Does anyone know anything about polishing razor scales;waxes,compound grit sticks,metal polish,ect:shrug:THANKS.
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Does anyone know anything about polishing razor scales;waxes,compound grit sticks,metal polish,ect:shrug:THANKS.
Depending on how bad they are I sand with medium grit to fine. Then polish with mothers or some other metal polish. Works on horn, bone, celluloid, bakalite, etc.
Sounds like a winner have all that -----------will give it a try:idea:
I start with a good cleaning WD40 and 0000 steel wool, then simple green and water.
Sand lightly with 1 & 2k wet & dry, polish with Mothers and paper towel, then Novus No. 3 and finish with Novus No.2 with a micro fiber of cotton cloth. Novus no. 1 is good for light cleaning and polish followed by no. 2. You don’t need much. Just a dab.
You can buy the 3 bottle trial 2oz. pack for $10.
Novus is specifically made for polishing clear Plexiglas works great on all plastic and horn.
Euclid440 has a good method. I use many different ones also depending on the scales themselves.
Wash the scales first, citrus cleaner, if they are limescaled use vinegar then cleaner...Use a pipe cleaner on the inside.
Use toothpaste to get the first shine on them and then the polish.
Old hard rubber ( black) scales do need the sanding to get below the oxidized top layer( orangeish) and so I like to start with 600-1k Wet or Dry and go upward from there. The devil is in getting around the pins! 00 then 000 then 0000 steel wool will do that.
You will do what it takesd and find differing methods for yourself as time passes.
~Richard
What material are the scales made of?
Do you get the novus at local stores or do the internet?Thanks
I was given a trial pack, from my son in law who said he got it at Restoration Hardware. I found the larger 8oz bottles at The Container Store, 7-8 dollars for 8oz of no. 3.
I like to use a clean polishing wheel on the grinder. But that's after sanding all the way up to 4000 grit. But when using the wheel on a finish (like CA) never let it sit for too long on one spot. And also, when in doubt... start with a finer grit. Blades are a good example, I've screwed up and went way too low (80 grit) and spent forever trying to get those scratches out! Did the same with scales.
amen,theres a lot of solutions out there,but looked around here as to what I had that I can use before I go shopping.Noticed that most scales come with grime,oil,etc.,so started with what I had.Started with a steel brillo pad with soap, worked real good,next had 220 grit sand paper ,next #400 but, I can see need at least #800------#1200 grit.after that used dermel tool with moms wheel paste wax ,repeated the wax several times.It works great ,but theres room for improvement:D
Dude, take it easy with dremel polishing tool on celluloid and bakelite. They will burn really fast! Elbow grease is the tool of choice for synthetics.
Wow, 220?
I start at 1K and drop to 600, 600 scratches are easy to remove and 1k will buff with metal polish.
Are you removing deep scratches?
I was wondering if the scales are celluloid? Haven't tried it, but seems as though 220 would have a bit too much cut and deep scratches.
Also I have a buddy who uses some kind of car polish, forgot what type, but it was found on that late nite tv shopping station. I'll need to ask him.
I don't do as much serious restoration with celluloid unless it's still in really nice condition, usually when the scales are jacked up I remove and replace, or at least that's what I have in mind on most of the many "projects" that await me... Lol! Ugh.
yep,been there with the dremel tool,even with buffer with 6" wheels will give you problems over 1700 rpm's.thanks
Have not had any deep scratches so far will make a trip tomorrow to lowes.Wooden scales are harder to shine up,tried wood wax but just gives a satin finish:thinking:I did find a greasless plastic compound tube in my razor gear,will try with my 6" buffer wheel.Thanks.
Most intelligent reply here. A picture and description are mandatory as giving ANY advise, guys.Quote:
Originally Posted by holli4pirating
Horn scales would have a vastly different answer than Bone, Bakelite or Celluloid.
Answers willy-nilly will not help someone do what needs to be done with what he has in-hand. JMO
So, OP. Tell them what you have and produce a pic?
well going through 52 razors create a large supply of scales to work on,you name it and I probably have it.As far as I know wooden and bone handles are the tough ones.HOOK 'EM HORNS:chapeau
It matters a lot as to what you are working with, I think. Need to know what the scales are? :hmmm:Quote:
Originally Posted by semperfi6141
GIG 'Em AGGIES! :rofl2:
Novus 1 , 2, 3 system is celluloid/bakelite friendly.
Got to lowes today looking for some fine sheets of sandpaper,well 400 grit was all I could find starting to walk off and spotted some 3M
3 2/3" x 9" sheets of 600 grit in package of 5,also found the 800 grit same size.will give it a try:)
full sheets were the
I found 1500 and 2000 grit at home depot. Surprising because the most I found there every other time I think was 600.
I really like the micro-mesh sand paper. But it's hella expensive. But even still it lasts a long time if you're gentle with it. The material backing helps to give a good rounded look on edges because it forms to your fingers..
