Thread: Is there a way to fix this crack in my bengall?

Hi All, First time posting here, and would appreciate any help/advice you guys might have on fixing my bengall...

I thought about soldering it but its' just not making sense, and i'm wondering whether there has been anyone who has managed to fix something similar?

Thanks in advance!

Negative. Too big. I have successfully repaired small cracks with silver solder and needle tip soldering iron. I have a W & B I did it to and shaved with it for over a year with no problem.

Thanks for replying! So i'm guessing you used solder and then sanded to a smooth finish? and would it be possible to solder with carbon steel (if one would find)

Thanks!

Correct.I put flux and a tiny piece of solder on one side. Soldering iron on other side to draw solder towards heat. Then sand smooth and polish.
Works best towards heel. Never tried it close to toe.

Originally Posted by JoeMamo

Thanks for replying! So i'm guessing you used solder and then sanded to a smooth finish? and would it be possible to solder with carbon steel (if one would find)

Thanks!

Rare! Lots of charm and character! This very old and historical display piece is one of a kind, and a valuable collector's item! Buy It Now, only $375.00!!! LOL!

I have seen worse on fleabay and etsy. But yeah, for a shaver, it's toast. But if aliens had invaded and stripped Earth of all traces of iron and steel on the planet besides this, and so this was the last piece of steel left in the world, I might attempt to drill through at the ends of the cracks to contain the cracking, grind through and through along the cracks, mix aluminum powder with superglue, and fill, with a little excess lapped over the steel on both sides, in the vicinity of the cracks. Soldering will generally heat the steel considerably higher than normal temper heat, so meh. Too difficult. I am thinking just salvage the horn scales and toss the razor unless you have a bunch of similar scrap razors and you want to forge weld them together into a billet. For some reason. LOL

A good candidate for a carving knife.

Originally Posted by CrescentCityRazors

Rare! Lots of charm and character! This very old and historical display piece is one of a kind, and a valuable collector's item! Buy It Now, only $375.00!!! LOL!

I have seen worse on fleabay and etsy. But yeah, for a shaver, it's toast. But if aliens had invaded and stripped Earth of all traces of iron and steel on the planet besides this, and so this was the last piece of steel left in the world, I might attempt to drill through at the ends of the cracks to contain the cracking, grind through and through along the cracks, mix aluminum powder with superglue, and fill, with a little excess lapped over the steel on both sides, in the vicinity of the cracks. Soldering will generally heat the steel considerably higher than normal temper heat, so meh. Too difficult. I am thinking just salvage the horn scales and toss the razor unless you have a bunch of similar scrap razors and you want to forge weld them together into a billet. For some reason. LOL

i get your sarcasm, but the question was whether carbon steel as solder exists? i'd put it in a display before trowing it out - it lasted this long, i won't be the one to end the legacy

No, not that I've heard of.

Originally Posted by JoeMamo

i get your sarcasm, but the question was whether carbon steel as solder exists? i'd put it in a display before trowing it out - it lasted this long, i won't be the one to end the legacy

Haha not sarcasm, at least not directed at you. Just remembering all the busted up razors I have seen for sale online, and sellers mystified as to why a few chunks missing from the razor ought to be such a big deal.

Soldering and brazing all take place at temperatures significantly lower than the melting point of the base metal. So by definition pure iron or steel could not be used as solder on steel.

Sn43Pb43Bi14 paste solder, according to Kester's chart, melts at between 291f to 324f, so it would have minimal effect on the blade temper, if the steel is heated barely to the melting point of that solder. Sn62Pb36Ag2 melts at 354f, which is getting up into the danger zone but careful work ought to leave you with a usable temper in the steel. Sn63Pb37 is a common alloy with a melting point of 361f. Both of those alloys are available as wire or as paste. Common 60/40 solder melts at between 361 and 374 degrees. Most other well known solders melt at 400f or higher and so no matter how careful you are, you would be pushing the temper with any razor steel that I am familiar with.

Keep in mind though, that a razor doesn't have to be a perfect 61HRC to shave. You could push it to about 56HRC and still have a useful razor. The temperature for a particular hardness of course varies with the steel alloy and the post-quench hardness. So apparently my formerly held opinion that trying to solder a razor would result in a useless piece of junk is not necessarily accurate.

The extent of damage in your razor would not encourage me to even try to solder it, nonetheless. But as an academic exercise, it might be interesting to try. I don't think you will master a technique with just one razor, though.

Originally Posted by CrescentCityRazors

Haha not sarcasm, at least not directed at you. Just remembering all the busted up razors I have seen for sale online, and sellers mystified as to why a few chunks missing from the razor ought to be such a big deal.

Soldering and brazing all take place at temperatures significantly lower than the melting point of the base metal. So by definition pure iron or steel could not be used as solder on steel.

Sn43Pb43Bi14 paste solder, according to Kester's chart, melts at between 291f to 324f, so it would have minimal effect on the blade temper, if the steel is heated barely to the melting point of that solder. Sn62Pb36Ag2 melts at 354f, which is getting up into the danger zone but careful work ought to leave you with a usable temper in the steel. Sn63Pb37 is a common alloy with a melting point of 361f. Both of those alloys are available as wire or as paste. Common 60/40 solder melts at between 361 and 374 degrees. Most other well known solders melt at 400f or higher and so no matter how careful you are, you would be pushing the temper with any razor steel that I am familiar with.

Keep in mind though, that a razor doesn't have to be a perfect 61HRC to shave. You could push it to about 56HRC and still have a useful razor. The temperature for a particular hardness of course varies with the steel alloy and the post-quench hardness. So apparently my formerly held opinion that trying to solder a razor would result in a useless piece of junk is not necessarily accurate.

The extent of damage in your razor would not encourage me to even try to solder it, nonetheless. But as an academic exercise, it might be interesting to try. I don't think you will master a technique with just one razor, though.

Cant argue much with your fair point. I might take up the challenge and let you guys know how it goes.

Thanks again for your detailed input.