Thread: The Making of a MINTY W&B Meatchopper.

It is the etching that takes it over the top, as you said it's some thing that many of us would never be able to do our selfs. I had the high bid on it for awhile and will probably put in another just waiting to see if it will go complete out of the range that I would be pay for it and still be able to aford buying food.

Originally Posted by RayD

It is the etching that takes it over the top, as you said it's some thing that many of us would never be able to do our selfs. ...

Yes, the etching is the cherry on the cake, but the rest I did not say. All I said that it will take an investment of time and money. Not that it cannot be done.

It can definitely be done and my investment of $5000 can probably be reduced to about $1000. I had to experiment a lot and figure out how to get it done without buying all the expensive equipment. I wound up making my own, which did not cost me less but was a lot more informative and fun. I also spent a lot on building my own micro-controllers so everything is very precise and repeatable. That was a bit of over kill, but also a lot of fun.

Keep in mind that I was responding to a request for a tutorial on etching by someone who has not even started restoring razors, much less trying to get them to 100%. So I wanted to put a bit of sanity into that request and pointed out that it is a lot of information as there are four other steps other than the restoration itself. I wanted to make sure that the inquirer really understands that my response would be the size of a small book and not a few paragraphs with smileys.

Before I make that type of effort to write a tutorial I think it is only wise to verify that the person requesting the information is really committed and warrants the investment of my time and effort.

I can always make it easier for everyone and offer etching as a service. You do the restoration and I will top it for you with the cherry. That way everyone can have these results without heavy investment of money. Just their time.

There is a catch. Etching is the last part of a long restoration effort and if it is screwed up it is back to square one. I was more nervous than a crack whore when I was etching this blade. I only started breathing again when I saw that it was successful.

Wow! Vlad, congratulations! Larry, sorry you didn't win...

RT

Was going to throw another bid in at the end but it was out of my range all ready. Congrats on the final price.

Thanks RT. Wow! is right.

Larry, I would have been more than happy if yours was the winning bid. This last minute bidding was a complete surprise. I thought it was a done deal a few hours ago and said as much in the chat.

Congrats Vlad, good price and a good buy for someone.

Let's get more of your stuff up on e-bay

Gary

I can do everything on there except the etching, and that's really the thing that sets this one apart. It looks brand new (only better). I'm truly in awe. Being able to re-etch to look original is the one reason I don't take my restoration further than I do. Especially on the W&Bs, I like the etching to remain on the blade, so I often don't sand them down as far as I could. This is the single finest restoration effort I've ever seen.

Originally Posted by rtaylor61

Wow! Vlad, congratulations! Larry, sorry you didn't win...

RT

I'm glad Vlad got a nice price for the razor. It's really beautiful.

I wish my razor could look like this !!!

But I was curious what wood was used on the scales. I read the whole thread but either I forgot or I just didn't see it. I like the color and grain of the wood.

I think it was the first post where Vlad said it was cocobolo (and the box was morado).