Thread: Does razor restoration damage etchings on the blade?

Etchings can be saved but results depends on the type of etch.
The easiest are the ones with deep typeface like the “Extra Hollow Ground”.
The most difficult are elaborate line drawings that look like the negative image of a black and white photo. Those etchings are very shallow because in those days the etching process was “touch and go”. The blade was dipped in the acid just long enough to make the image.
Your blade appear to be somewhere in between the two extremes.

You can run your fingernail over the etch to judge how deep it is. If your nail “catch” the ridges then it’s safe to say the etch is deep. If you cannot feel the ridges then almost any type of restore will reduce the contrast or make the etch look like an engraving or remove the etch completely .

There are more elaborate ways to save an etch but you could try this:
Tightly wrap one layer of thin lint free cloth (or plain printer paper) over an old AA or C size battery and put on a very thin layer of polish (very thin because you don’t want excess polish to get in the grooves of the etch… so you should first rub this over another sheet of paper to remove excess polish), then rub the face of the blade to polish (enhance) the shiny high spots. Change the cloth if it gets torn or worn through or the steel shell of the battery will scratch the blade. The deeper the etch the better this will work.

Hope this helps