Thread: What would you do?

I never did any restoration work, myself but, if I were in your shoes this what I'd do: I'd seriously consider restoring it. It would take time, of course, but I'd go for it. It was a gift and Wade and Butchers are considered to be very good blades. I'd buy another razor, though, to shave with. A restoration of this razor seems to be a project for many many days (if not months...) but it would, I suspect, pay off... The scaring would seem ugly but that would have been something you had done yourself and, in the end, it'll shave like a dream... I say think about it... Keep us posted on this one, please.

Too bad you couldnt fill the holes.

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

Too bad you couldnt fill the holes.

Hmm, now you got me thinking. What could we use to fill the holes. maybe some bondo, or acid core solder? Maybe we're all thinking about razor restoration the wrong way. Maybe we should think like an autobody guy eh?

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Hmm, now you got me thinking. What could we use to fill the holes. maybe some bondo, or acid core solder? Maybe we're all thinking about razor restoration the wrong way. Maybe we should think like an autobody guy eh?

Thats what Ive been thinking, but use what?

Maybe thinking way out of the box here but ... Cover the whole side or a section with a thin layer of heat resistant clear resin or CA, then sprinkle powdered precious metal or gemstone of choice. Paua shell or M.O.P. maybe. Re coat and voila.
Spine and bevel would contrast nicely too.
The Japanese do scabbards like this with urushi laquer.. This one's black with Paua shell. maybe there's a medium that would look just right . I guess it would need to balance the opposite side

I know nothing about restoration, but reading all these posts I wonder if all this isn't overkill... I mean... sanding will, eventualy minimize the pitting and, despite the scaring, the blade can still be honed to shave worthyness, right? If so, and if none of you more experienced gentlemen don't mind me asking, why go through such trouble? It's a good blade, it can shave... Does it really have to be shiny and perfect?

Of course it doesn't have to be perfect. Its just a matter of how anal you are about your razors and the condition you want them to be in. besides, handsanding something like the razor pictured in this thread can take a mighty long time. Coating it with something could take less time.

Maybe some gold or silver leaf in layers to build up the damaged section until its all even? Or maybe some copper pounded out and epoxied to the blade or soldered to the blade?

Originally Posted by fpessanha

I know nothing about restoration, but reading all these posts I wonder if all this isn't overkill... I mean... sanding will, eventualy minimize the pitting and, despite the scaring, the blade can still be honed to shave worthyness, right? If so, and if none of you more experienced gentlemen don't mind me asking, why go through such trouble? It's a good blade, it can shave... Does it really have to be shiny and perfect?

With all of our speculation some individual is going to say something that sparks the imagination of another individual and hopefully all this brainstorming/farting will lead to a solution to this problem or another. This is a challenge that a lot of people(IMO) would like to see overcome, it would truly be a restoration rather than a cosmetic fix and hopefully a lot of fun! Please join in!
BTW the only solution I can think of is to fill the pitted area in with welding rod, but that would be very fine workmnship not counting the damage done by screwing with the temper or blowing bigger holes into it. I know its not much help but maybe somebody else can make a run with it. Would that solder idea hold or fall loose.

A naked flame for soldering would be a recipe for disaster. Even electric soldering irons run at about 450 celcius but molten solder dropped in the pits would cool quickly. I wouldn't risk it on my razor tho.
Lightly peening a soft metal in would be safer but would it stay in the pits. Something electrically inert like gold layered in or filling the pits is a thought and could even look ok. A bit of bling never hurts. I think some kind of epoxy and/or gold is an option . Any dentists out there ?!