Thread: Broken Scale aka how did I screw up?

Was working on my Imperial earlier. I popped the washers off with a full flush cutter, and went to drive the pin out and then this happened:



I was following the directions from the How do I/Where do I/What do I, and well, I don't know what I did that caused the break. Any advice?

Somethimes it just happens

The pin might have been a little too thight just under the surface or it may be bent
And the scales might be brittle
It can probably be fixed with CA glue sinse its on the wedge, but pinning that again can be risky

That sucks

I see some rust in the broken scale. Likely fused to the pin.

Make sure not too cold in your shop, everything tightens up when cold.

after cutting one side, if too tight to rotate the scales around both sides at pin, try to soak some oil on it, before completing the depinning.

To repair I prefer cutting a notch in the back side of the break and epoxy. but that's almost as much work as making new scales

I had a pin bend when pinning my rescale and it cracked both the wedge and scale similarly like yours looks. It also looks like there is lip still on the pin end?

That also looks like Bakelite so if there's resistance that often happens. If you slip off the pin or don't have the other side well supported you'll get breakages too. The pin should tap out easily & lightly but I've seen some fused to the razor with rust at the pivot. Sometimes ya just gotta make new scales

Bakelite is quite brittle and most of us have broken it while trying to unpin a razor. What I would do now is take the scales and use them as a pattern for your NEW scales of your favorite material. There is sooooo much material to choose from, have fun and get after it!

Originally Posted by janivar123

Somethimes it just happens

The pin might have been a little too thight just under the surface or it may be bent
And the scales might be brittle
It can probably be fixed with CA glue sinse its on the wedge, but pinning that again can be risky

True, so true!

You probably did nothing wrong, some just break...

Now if you want me to look really hard, and get hypercritical I would point to the fact that it looks like you popped the lock washer, but did not cut the pin... I am looking at a pic, and cant feel this, so I am way way out on a limb here...
For sticky pins approach them from both sides, then you can tap, tap, both directions and clip/file the pin better and loosen them better to keep from breaking the scales... And after all that some just break


Some more good hints above from the guys

I have had this issue and from what I can tell, the scale has a clean break and was not previously cracked. Flush cutters will smash the pin to some degree, making the top with a sharp, oval. When you tap on it the sharp edge is smashed in and this just peens it tight ! You might try lightly dremeling with a fine drum or gently filing to the level of the scale before hammer and punching. Then the pin will be round with a flat top and better to tap on without being peened in the process. Also, I find a dab of WD40 around the pin on both sides helps loosen it. Let it soak! If you scratch the bakelite , it is easily sanded and polished. Guys talk of the tablespoon while peening, but for unpinning it works nicely as well and keeps breakage to a minimum! If it feels stubborn, it is! For those it is beneficial to do both sides and try tapping back and forth. One side will go better than the other! A lot of this has been mentioned and is great advise!