Thread: 1st restore, advice needed

Hello all, picked up a nice CF Schwartz from an antique store last week. It was in decent shape with a good bevel and I figured it would be a good start to practice restoration.

The blade and spine show very light oxidation. I tried removing it with 0000 steel wool and a variety of metal polishes, but after about 5-6 hours put in I see almost no difference. The tang had more rusting and pitting so I sanded 400, 600, 900 and it's coming along well, but I feel I will have to go back to the 400 for a while to remove all the pitting.

My question is, for what is shown, how low of a grit should I start with to remove the oxidation on the blade/spine? I worry about getting too aggressive and ending up in the butchered blade thread myself [emoji16]. On the tang I'm also concerned that if I get to aggressive I'll wipe out the stamping. Any way to avoid this? All criticism and advice is appreciated [emoji3]

And as purchased pictures:

I wouldn't go any lower than 400 on this blade. unless you really want to get all the pitting out.I usually end up with some pitting especially like the picture of the tang end. to me it's just not worth the effort to have it absolutely flawless. I say let it show it's age. are you using some sort of lubricant with your sandpaper(like WD-40?)

Originally Posted by tintin

I wouldn't go any lower than 400 on this blade. unless you really want to get all the pitting out.I usually end up with some pitting especially like the picture of the tang end. to me it's just not worth the effort to have it absolutely flawless. I say let it show it's age. are you using some sort of lubricant with your sandpaper(like WD-40?)

Yes I am using a lubricant, WD-40 or 3 in 1 oil, whatever is nearby at the time haha. I definitely do want to get all the pitting out, I am a perfectionist. At the same time, I think I would rather preserve the stamping as much as possible and just work around it if need be.

Your project is looking nice.

You say that you are a 'Perfectionist'.

I would urge you to avoid the 'TRAP' of trying to make Every Razor have a Near Mirror Finish (NMF). There is absolutely nothing wrong with leaving some history and battle scars.

There are 'Some' here who insist on putting on the NMF on razors that Never Had That Finish! Personally I find them repulsive. But that's just my 'preference'.

Here's a couple of examples of razors I'd Never do more with.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...ered-horn.html

http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...n-cleanup.html

Im becoming like Cuda. The more of these things that I restore, the more age I don't mind leaving. In the beginning I was out for the perfect restore. But the more liquid mirror blades that I see the less I like them.

Now to answer your question. You can start out with the higher grits (1000-1500) and slowly work your way down to the lowest grit that will remove what your after. Then work your way back up. This way you are only going as low as it takes to remove what you want to remove verses going all the down to a really coarse grit like 150 or 200. They leave big scratches that create more work to remove as you go back in grit.

You may find by doing this that you will only need to drop down to 600-800. Making your work easier. All of this is assuming that you are hand sanding. If you have a sanding/buffing wheel set up then the labor of hand sanding is a moot point but the grit progression is the same.

Originally Posted by cudarunner

I would urge you to avoid the 'TRAP' of trying to make Every Razor have a Near Mirror Finish (NMF). There is absolutely nothing wrong with leaving some history and battle scars.

Originally Posted by Suticat

Im becoming like Cuda. The more of these things that I restore, the more age I don't mind leaving. In the beginning I was out for the perfect restore. But the more liquid mirror blades that I see the less I like them.

First, thank you for your help. I agree that many razors are better left with some history showing. For me this would be razors with sentimental value, very old/rare razors, or unique blades. Because this razor fits into none of those categories, I respectfully decline the option to let it be. I will attempt the "liquid mirror" finish on this one. Perhaps after a few more restores I will tire of this and go for a new look [emoji4]

@Suticat: No power tools here! I remember reading a post by Bruno in a sticky thread saying...

Originally Posted by Bruno

Additionally, I can do this (hand sanding) while sitting in the couch next to my wife, instead of in the garage where I can work with power tools.

With my busy work schedule the extra hours with my wife are precious to me and I have no need or desire to rush this restore anyhow [emoji4]

That tang looks very light, I have an inkling that a few swipes will remove legibility quite quickly.

It is probably a good exercise to take a razor (not all, just one or a few) to mirror finish. To test what works for you and to really nail down technique. Be warned though, one stray scratch will eat at you like bugs through our horn scales.

The first thing - and most important thing to bear in mind is that you do not remove pits. You take away all the metal that surrounds them so that everything is at the same level.

When looking at a blade from that perspective, it helps enormously, because you then get a realistic picture of what you want to keep as opposed to the number of hours you would need to spend achieving a pristine finish.

Many hollow ground razors will suffer if you remove too much metal - and many near wedges have been ruined becuase someone has spent too much time and attention on a specific area and change the geometry in doing so.

My advice is to accept that there is a limit as to what you can - and need to do with an old razor.

Start with 600, that will tell you if you need to go deeper and if not, the 600 grit scratches are easy to remove.

Cut your sheet into 3x3 inch pieces and mark the grit on the back of each piece, it you don’t you will forget what the grit size is later. A Garage Sale paper cutter works great for cutting up a sheet.

Wrap the paper around a wine cork and if you need more width, wrap the cork with a 3X3 in piece of 6mm craft foam,(one dollar at a craft store) for a 9X12in piece. The wider, thicker the backer/wine cork & foam, the easier it is on your fingers. Keep moving the sand paper to a fresh side when you feel it stop cutting. Don’t be afraid to go through some paper, it is relatively cheap.

Buy another sheet to work on. Take a couple swipes on the edge of a stone with the edge, to kill it and keep from cutting yourself.

Working on the 6mm foam, the pressure from sanding will imbed the edge of the razor into the foam and protect your hands. Two more 3X3 in pieces will allow you to work on a razor with the scales still on, one piece under the blade and the other under the tang.

Sand from spine to edge, then from heel to toe, removing each direction’s scratches. After a bit of sanding you will see if you need to go deeper with some 400 grit. On that razor I would not go heavier than 400, the 600 should clean up the spine nicely and save the stamp. You can hit it with some 1k to bring up a shine and decide if you want to go deeper or not. From 2k it will polish easily and nicely with a good metal polish.

Take your time and keep alternating sanding direction.

Foam pad is under the paper towel in the photos, the towel collects all the dirt and oil if you use WD40 for cleaning or sanding.