Also tested a whole range of materials to put behind various sand papers. Cheap round sponges or the standard rectangular ones bent in half.. just an example. Helped me with the inner curves coupled with changing the direction of sanding..
Was the 1500 and 2000 found in full sheets?Sounds good will give it a try and see what I can find----thanks
I found the sheets in 3 2/3" x 9" packs. They were 800, 1000, 1500, and 2000.
Lately I've been trying to find a cheap place to buy micro-mesh sandpaper. The ones I bought a while back are fairly worn out, was using them today and was just thinking about how much I like them. When I bought them I was thinking "what the hell!!! That's expensive" but now after using them and using them more, and still they are working, I think it's worth it.
Anyway, I've been really letting everything get in the way of my next project, so tomorrow I'm working on it all day! Will try to get pictures of the process too, always forget that..
By the way I tried posting pictures without any luck ---got to the attachment part clicked on it ,that's as far as I got:thinking:
The 3M 3x9" only went to 800 and stopped at lowe's:shrug:So far the 600----800 working great,will try home depot next.
As far as sourcing sandpaper locally, I have had much better luck looking in auto part stores for higher grit range w/d sandpaper than the big box hardware stores.
Quote:
Originally Posted by semperfi6141
So, the wooden and bone scales are the ones you are asking about polishing??
I'm working on a set of horn and CA glue finished wood scales. I ordered a set of micromesh pads and they worked great. If I had gotten all the imperfection out beforehand with a lower grit, the final finish would be like glass.
Try an Auto parts store, they usually have 1-4k. I also have bought 800-6k half sheets pack at Wall Mart, in a locked cabinet, in Automotive Dept. A good Ace Hardware has full sheets, up to 2k in stock. Ace also carries Crocus Cloth for a Satin finish. Not all Ace stores stock the same stuff.
The higher grits and Micro Mesh last a long time, I buy Micro Mesh in pads and paper locally, from Hobby Lobby.
great never heard of this stuff its a time saver:idea:
Walmart has an auto body repair section with every kind of grit up to 3k trizact for CHEAP
Just a simple caution, Wash the wet dry paper before use. Not very hard but to remove other grits and loose grit. A little bit of cheap disk soap make for easy sanding. On steel, rinse well and oil after sanding and final sand with a thin oil.
~Richard
The heavy lifting in sanding is at the low grits. If done correctly, much like honing, moving up in grits should go quickly. So, micro mesh and high grit papers over 1k should last a long time.
Where you will wear them out is, using too high a grit to begin with. I like starting with 600 grit, 600 scratches are easily removed with 800 or 1k for removing tarnish or just refreshing a blade.
If the blade is in good shape but polish does not make it pop, I use some 1k, and if after a few strokes it still looks dull, I drop to 600.
If you are doing repair work, removing scratches or pitting, you will have to go deeper with lower grits or greasless. Do remove any deep scratches with cross directional sanding before moving up, this will save your high grit papers.
So, a sheet or two of over 1k, will last a long time, but when I find them I always buy a few extra sheets. Castwell Plating carries a very good wet & dry selection, up to 3K for about .50 a sheet. Really after 1 or 2k you can easily go to a good metal polish, I use Mother’s for pre-polish, then Maas, Flitz or Novus for final polish, or buffer.
As Geezer said, do wash your paper prior to use and it can be unclogged with Bartender’s Keeper and Scotch Brite or fingernail brush to extend life.
I've used MicroMesh fabric (1,500-12,000) on soft woods, hardwood trim, fingernails, vulcanite/ebonite, Lucite (acrylic) and polycarbonate (Lexan). Wet sanding, starting with the correct lowest grit and working to the top, always produces a mirror-like wet glass finish.Quote:
Originally Posted by Euclid440
Would any scale materials mentioned above NOT be suitable for MM? I am lazy and prefer using a low speed/medium wheel for non-metal polishing but not eveyone has a low speed wheel (for plastics) - never found MM to fail in anything except the "time saved" department which, for onesies and twosies, doesn't matter.
Very good information to have ---thanks.
as others have mentioned I also sand with W&D up to 2000 paper then I have 3k, 4k & 5k foam sanding disks,
after that it is onto the polishing and depending on the material that can be just RenWax by hand or I use the buffer with Ferrox, Autosol or just renwax
all finished by hand with a clean microfiber cloth
Attachment 208240Attachment 208241found nine old razors this past week at antique store. Some good blades, and scales. De-pinned this blade, cleaned up. Broken scales from another razor. Taped end of scales together, rotary sander and shaped with 600 grit then 1000 grit. Hand buffed with 0000 steel wool. Positioned blade on inside of one scale, marked pivot hole. Drilled hole. Re-taped scales, drilled other side and pinned.
WOW---Nice job how does it shave?:gl:
