Thread: Geneva razors; removing chrome

I picked up two cheap Geneva razors at an antique shop today. One had a great edge, the other a small nick.

I figured they'd give me something to mess with while I learn on my shave-ready, which is on the way.

I started to sand one of them to get some rust off of it. Problem is, I guess the razor is chrome plated. There are some cracks in the plating, and some started flaking off.

Is there a good way to remove the chrome without ruining the razor? I am aware of using electrolysis with muriatic acid, but I'm concerned about harming the steel underneath. Also, the scales are tight on this one and I hate to take it apart, but I assume that the muriatic acid wouldn't be kind to them.

Is there any other way to get the chrome off this razor?

I have never seen a chrome plated razor. How certain are you?

I have a razor that for all the world looked like it had flakes of chrome that had peeled off and the "bare metal" below had taken a black patina. Nope it was just black patina on mirror polish steel.

Originally Posted by floppyshoes

I have never seen a chrome plated razor. How certain are you?

I was able to peel slivers of chrome off of the end of the razor where there was a chip... also, I was able to flake more chrome off around the pit that was originally showing.

Yup, I have a couple of vintage chrome plated razors, a Geneva, Clauss and a few others... one even has "SS" stamped across the tang (Stainless Steel?)
While sanding one of them I could clearly see a change in color as the chrome was removed.
Plated razors still tarnish, mostly at the thinner areas of the plating like the corners and edges of the tang and tail.
If the plating is thin, it becomes pours and allow rust to develop under the plating and it will flake.

Only safe way I know to remove is to sand it... but if you leave the untarnished areas with the plating still firmly attached it wont affect the function of the razor… however, if it ever starts tarnishing again, you may be left with some interesting patterns…

I suspect there are many chrome plated razors out there, but most are not marked as such, and polished steel looks almost exactly like chrome… you will only notice if the chrome starts to flake.

The Geneva that is flaking is a yellow scaled Pyramid with no number in it. I also got a black scaled pyramid #7 that cleaned up just fine with #400, then a buffing wheel, then a dremel with Flitz. I don't know if it is chrome or not, but since it's not flaking I guess it doesn't matter. I just have to tighten the pin a bit as it's loose.



I figure for $6 a piece, I can experiment with these while waiting on my 'real' razor. Who knows, maybe I can eventually get one or both of these in working condition...

Interesting. I have 2 or 3 Genevas. 7s and 7Ns IIRC. One of them looked too shiny or silvery, almost a fakey chrome look to it. I don't believe any chrome has flaked off, but it looks different than my other razors enough where I noticed it.

Chris L