Thread: Can these girls look good again?

Hallo guys,

I just got this off ebay (haven't got them yet). A pair of Erik Anton Berg and I'm not really sure about the size as it wasn't stated by the seller. I'm not really sure how bad they are...but I'm hoping they can still be saved. Hope you guys can chime in to answer some questions.

1. Is it as bad as it looks or it's just surface rust?

2. Is it possible to clean them without unpinning or some rust that's left near the pin will cause problem later?

3. Which would be more advisable, hand or machine polishing?









Thanks for all the help and pointers!

IIRC the red stuff is surface rust (someone please correct me if wrong) and you can probably scrape the worst of it off and then maybe just give it a go with a mild polish such as Mothers Aluminum or MAAS and see where that gets you. You can use something like dental floss to get the worst of it from around the pins and you'll probably be ok. From a quick glance those scales may appear to be ivory

Always hard to judge from pics but...
1. Rust on the edge is always bad but sometimes you can hone beyond it. The rest can be removed to varying degree.
2. Yes it is possible to clean without unpinning & sometimes desirable but never as thorough as stripping it down.
3. By hand is the safer gentler approach. Machinery is faster but needs an educated touch.

Rust along the edge can be a problem. If it is deep you may end up with jagged bits on the edge that will give you a scratchy shave. As long as they hone out, they could be used as is. If you dont want to get overly extensive you could use a utility knife or single edge razor and scrape the worst of the rust off. The bubbly bits will be deeper than just surface rust. You will have some pitting in those locations. Problem with rust on a hollow grind is that there is not much material there to start with. To completely remove the rust/pits you have to remove steel which could leave your blade too thin and flex or worse yet, sand through the steel and end up with holes. Scraping it clean then hand polishing with something like MAAS will clean them up a bit, Then hone and use.

Thanks for all the answer. Is it adviseable to get a pro restoration for this kind of condition or it's ok to DIY and then send it for honing?

From my experience, you won't really know until you start restoring them. I've seen some pretty hideous looking razors shine up to beauty queens. Have fun!

Here is what I would do. I would do a light cleaning on them to remove the surface rust with a single edge razorblade like mentioned above. Then I would take it to a 1K stone (with a taped spine) to see how the rust was at the edges & if I could get a good bevel set. If I could get past any pitting along the entire edge, then I would clean up the razors. Those scales are ivory, so be careful with them. If the blades pass the stone test, I would de-pin them and clean up the blades by hand. There will be some pitting, but to me it's ok...I have quite a few scars myself I have accumulated throughout life.

Originally Posted by pesa

Thanks for all the answer. Is it adviseable to get a pro restoration for this kind of condition or it's ok to DIY and then send it for honing?

That would really depend on your skill & experience.

Swedish steel, me like!
Take it easy with power tools and razors, it can quickly go horribly wrong, both for the razor and you.

Another question, would there be any adverse reaction on the ivory scale if I were to use WD40 to try clean the rust near the pin?