I need some help with these scales !

I am doing my first restore on an http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...warranted.html and the blade is coming along nicely so far. I have not touched the scales yet and I am not even sure what they are made of. At first I thought bone but the more I read the less sure I am about it. So if anyone can say for sure what they are and give me a path to start on, I would be most grateful. They are full of cracks in all directions and warped every which-a-way but I would love to save them.


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Thats horn. I would chuck them and make some new scales...but there are people on here that can give you a better idea of the work need to salvage them.

Yea those look like horn and I have to say I have never seen horn scales in that bad of shape. I think I would toss them also.

Thanks for the ID. You should have seen the blade :<0). I am sure it is nothing like it was new but I might actually get it to shave.
Well maybe I will just play with them then and see what I can learn before I buy some new horn and screw that up. :<0)

I agree that those scales don't look terribly salvageable. :(

However they could still be useful to play around with! Give them a soak in nestsfoot oil to see what that can do. My guess is you'll end up with beautifully translucent scales that are of course (and sadly) still all beat to heck. After that, sand them, cut them, drill them... use it as a chance to get used to working with horn.

Yeahhhhhh ..... those look pretty rough. As Cangooner said, though, they can still be useful. Who knows, one day you may need a horn wedge and here is the perfect place to get one.

You could try,

• filling the crack with epoxy and using big washers
  
• scabbing in another piece of horn that spans the crack, something with a longish scarf
  
• filling the crack and lining the inside of the scale with a light wieght piece of fiberglass cloth wetted with epoxy.

I like the idea of letting in a piece of horn as a scab the best.

Charlie

At the very least you save the wedge and washers. Those always come in handy at some point.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by spazola

You could try,

• filling the crack with epoxy and using big washers
  
• scabbing in another piece of horn that spans the crack, something with a longish scarf
  
• filling the crack and lining the inside of the scale with a light wieght piece of fiberglass cloth wetted with epoxy.

I like the idea of letting in a piece of horn as a scab the best.

Charlie

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I do want to play with the intention of saving. Thanks for the tips. The more I look at them the more they cry "save me". I like the challenge of impossible also. :<0)

If I want to do any adhesives later I am thinking water would be a better soak than oil ? Or use steam maybe ?

So. I started to play with them and the first thing I did was soak them in water for 6 hours. I took one out and put it between a rag and set it in the vice just to see what happens. It was very encouraging to see it dried and held a somewhat straighter shape. I tossed them back in the water and started gathering up some clamps and wood. I dug up an old pad for an English saddle I had and cut some pieces to make a wood/scale/foam sandwich.

This side was a lot thicker than the other half. These scales looked to me like they were one piece when they were first made.
I left the part hanging out the end because it's part of the wedge. I didn't want it to affect the flatness of the scale as it was pressed so I simply left it hanging out. Then I clamped it down as tight as I could with c- clamps. I did even it out on the end so it did not put too much pressure on the piece extending out.

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The second half took some thinking. A crack at the hinge pin and the wedge end was thicker on this side than the other. Plus the wedge part was not at all even as it looked to me like it cracked or was pulled apart at one time. I wanted to try to force the crack closed and press it flat at the same time so I notched out a piece of the wood for it to hang in so I could use a nails to hold it in place. After I got the nails in I trimmed them down to the height of the scale with cutters.

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The crack closed up pretty nice and I hope it stays that way. I can think of 2 mistakes I may have made. 1. I could have put some paper towels in the sandwich to help the scales dry out faster/better. 2. The wedge end of the second scale may bend down into the notch as I was not careful with the depth of it. So I have to go fix these things and in a couple of days I'll come back with what happened. So far I am feeling this may work out after all !

Soaking them in water may prove to only be a temporary fix. They may start cracking again once they start drying out again. I agree with an earlier poster that some neatsfoot oil would be a worthwhile effort. I would like to compare that with getting a good moisturizer for your dry hands as opposed to just soaking them in water hoping that cracks and dry skin will go away because they get hydrated.

And whatever you do, let them dry very slowly. Maybe put them in the fridge or something.

Point taken on the neatsfoot oil. I started with water in hopes of using an adhesive on some of the cracks first. Then I was thinking of using the neatsfoot oil after the scales dried and the glue set. I was also thinking put the oil on and put them back in the press for a week or so. I wonder if I should sand the scales smooth before putting the oil on. Then there is the matter of finish/sealing.

I found a link to working with horn that could be useful. Using and working with Horn - Making a Drinking Horn

If you really want to save the originals, I like Charlie’s idea scarfing a piece on the pivot end and using a liner, Aluminum, Brass or Carbon fiber. I would use some Buffalo for contrast or color, kind of like a 55 -56 Belair.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Storsven

I found a link to working with horn that could be useful. Using and working with Horn - Making a Drinking Horn

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That is a cool article thanks.


" If you really want to save the originals, I like Charlie’s idea scarfing a piece on the pivot end "

I kinda get the idea of scarfing but not exactly sure how to go about that. What do I carve out a layer and cut a piece to fit in on both sides? The liner idea is formulating in my head and I thought about some bolsters over the ends also. Most of my metal work experience has been with BIG iron. Truck beds, tractors, 1/2" 3/4 " plate etc. This working under a magnifying glass is all new but very interesting :<0)

This has never happened to me before ,that I can remember ,but the more I work on these the less I like them. It's like they don't match at all. I got them mostly straight and the cracks even closed up. But the 1 side has spots and the other looked more grainy. The side with spots looked as if 1 layer had flaked off and was a lot thinner than the other. I started to sand and the spots got lighter and almost went away but then the other side still had that top layer and underneath that it is a lot darker.

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I am not going to stop playing with them but if they don't start looking better color and pattern wise they will just be a learning experience in horn. I did purchase some Gorilla epoxy. It was clear so I think I will give it a try after some more sanding to see what it does. There is also 2 more places on the cracked side that need to be straightened if I am going to use them. I am going to have to find some close ups of horn to see what they are supposed to look like :<0).
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