Thread: Pitting

I have just received a Fredrick Reynolds and began getting to work on removing some the black rust stains. I noticed some pitting and have successfully removed the actual rust however there are some little tiny holes left over which can be noticed with the right light. So I was wondering what everyone take on pitting is, when do you call it quit and decide that it isn't worth achieving that perfect smooth steel?

Here's some picture for reference.

If the pitting is not on the edge or bevel it is a cosmetic blemish. If it is on the edge or bevel you will likely have to hone past it to get to good clean metal.

Bob

Bob said it all.

Do you ever find it worth it to remove enough metal so as to get rid of any signs of pitting on the blade itself?

It is one of those things that we have each, and sometimes on a case by case basis , a threshold of enough is enough. I have sanded and sanded on some blades to achieve perfection and in more recent restore have left the pitting be. I do not mind the pitting, and the only reason to remove it is either people are more fussy than I am or they are looking at resale value. So if it is yours to keep, sand until you are happy :-)

Originally Posted by Kirasy

Do you ever find it worth it to remove enough metal so as to get rid of any signs of pitting on the blade itself?

I don't mind a blade showing it's history, it's battle scars. Here's a blade done for me way back when I started as a new newbie. I think you'll see my point:

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

Just remember not to get too carried away with the sanding. Some blades are mighty thin to begin with and there is only so much metal you can safely remove. Years ago we had a member determined to get rid of rust on a razor and wound up with a hole on the blade from going too far with the sanding. I kid you not. That was a very extreme case but you do have to exercise some caution with how far to go with the sanding.

Bob

That razor looks like it has a nice shape to it.

As others have said. It is personal preference .

It is in my DNA to make things aesthetically perfect but i think the battle scared look is growing on me now and would probably get more use as opposed to something that looks perfect.

Perfection lends itself to "look but don't touch"

looks like some metal polish and a little elbow grease would be all it needs for my liking. Lets see some more more images of that blade.

Also, unless you are using power tools getting pits out increases the labor anywhere from a lot to more than I would be willing to do (depending on depth of the pitting). Of course unless the pitting is super shallow you will either have to reduce the entire blade or have a depression in the blade which make not look good anyway.