Straight Razor Workshop

So....you've decided to start cleaning/honing/restoring straights. You've watched Lynn's and Bill's DVD, read the threads, looked at tons of photos...and now, you are ready to start acquiring tools and supplies.

As an experienced honemeister/cleaner/restorer (or even maker, if Joe, Bill, et al want to chime in), what are the tools that have given you the best results?

Categories are:

A. Work surface (work bench, table, vice, etc.

B. Electric rotary tools (Dremel, etc.)

C. Boring tools (Dremel as a drill, drill press)

D. Sanding/smoothing tools (sandpaper, planes, belt sanders, etc.)

E. Tips and Attachments (drill bits, sanding, cutting, cleaning, buffing, polishing, etc.)

F. Materials (favorite woods, epoxies, finishes, pins, spacers, etc.)

G. Steer Clear-products you have used and wish you hadn't

I hope this thread will elicit some of the vast knowledge and experience from the talented folks here at SRP and will get made into a stick for this forum. As folks encounter new methods or "Eureka" moments, the can post to this thread wich will allow for some one-stop shopping for other restorer-types.

:)

Greg

I may not be a honemeister, but here's what I've used so far...
A: Mostly a coffee table in front of the TV lol For peening, I use an 11lb anvil.
B: A Dremel knockoff made by Motomaster (store brand for the Canadian Tire chain)
C: I used a regular hand drill, with both scales being held together with a vise. It's a balancing act between holding them together without flex and them being accessible with the drill. A drill press can be had for $70 or so, so it might be a good purchase right after that belt sander for shaping scales.
D: I've done most of my actual sanding by hand, going from 600 to 2000. For the final polish, CLR Metal Clear and McGuiars plastic/plexiglas polish. They don't play well with felt pads though
E: Felt pads, 120-400grit flap wheels from widgetsupply. I'll try using Jason's drums again to supplement my hand-sanding
F: Any 30-60min epoxy will do. Make sure you line those large paper clamps with wax paper. #0 washers for the outside, #0W for the inside. I'll experiment with a nickel welding rod, but so far it's 1/16" brass. Hot Stuff CA does the trick, but I'll be experimenting with Truoil. Jason had some GREAT results from Tung oil.
I'll let the others chime in now.

Heres a tip for some of you that like restoration work but need tools and are on a tight budget. Check your local classifieds section, in the news paper or online or you can try craigslist http://sfbay.craigslist.org/
Ive gotten so many tools including a brand new work bench for free or next to nothing. So many people have so much stuff that they don't want and want to get rid of it A.S.A.P. so check it out and see what you can find.