Thread: 2 new razors

Hi there, I recently acquired 2 vintage razors from my grandfather. I want to clean them up really badly! But I want to do it right! I recently sanded 2 blades and I had the handsanding lifetime nightmare experience. Any advice how to get these bad boys clean, shiny, and shave ready without the NIGHTMARE would be greatly appreciated. The pics are attached.

They aren't sharp enough to shave with and the scales are worth saving indeed! The two razors are an Extra Hollow Ground, The New Electric 1891 and a Genco model b5 from Geneva, NY.

Q1) are these good razors?

Q2) What can I do about the damage on the Genco spine just above the sholder? If I sand it will it sit unevenly on the hone?

Thanks!

Nice stuff there.

THe Genco is a good shaver the other should be as well.

Hmmm heirlooms. The hardest ones to restore. Do you want a high polish? Or clean them up and as original as possible?
Here is a suggestion… pick your favorite one, since the scales are indeed savable… decide how far you want to go with the restore minor cleaning or de-pin, clean and polish… ect… and send it to a professional restorer… it will be in good hands.

Damage on the Genco looks only cosmetic and it won’t affect the honing or shaving… and any attempt to “correct” the damage may result in a “less than usable” razor”… but not to worry I am yet to meet a bad shaving Genco… even a damaged one.
It does appear to need only metal polish such as MASS…. Can’t tell much from the photo.

The New Electric looks to be in excellent shape… whatever you do, please save that engraving (they don’t make them like that any more).

I am afraid if you need to sand there is no easy way.

I will not touch the engraving with anything that can ruin it, no worries. Right now I took some maas and fine steel wool and cleaned up the blade so I could see if there is any damage. There appears to be almost no pitting on the blade surfaces. Thus, I am only going to stay in the 600 + range just to clean it up and not loose the engraving.

And to answer the high polish question... I don't have the tools to buff. I only have sandpaper up to 2000 grit. Actually I like the original grind and I would like to keep it. Any advice on how to keep the original grind but still get the shiny finish?

I did find some heavier pitting on the spine and I had to go to 220 to get the pitts out but it looks like the new electric 1891 is going to be in excellent shape!

Any Ideas on how to get the rust out of the part where the pin hole is without taking the scales off? I really don't want to damage the scales at all.

Anything you do will remove some material, sanding removes most material and will start to “flatten” the original grind marks and lower grits remove more material faster. So of you want to keep the original grind marks start with 2000 grit. However, MASS and a polishing cloth alone will get between the grind marks and remove most of the stains and very little of the grind marks.

That depends on how tarnished the tang is in that area, if it's rusted there are few options and I would remove the scales and clean it up. However if its mildly tarnished, use an old toothbrush or floss and some MASS.
Hopefully you didn't tighten the blade in the scales yet… you need the “slop” to get the bristles between the scale and the blade to clean it up.

Hope this helps

Thanks again smythe...

I was shocked at how easily the grind marks go away. I was cleaning up the Genco with just some fine steel wool and maas. I don't even have to sand the blade at all it turned out better than expected. The steel wool did not leave scratches at all.

I am going to try the cloth method with some maas on the new electric... I saw you recommended that I remove the scales. I am afraid to do this since the last set of horn scales I removed cracked around the pin hole. Also the scales are sufficiently tight, thus I cant reach some tooth brush bristles in the crevasses. Is it common for a restoration job to just clean up the rust between the scales and on the sides of the tang?

Yes, it is quite OK to leave the tarnish there. No matter how careful you remove the scales, in the minds of most collectors, the value, depreciate once you remove the scales.
I would also advise not to sand or use steel wool on the electric of you want to preserve any grind marks, just use the metal polish to remove excess tarnish. And be careful polishing the area of the etch, polish will quickly "lighten" the text and will lose the lovely contrast.

A drop or two of oil in the pivot area will prevent further tarnish... but not too much oil, or that area will become too slick and will make the blade feel loose no matter how tight it is pinned... soak up excess with a paper towel.

Hope this helps.

I got a bit excited when I first got The New Electric, and I used 600 grit gently from heal to toe to remove some of the difficult tarnish. Now that I read your reply, I am beginning to see that less is more. I spent probably a total of 1 hour on both the Genco and the New electric. Just maas, a paper towel then I finished it off with a loose knit cotton buffer wheel and maas.

There were some faint leftover scratches from the 600 grit, but I am not going to worry about it. There also is pitting on the spine that I tried to remove with a usual handsanding progression. I did not go too crazy because the spine on the new electric is not rounded it is like a triangle that has the top cut off. I thought that if I sand too much I would warp the shape of the spine.

I even used the buffing wheel and maas on the scales, shined them up... Thanks for the advice.

Well, for me, as a collector, preserving what’s left is the name of the game… less is defiantly more. On the other hand you could “customize” your razor or make it look like new with a full restore, a near mirror polish and new scales.

That New Electric has one of those “special” spines… I believe it is called the “Arris” spine… and it is not very common. Yes, don’t worry about the left over scratches from the 600 Grit, I am sure your grandfather would be proud you left your mark on it, hone that razor and shave with it; I bet she will be a first class shaver.

cool info... The new electric feels solid as a rock. The scales are tight and the blade is quite heavy for a hollow ground. Plus the scales have a metal spacer wedge. Did they use lead back in the 1891 days. If so should I worry about being exposed to lead every morning?

On the other hand, the genco is as light as a feather. Actually I think I accidentally cracked one of the scales mid way up. I was cleaning that yellow gunk out with a paper towel and it got snagged on something and put a hairline crack in them now they feel more flexible than before. Also it looks like there is a bent pin. The scales are crooked at the top right where the blade is pinned. If you look right down the centerline of the scales the tips are not aligned and it looks as if the pin is bowed like those bars people sick in their nose or curved cufflinks. Any thoughts? Do I need to re-pin it?