Thread: Scale restoration question

Originally Posted by outback

What for....I'm the one who wrote it. Your the one's that need to save it. Its locked in my ol' memory bank. Plus I wrote it all down, anyhoo.

What I meant was you could do that so you don't time out and lose all that time typing but it's all good.

Originally Posted by Gasman

cleaning bone is a hydrogen peroxide soak. conditioning is a soak in neatsfoot oil.
But Mike will put it all together.

Oh, excellent! To save Mike some keystrokes, about how long for each soak?

Dude! You typed this all on your PHONE????

That is dedication to the craft, my friend.

Many, many thanks.

Originally Posted by outback

OK. First off. I'm no pro, the resources/knowledge, all came from this forum. Either through our library, or other members, here. And yes, some of my own ideas, and techniques, or modifications of others, ideas.

The library and the workshop, are jampacked with restoration information.

But as for bone or ivory. I guess first thing is determining how dry or brittle they are. If their in a fragile state...I'd soak the whole razor in mineral oil, for a couple weeks.

Preferably, somewhere warm. During this time of year, I put them on the furnace, where it doesn't get too hot. In the summer, I put them in a sunny, window sill.

This will give some life to the scales, and ease in the disassembly of the razor.

So here's my process, hopefully the best I can describe for y'all ta understand, and try fer yasef.

1st.
A. Carefully drill pins, and save collars, (if applicable)
separate scales and razor.
B. Clean as much dirty and rust from scales, as
possible. (Toothbrush, degreaser, ect)
C. Let dry.
D. Once dry, glue n clamp any cracks with CA. ( if
applicable)
E. Sand scales with 220 grt., to smooth out and
remove excess CA., and to prep the scales for
bleaching.

2nd.
A. Find a small bowl/dish with a lid, that will
accommodate the scales.
B. Place scales in container, and cover with hydrogen
peroxide, install lid, soak to your liking.
Note: This takes awhile with normal, everyday
peroxide. Solon grade, is another beast.
It works faster, but it'll burn your skin, too.
C. Once bleached to your liking, remove and rinse
under water, let dry.

3rd.
A. Find a hard, flat, surface to work on. Preferably,
portable. I use a piece of corian countertop.
B. Cover it with wax paper, taped down flat. "No
wrinkles" !! And make sure there's no debris
between the paper and the work surface. " IT'S
GOTTA BE FLAT" !! Its the mold for the inside of
the scales, and the release agent for the work
surface.
4th.
If I had a large piece that needed patched/
replaced, I would do the repairs before the
fiberglass backers.
A. Tape scales down to the wax paper, so they won't
move.
B. Don't tape over the repair area.

Attachment 340184

C. Using baking soda, build up the missing area, so
its slightly higher and bigger than it needs to be.
You'll need it to sand and blend the repair to the
original scale dimensions.
D. Apply "Thin CA" to the entire area of baking soda,
starting at the scale, working towards the edge of
the repair. It hardens instantly, so move fast.!
If your repair isn't big enough, just add more soda
and CA. Building in layers is favored for large
areas, because of how fast it cures. I've had
some cure, before all the soda was saturated.
It was a mess.!
E. If successful... Remove tape, and carefully remove
scales from wax paper. It may tear the paper, the
heat generated by the CA n soda, kinda melts the
paper to the scales.
F. Sand repair to original, outer contour
G. Sand repair to original thickness, and shape.

I do most of the heavy sanding, with 220 grt. W/D.
Then progress with 400,600,1000 grt., after I've done
the glass work. Then polish.

If all went well with the CA n soda, the inside of the
scales should be flat, and only need a good scuffing
with 220, before bonding the fiberglass. If not...
Add more CA n soda, then sand, till it is.

5th.
A. Replace wax paper. Same as before... Tight n
flat.
B. Make a support that will evenly distribute the
weight, put on both the scales. I use Popsicle
sticks for my support, and my pinning anvil for the
weight. (4" piece or RR track). Its gotta have
some heft to it. Like a jar of loose change. It
needs to press out all air bubbles and excess
epoxy, for a proper bond to the scales.

Attachment 340185

6th.
A. Gather your fiberglass strips.
B. Prepare your epoxy. I use System Three, T-88
structural epoxy.
C. Wipe down scales, with denatured alcohol.
D. Coat the inside only of one scale, with epoxy.
Don't goop it on, or your going to have epoxy on
everything.
E. Place one layer of glass at a time on the scale,
making sure its saturated, centered, and flat, over
the scale. " No Wrinkles "
F. Carefully apply another coat of epoxy, without
disturbing the first strip of glass. And install
second strip of glass, like the first.
G. Place on wax paper covered work space,
fiberglass side down. Make sure that's where
you want to put it. You can't pick it back up,
once you do. Always thinking ahead.!
H. Repeat with second scale, place next to other
scale on work space.
I. Place support on scales, and install weight.

Note:
Keep a close eye on the scales for several minutes,
while everything is squishing down n out. The first
set I did, slid apart. Had to start over, and steady
the weight till all got smooshed down.

7th.
A. Once cured, (72 hrs. for T-88) you can remove
weight, support and scales.
B. Removal of excess fiberglass n epoxy from outer
edge of scales, with a utility knife/razor blade.
Make sure its sharp, or you'll have little strands of
fiberglass sticking from your scales.

Besides your final sanding and polishing to the tops of the scales, your done.!! The inside of the scales should be smooth n perfectly flat. Ready for pinning, or putting in mineral oil, for a good soak.

Originally Posted by skald

Oh, excellent! To save Mike some keystrokes, about how long for each soak?

All depends on the state of condition, the scales are in.

But average...week or two.

I like to do the scales, first. Then put them to soak, while I work on the blade.

Originally Posted by outback

All depends on the state of condition, the scales are in.

But average...week or two.

I like to do the scales, first. Then put them to soak, while I work on the blade.

I'm also a little nervous soaking these with the penning - do you think it's likely that a two week soak will have any effect on the silver pins?

Thanks again for all of the help.

I have soaked that style of scales in the past and zero effect on the pins. I was warned not to buff those scales, manual only on the clean and polish.

Originally Posted by RezDog

I have soaked that style of scales in the past and zero effect on the pins. I was warned not to buff those scales, manual only on the clean and polish.

Haha! Happily, I had planned to do this all by hand, so no worries there!

I think that's everything I need, except maybe to try to try out that baking soda and CA trick on a chopstick or something just to get a feel for the rate of feed, etc.

Thank you for all of this.

Absolutely we need to experiment with non valuable items first. I have a lot of scraps and misc bits and bobs that I experiment with.

Soaking in oil with pins can cause a loose pivot. Meaning if it's just tight enough to hold the blade open then you lube the pivot...
Not a bad thing, just watch for it and your fingers. With a little cleaning in the pivot, it can be just fine. Or tighten just a little.