal there.
Why do you want to save it?
Sometimes, you just have to stop CPR.
There are other patients that require your attention.

Don't know, actually... I oddly respect my razors.. they're little pieces of history which I wish I was part of..
I guess you're right... I'll oil it and store it... at least until I finish building my display\cemetery :]

I always set the bevel to see if there is good steel there or not, then move on from there.