Thread: Start first restoration Fernando Esser & Co

I started my first restoration. First I tried handsanding the blade, but after a couple of hours I realized I wasn't making any progress at all. So I tried machine sanding with a 180 grit flapwheel wich I placed in a fixed drill.

I managed to remove 'most' of the stains, execpt for some black rust wich is embedded a little deeper.

I haven't hand-sanded it with 400,600 or higher yet, so this isn't the end result.

Originally Posted by Desiderius

I started my first restoration. First I tried handsanding the blade, but after a couple of hours I realized I wasn't making any progress at all. So I tried machine sanding with a 180 grit flapwheel wich I placed in a fixed drill.

I managed to remove 'most' of the stains, execpt for some black rust wich is embedded a little deeper.

I haven't hand-sanded it with 400,600 or higher yet, so this isn't the end result.

Keep going, you are doing good. I used the exact same technique when I did the razor that is showed here

Keep going until all the damage is gone. be sure to sand the blade evenly along its length or you will have places on the blade that are more hollow then the rest of the blade.

Once all the damage is gone, go back to handsanding from 180 to 1000 or as high as you can find.

Once all the damage is gone, go back to handsanding from 180 to 1000 or as high as you can find.

Ok, thanks for the encouragement Bruno.
About the hand-sanding, for now I can only sand it up to 600, can't find any higher.
I went to an American Arme Stock to search for chromium oxide but they don't seem to have it here in my region. Any other proposals where I could find it ?

When hand-sanding, do you sand in a circular movement ?

Originally Posted by Desiderius

Once all the damage is gone, go back to handsanding from 180 to 1000 or as high as you can find.

Ok, thanks for the encouragement Bruno.
About the hand-sanding, for now I can only sand it up to 600, can't find any higher.
I went to an American Arme Stock to search for chromium oxide but they don't seem to have it here in my region. Any other proposals where I could find it ?

When hand-sanding, do you sand in a circular movement ?

Sorry for the late reaction.
You should be able to find up to 1K sandpaper in automotive shops where they sell stuff for repairing the exterior of your car.

As for the chromium oxide: I am not surprised that you didn't find it. Most people in the hardware store don't know that it is chromium oxide. They only know it as 'steel polish, the green stuff'.
If you ask in am american army stcok for steel polish, they should be able to give you that, or something similar.

But if you really want I can get you a brick of the stuff.
That is, if you can wait for awhile because with the impending birth I am not visiting Achel soon.
I can probably ask my mother to bring me some next week or so, and then either mail it to you or ask my brother to drop it at your place.
Where do you live in Leuven? Send me a PM and we can work something out.

Bruno - We're Waiting!!! Do you use a circular motion when hand sanding? Please help us out, I have a really tarnished W&B Diamond Edge that needs immediate attention

Originally Posted by DEwey

Bruno - We're Waiting!!! Do you use a circular motion when hand sanding? Please help us out, I have a really tarnished W&B Diamond Edge that needs immediate attention

I don't use circular motion. Until now I have always used a back and forth motion perpendicular to the edge (i.e. from edge to spine and back).
With my current project I am trying something different.
I start with a coarse grit, going from heel to toe and back, along the length of the blade. Then with the next grit I go from edge to spine, perpendicular to the blade.
Then with the next grit again along the length. etc etc
I only go to the next grit if all the scratch lines of the previous grit are gone.

My reasoning is that if I do it like this, I know for sure that there are no scratch lines left in the end, plus I don't do more sanding than necessary, and it should be a tad quicker because it is easier to sand away scratch lines if you sand perpendicular to them.

But this is an experiment and I haven't finished that process just yet. It is an epxperiment.

Bruno -
Thanks for the info! Let us know how it is coming. Does it look like a good method (heel to toe then perpendicular to the blade)?
Thanks

nice razor. love the stamped sculptured back on it. Can't wait to see how well it turns out.

I can't show pictures because my wife already packed the camera, but the intermediate results are stunning.

By switching direction between grits you make sure that all the coarser grit lines are gone.
I use 80 and 150 grit big flapwheels in my dril to do the rough work. Then I used 240 grit by going along the blade instead of across, until all rough lines were gone. Even at 240 the blade surface is smooth as a mirror, if not as shiny of course

Previously I always went across the blade, increasing grit size, but I suspect that I always carried along the remains of rough grit lines. I think the results could have been better still by using this technique.

One bladeface is still coarse from rough sanding wth 150 grit, the other is almost finished with 240 grit. I will try to take pics the next days to show you the difference.