Thread: Broke my new Bartmann

Originally Posted by StraightRazorDave

That's a shame. Either you're the hulk or that razor was pretty weak at the toe. You could always shorten the entire razor and make a nice little compact one! I've actually wanted a really short one...I think it would be easier to hone and shave with.....Ok, you MUST shorten the razor and PM me immediately!

I was shocked. I had the blade pinched between two fingers, and was (I thought) lightly polishing it...I must have inadvertantly torqued the tip

Originally Posted by Seraphim

I was shocked. I had the blade pinched between two fingers, and was (I thought) lightly polishing it...I must have inadvertantly torqued the tip

Some of the old barbers I knew back years ago would hold the blade in one hand and then with the other hand take their forefinger and put it behind the spine for support and then pluck the point with their thumb to see if the razor would sound a musical note. If it did they said it had good steel and if it didn't it was a dud.

I don't agree with the test being meaningful IME. My reason for bringing it up being that IMO there must have been an invisible hairline crack that you happened on or it never would have broke from your polishing.

It happened also to me this week with a Red Point in the nicest condition that i've seen! Of course it's not a Bartmann but i was looking forward to own one Red... I just was cleaning and polish a little when with "simple touch" broke the razor just like yours! I was so devastated that i run immediatly to my fathers farm, picked up a dremel and started to, what it will be, my first "restore"! So far so good!..but still frustrated with the all situation!
I will, soon i hope, make a post of it! I want to make new scales because the razor lost the "ballance"! Do you consider making new ones also to that Bart?

That hurts!

Could still be turned into a couchie razor. Try and flog it to one of the ladies here.

I'm sorry about the accident but really am looking forward to seeing how you fix it.

I had a new bartman 7/8 gold washed spine and tang that the hotel maid dropped in the sink after curiosity got the best of her. Broke the blade in the middle. I feel your pain. My break was beyond reasonable salvage but I did salvage the very nice tri colored buffalo horn scales and put them on another deserving blade.


I have gotten a couple blades from folks that had hairline cracks in the toe of the blade. I give them a wipe with maas before I do anything then look them down with a magnifying glass now just to look for any hairline cracks. Last thing I want is to take a blade to the buffing wheels which is dangerous to begin with, and have a hairline crack open and the blade bite the wheel and explode in my hands, or what is left of my hands. I would guess it had a hairline crack to begin with and simply snapped off when you wiped it down. The steel should be sound enough to lightly push on the blade without it deflecting. Wiping it wont break it.


The tone test is interesting. I use to do the same thing with ammo. Dad did all the match reloading for the P.D. So as kids, we loved to help. I could take gallon tub of brass and run my hands through it. I could tell you if there was a cracked piece of brass in the tub by the sound it made. It had an off pitch. The crack changed the harmonic of the metal from a sharp and crisp cling ring to a flat clong sound when you stirred the pot. Never tired it with a blade but it should still work the same.

I never thought seeing a picture of a broken razor would make me sick to my stomach!!! Well I was wrong, man that sucks bad. At least it was at the tip and you can still save the majority of the blade. Good luck with the surgery!

That's a real shame. My first thought was a crack, you've had enough razors go through your hands to know how much pressure you can use.

Originally Posted by tcharah

It happened also to me this week with a Red Point in the nicest condition that i've seen! Of course it's not a Bartmann but i was looking forward to own one Red... I just was cleaning and polish a little when with "simple touch" broke the razor just like yours! I was so devastated that i run immediatly to my fathers farm, picked up a dremel and started to, what it will be, my first "restore"! So far so good!..but still frustrated with the all situation!
I will, soon i hope, make a post of it! I want to make new scales because the razor lost the "ballance"! Do you consider making new ones also to that Bart?

It has nice three pin scales.

I'm shortening the tail a bit to re-balance it. We'll see how it turns out.

Are you sure you didn’t... maybe... unconsciously... bend it just a little bit… maybe testing the steel... and “accidentally” snap.

So you could have your way with her?... again...