Thread: Newbie Genco Restore

Hi all, I had posted in a Genco thread about a razor I picked up from an antique mall. Everyone seemed to agree that it was a good find if I do the restoration myself but probably not worth having someone do it since they're fairly common. I'd like to use this as a shaver.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/shavi...ht-razors.html (page 4)

So far, I've been using a polishing compound and felt Dremel attachment. It certainly helped but has only gotten so far and now I need to decide whether to use something a little more abrasive or live with it. It actually looks a lot better than the pictures show but there's still some dark spots. Some of the spots are perfectly smooth, some are raised enough to feel with a fingernail scratch. Advice?

Tim

Your beard won't care whether the blade is shiny or not.

My bias (as shown in every razor I own) is to remove "live" rust, polish the blade with Flitz metal polish, sharpen the edge, and start shaving.

It depends on how pretty you like your stuff to be.

Charles

It's purely a matter of preference. I'm sure it would clean up very nicely with some elbow grease, just read up on hand sanding http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...ing-howto.html. Or on the other hand, the patina does give it character. I have both mirror polished blades and blades with 100+ years worth of patina and I love 'em all.
Its up to you.
Grant

Totally personal preference, the patina on the blade can look like a badge of age and wear, just like an etch on a shiny new blade. If you like it as is, hone it up and get that baby into use
Sam

Edit....
What scales are you going to use?
S

Okay awesome. I guess my main worry was something like, "if you don't get deep enough some of that age will continue to harm the metal." A little bit of character is nice. My polishing compound worked great on the rust but hasn't given it the shiney shine I was hoping for. I'll pick up some Flitz or Maas and give that a shot.

The scales that it came with are in good shape but are turning from black to an ugly green. I have some reddish brown marbled (reminds me of the pick guard on an acoustic guitar) that look nice. They're a 3-pin but I tested and the fit would be perfect. Although I dont have a spacer... do these typically need one?

by spacer I think you mean wedge (tapered piece at the toe side of the scales), and 98% of the time you need one.

Oh yes, wedge. Looks like these scales have a wedge molded into the plastic, it's not much though. It would probably look better to have a proper wedge in there, might try my hand at that

The scales that it came with are in good shape but are turning from black to an ugly green.

That happens with the hard rubber ("vulcanite"?) stems on old pipes, as well.

Try some Flitz (or other metal polish, or "plastic headlight polish") on the scales. You might get the original black color back.

Charles

More photos for pinklather, thanks for looking into this!

+1 to polishing the scales with Flitz or whatever. Do them inside and out, before you reassemble the razor. I also like to get a couple coats of Renaissance Wax on all surfaces before assembly. It's especially nice to have on the blade; makes it way easier to rinse clean.