Thread: Bill's Straight Razor Restoration Guidelines (C.2006)

Mine came in on Friday. It's is a great CD and for those that are still hesitant about buying one, don't be.

Glen

I received Bill's CD and I really have to tip my hat to the guy!
Job well done! This is a really useful CD for anyone trying to restore a straight razor. No one should hesitate to buy this CD. Bill has removed the veil of mystery that has surrounded razor restoration and has shown some really valuable methods on constructing multi-part scales.

This is one CD that I am going to keep!

Well done Bill,

I'm really pleased that you guys like the CD. I really did put a lot of time and effort into it. The major weakness being the actor I hired. He was all I could afford...

Did any of you like the "How to Buy on Ebay" thing? What helped you the most on the CD? What needs more attention? Sometimes I take people's skills and abilities for granted and assume they know how to do certain things when they may not know...

I'll let you know as soon as it arrives, Bill Actually could you tell me when you shipped mine out? Can't wait to get it and see what applies to the Tonsorial Gem, Genco and the W&B I have sitting on the shelf.

Ingredients:
1) Razors to restore: collecting dust on the shelf
2) Bill's CD: Just arrived this morning
3) Sanding flap wheels: On their way from the west coast
4) Free time: As of tonight, but spending the first 2 days of it partying in Ottawa
Almost ready

I was going to just take a quick look, but ofcourse the way the stuff was written, I spent an hour browsing the CD and could barely force myself to stop. Great job, Bill! I actually have razors for which to apply just about every part of your CD and it's easy to follow. That's coming from a guy whose shop lessons ended at the age of 8. Finally someting I don't have to learn through trial and error.

Bill,

Love the CD....great work!

One suggestion; maybe you could start a "Bill's Tips" version of "Lynn's Tips" as a sticky here on the restoration tab. Just a place for you to record random tips as they come to mind.

Dave

I discovered something last night that might save someone some pain.

I am preparing some Cocobolo scales for a W&B blade. I have the scales cut out and formed and sanded. I wiped down the scales with a slightly moistened rag to clean the dust from them and then dried them out. I then put on latex surgical gloves and then put the CA onto the scales and then spread the CA with my forefinger. In a few seconds my forfinger started to burn like fire. I peeled off the glove as fast as I could. Since the burn wasn't bad I continued. I then waited a minute or so as was indicated by Bruce Hoovers tips in Bills CD so as not to cloud the CA. I sprayed on the accelerator to set the CA. I waited a few minutes and then put on another glove and put the CA on the scales and then spread the CA with my forefinger again. Low and behold my forefinger started to burn again. As before I peeled off the glove. This time I had a small blister.

My conclusion: Having previously read Bills CD I remembered that WATER was an accelerator of CA. When I wiped down the scales with water and then dried them and then put on the CA there must have been enough moisture in the wooden scales to accelerate the CA and create a lot of heat. Also the same thing would happen with the spray on accelerator. Note: I did check for holes in the gloves and there were none. This morning I sanded the CA with wet and dry sandpaper and wiped off the water and then daringly put on another glove. This time when I spread the CA there was no heat. I imagine when I dried the scales the water could not penetrate the scales because of the previous coat of CA. I also sprayed on accelerator but this time did not spread on another coat of CA. I will wait awhile before sanding that coat and adding another.

Bill could I have used say mineral spirits to clean the dust from the scales and this would not accelerate the CA and create the heat. Maybe I could put on two or three coats of CA before spraying on the accelerator. Also do you have any other suggestions?

Bill...

Don't use the accelerator unless you start getting impatient. Most of the time you do not need it.

It does generate heat, but I have never experienced a burn. I am baffled by that one. Some times I use a bare finger to spread the glue because I was too lazy to go get a glove... . After some build-up, it will peel off. (I probably just opened a can of worms)

Make sure you are using the super thin CA and not regular super glue you find in the hardware store.

I will pm you the rest of the info. These guys will have to buy the cd to find out what's going on...

The first was very good, the newest is great! Lots of good stuff. Well done, Bill.

Originally Posted by urleebird

Did any of you like the "How to Buy on Ebay" thing? What helped you the most on the CD? What needs more attention? Sometimes I take people's skills and abilities for granted and assume they know how to do certain things when they may not know...

Bill, this section of your new CD reminds me all lot of what Dave Francis use to teach us on Dave's Daily Forum. Dave like yourself would be able to spot all of those little things even from the worst pictures and help us learn what to look for. I think this would be a great learning tool and would be worthy of a seperate forum catagory here on SRP. Knowlegeable people could take turns and post a list of ebay razors to buy or not to buy.

Glen