Thread: White vinegar vs rust

Thanks Glen,I would bet that your Gunsmithing backround has alot to do with the way you do razors today,are no shortcuts.My Dad was a gunsmith,I spent a little over a year at the Colo.school of gunsmithing (never graduated tho)
Have been to turnbull restorations on several occasions.
You get to observe the best of the best restore high end firearms,you will understand what true resto work is folks.
You dish out a screwhole or round off a once sharp edge,you are dogmeat,because you cannot replace what was once there,same holds for our razors IMO.ONLY, Our razors are far more delicate than guns.
I remember watching my dad do his maybe last resto,was a simple little K22,took him two weeks,little sticks wrapped with emory,small round stones,valve grinding compounds,never used a buffer,all hand done,looked when finished like the day it left S&W.
I cringe every time someone talks of metal finishing with dremels and sanding drums,it actually pisses me off to a point,but thats me,same with chemicals,take your time,do it right.End of rant.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

I cringe every time someone talks of metal finishing with dremels and sanding drums,it actually pisses me off to a point,but thats me,same with chemicals,take your time,do it right.End of rant.

Man, carpal tunnel syndrome? I gotta respect the way your dad did it but not sure if I would have the time to do it that way. I mean I am just learning about restoration so who knows what I will learn as time goes by. Might feel the same way in a few years. That's if I stick with it.

Originally Posted by Mephisto

Man, carpal tunnel syndrome? I gotta respect the way your dad did it but not sure if I would have the time to do it that way. I mean I am just learning about restoration so who knows what I will learn as time goes by. Might feel the same way in a few years. That's if I stick with it.

Thats the key,are you just doing a wambam cleanup? or a true resto? separates the wheat from the chaff.

IIRC one guy did an experiment with cut up potatoes. Turned the steel gray and left pits. No shortcuts AFAIK.

You are certainly correct about that Glenn. I have restored several blades the past three years and the best method I found to remove active and heavy rust was to cut it off. I spent way too much time hand sanding, rubbing with polish and have developed carpal tunnel syndrome as a result. It is hard to get feedback through your hands when honing if your hands are cramped and tingleing. Stropping becomes a problem too as in cut strop and damaged edge....carpal tunnel and str8 razors don't mix.

Just as a experiment I am using some "Real Lemon" Juice on 10 Durham Duplex I got NOS but rusted. Watching them real close & I have some soda water mixture to neutralize the acid in the lemon. I cleaned up one of the blades & stropped it & all I can say is great shave. Just hope the Lemon juice makes the rust removal easier.

Slawman

Evaporust at HF work well, inexpensively and quickly, 1hr for lite rust or overnight for heavy rust, leaves a dull matt finish that needs sanding and or buffing but will kill rust. Good for spot treatment to stop rust.

Nothing beats mechanical rust removal, cut it off with single edge razor blade, scrub with 000 steel wool and WD40, sand and buff.