Thread: My first project

Hello,
this is my first project. It is an old and cheap from the web. In fact it was accident that it come a resto project. The basic meaning was only to learn to hone better. Now the planning is to do it so good as I can get it. Always have to be some challenges.

It is about 6/8 half hollow. On the tang is text: Paul Waldmin NEYER-SOLINGEN. On the other side is text: NARVA. On the blade are etching NARVA on the flag figure.
This is from Germany, I think? How old it could be?

Scales are black plastic and they are quite thin. Maybe I have to make new ones because there are some notches.

The blade has any rust, but metal are fuzzy and you hardly can see that etching. I am not sure if I just try to polish it with no worries if it disappears. Maybe I will try sanding it. What will you do in this case?
BTW are here any Finns at the tune? What kind of polishing matter we have here in Finland? MAAS? What have you used?

Someone had tried to hone the blade with unsuitable hone. The blade was thinner at the centre than at the heel and the toe. It was like “crying blade”. I start honing it with basic x-strokes. But luckily I read from the Wiki about the breadknifing technique. I tried it and it works well and was quick to do. Now the blade is straight and dull. Now I have to decide what to do with the etching.

Good luck with the project. Post some before pics.

Kuvia, mies, kuvia!

Hi,

Congrats for your first restoration. Would help if you could send some pics of your razor. Can't say anything about etching unless you show us how it looks.
It all depends on how you want to make your razor. Basically i would try to save the etching if possible.
At least it would be nice to see your work once it is done.

Narva, beautiful city in Estonia is a place full of history, linked to us Finns as well. The battle of Narva was fought in 20th November 1700. Swedish-Finnish army (8140 men), commanded by Kaarle (Charles) XII fought and won the Russian army (about 37000), led by Charles Eugene de Croy. (this is why i would try to save the etching even it doesn't have anything to do with the battle).

Here you are. Here are link to the photos. I have any other place to put photos to the web. Hope this works.

Straight razor photos | ekomies | Kuvablogi.com

Thanks for the history story.

I just find that ATTACHMENTS tab, nice to be newbie

Very nice razor you have there. The blade surely looks that you will get a nice shaver of it. Little hone wear but nothing serious. I like the shape of the blade.

What it comes to etching it will surely get off if you want to make a mirror finish. I would try to clean it very very carefully with some mild paste like autosol (or just usual car wax) and with hands only. No Dremel here unless your goal is to make it mirror.

i know im new but i know a little about metal finish so if it were me i would try a little toohpaste on the back of the blade dilute it with some water like 4:1 none of the grity pastes but a smoth one like colgate if it works move to the front of the blade using a cloth just try a small section on the outside of the etching i dont think it will damage it but you can never be to carefull

Toothpaste, it sounds great. It´s like a home made polisher. Have any grityless stuff at the moment. Tomorrow I have to get some and make a test polish, If it don´t work then have to test it with a car wax.

Thaks for the advises. Now I can go further with my project.

Here are some photos after the toothpaste treatment. I tried two different backgrounds, but it didn´t help. Quality is poor, thaks to my nokia 5800 camera.

Maybe the blade is now a little brighter. What you think?

I'd ask yourself what you want it to look like in the end. That will decide how aggressive to be with your work.

As far as I can tell, the blade looks like it has frosting not etching. If it is etching, it's really shallow.

If it is frosting, any abrasive polish or material is gonna wipe that out quick. You should be able to tell by running your finger over it. Frosting feels like a thin sticker - etching feels like etching. You can feel the stamp on the tang for comparison. If it's an etching, you should be able to get away with using Maas.

If you want a mirror shine (or at least closer than you are) Maas metal polish on a paper towel should clean that up nice. But like I said, frosting will probably be wiped out. I've also had some good results using Maas with a pad of #000 steel wool, available at a hardware store for a few bucks. No need for a dremel at all! To get in the pivot area, use toothpicks, floss or flattened Q-tips with Maas.

Honestly though, if there's no active rust, you might just decide to leave it as is and enjoy that patina.