Thread: Newbie question about obtaining supplies for razor restore/repair

Well, as luck would have it I have a very enticing trade offer that will make me a proud owner of three very nice straights with some minor issues, which I posted about here. I have all but made the decision to go ahead with the trade. This makes me want to try and deal with some things on the razors myself. I am very handy and do a lot of stuff like brush restoration, etc. I have some tools and skills, but SR repair is new to me. Can the kind folks here give me some guidance as to where to shop for things like pins, washers, scale material, etc. I think I would like to rescale at least one razor, maybe two. I have a junker to practice on, so I will not take my first attempt to a good razor. I want to learn first and the jusnker razor I have is perfect for that. I can also pick up a few more old razors that I have seen around in the antique stores. I just need to learn how to shop for them and what to look for and how much to pay. Anyway, for starters I would like to rescale this one:











Then if everything goes well I wold like to tackle the Ton-So-Rius which has a problem of blade protruding from the scales in closed position.



That one will be challenging because I would like to come up with a way of preserving the metal overlays on the tips of the scales. They are very cool, but I think these scales were warped in a way that may not allow them to be saved. The metal overlays, however could be pried off I think, and reused. Maybe. Perhaps it's too advanced and I will need to practice some more before tackling this one. First I need to unpin the old junker and maybe clean up that blade and rescale it. If I can accomplish that I think I will feel more confident about future projects. So please, let me know where to buy some pinning supplies in small quantity, preferably. Perhaps some of you may want to throw together a rescale kit for me with pins and scale material. I would be grateful.

Is the wedge loose on the second razor?

This should get you started....
http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...wers-here.html

You can also use the forum's search function to find answers.

Originally Posted by HarleyFXST

This should get you started....
http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...wers-here.html

You can also use the forum's search function to find answers.

Thanks! Too much information sometimes overwhelms me. Always good to have some one point to a specific place. I ride a Sportster, myself and have been active on some of the XL boards. Same thing there. People come overwhelmed and just looking for a quick pointer. Becomes old after a while, but we were all newbs at one point. Glad to seem a few riders on here.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Is the wedge loose on the second razor?

No, the wedge is pretty tight. Just seems strange that the blade would be exposed. Almost like it's the wrong scales for this razor. they are warped a bit as can be seen here:



However, the warp does not effect the shape or size of the scale where the blade protrudes. Interesting problem.

I would not rescale the first razor, very pretty scales And perhaps you can fit a smaller blade in the second razor's scales? That would take care of the scales being too small for the blade.

Originally Posted by vferdman

No, the wedge is pretty tight. Just seems strange that the blade would be exposed. Almost like it's the wrong scales for this razor. they are warped a bit as can be seen here:



However, the warp does not effect the shape or size of the scale where the blade protrudes. Interesting problem.

Warps not that bad,My thinking on the wedge end is if loose,closing the gap even a couple tho, can have a major effect on raising the blade.
Just my thoughts.

Originally Posted by Laurens

I would not rescale the first razor, very pretty scales And perhaps you can fit a smaller blade in the second razor's scales? That would take care of the scales being too small for the blade.

They are pretty with the windmill and all, but are pretty chewed up and I need the practice. The blade is rather thick (1/4 hollow, maybe?) and fairly well hone-worn, so it's a good one to practice unpinning and cleaning up the blade. I may decide to not change the scales and just re-pin the razor back the way it was. The second one has the name of the razor on the scales (Ton-So-Rius, whatever that is, but it's stamped on the tang also) in the form of metal (copper, I believe) overlay. Very cool and definitely proof that these scales belong to this blade, but they just too small.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Warps not that bad,My thinking on the wedge end is if loose,closing the gap even a couple tho, can have a major effect on raising the blade.
Just my thoughts.

The wedge is tight and I just looked and for the blade to "hide" in the scales the tip would need to come up almost 1/4"! The heel is what protrudes.

In that case, good luck with unpinning! I found that it is easy to hit the scales while filing, so I put some duct tape around the pin to prevent that from happening.