Thread: First complete restore.

Not sure if in right spot feel free to move if not. I completed my first full restoration. The razor is a Koken No. 27. Made new scales out of cherry and stained (which I completely screwed up). Blade itself was in good condition when bought. Very light discoloration no sanding just used emery compound on the buffing wheel followed by jewelers rouge and hand polish. I'm proud of myself. Small chip in blade edge where I dropped it. I'll hone some other time just got done with an hour of peening and my head is aching lol. If anyone has any critique I'll gladly hear it

I don't think anybody can be any harder on you than you are on yourself.
Take more time on the scale making less on the pining and don't drop them :<0)
The first 1 is always tough but you learn as you go. At least you didn't cut yourself.

Ya the scales actually looked really good before I stained them I have never stained anything in my life so ya could of gone better

The razor looks OK. My biggest critique is your pictures are not very revealing. The nice thing about working on your razors is that you can at any point go back and change the little things you don't like. I bet you can lighten that stain with steel wool, or sand it off it you don't like it. Sorry about the chip.

Ah, that's a bummer about the edge. I like to see progress photos. I think it helps in the rebuild because you stop working look at the blade from a bunch of angles from a different viewpoint. The scale shape and material looks pretty neat, though my personal preference would be a more natural finish. But that's what I prefer on everything and can be a little dull at times.

Looks good, cherry can be difficult to stain, pre wetting with mineral spirits or a stain controller can help. Experiment on scraps.

As said it can be re finished if you are not happy.

Pinning, like most things gets easier with practice, nice scale shape.

I think they look pretty good, any chance we can get better pics?

Looks like you are off to a good start! I started with microfasteners and started peening much later so you are way ahead of where I was after my first set of scales
My best advice is to take your time, and take frequent breaks so you don't get frustrated. Your razors will get better and better every time

Cherry is one of my favorite woods but it can take stain unevenly. When I have to stain it I use a "spit coat" of thinned shellac first, then sanded very lightly before applying the stain. I prefer, though, to not stain cherry at all and let it age naturally. Cherry has the unique property of continuing to darken as it ages resulting in a nice rich color naturally. If you have the time to wait.

Looks good though. And yes you will be your own hardest critic. The chip doesn't look too bad so hopefully you can just butterknife, bevel set and hone your way to a functional razor.