Help me Tame my Bulldog....

[Dirty Harry]

Gillette that is.

I just picked this razor up yesterday. I have had a few "old types" but have never made peace with them and this one is no different.

After trying a shave (which lasted about 5 seconds) I took a closer look at it with a magnifier and a straight edge today.

Several teeth are bent. One corner tooth is bent up which keeps the cap from seating properly. Do down facing teeth cause an issue?

The caps corners are all bent down a little like the damage you might find if it was dropped. All four corners? How does that happen. Were they made this way or should that be repaired?
Also the base plate seems to have a slight crown on it from one end to the other along its length. Is that normal?

I am not a collector of "wall hangers". If it doesn't work it gets shipped.

I like the razor and the fact that is it quite a desirable razor. I'm debating if I should sell it as is or try to do a little tune up and see if I can get it to shave better. Bending teeth and maybe doing a little light filing may destroy some of the resale.

Do people tune these up? How?

Thanks in advance
Dirty

 

[DesertIguana]

Well the good News is we got people with lots of knowledge.

Soon you should be bombard with ideas.

 

[Dirty Harry]

A little update. I assembled the razor without a blade and then inserted a blade in the gap by hand. Quite loose with one possible spot that it may have started to tighten. I think those little "****"( is that OK to say) need to go. They do land outside the recesses at the corners of the blade but loose is loose.
I'm assuming this is a bad thing and why my shave lasted 5 seconds.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Well I took the bold step of removing the 4 corner nibs. I also bent a few corner teeth to get them to align better. I little fettling here and there and its time for a shave. The blade looks a lot tighter in the head. I didn't straighten the base of the head much. I'm nut sure that would help.

The work I did is not visible to the eye when the razor is assembled so I'm happy about that. I didn't get below the plating as far as I know.

The shave went well thank you very much.
Things I've learned:
1. Go slow
2. Be open to a new experience (more aggressive shave than usual).
3. Say goodbye to a few unused bumps on my face that I had not been aware of.

I did have a few weepers but got a rather nice shave. The larger flat spots on my face (cheeks) went quite well. The jaw line and under the nose and neck were a little worrisome but I lived through it. I did loosen the knob slightly to try to adjust the blade gap but I didn't notice any improvement.

My confidence in the old razors has been restored to a point that I might give it another try.

I may give the razor another look and see if I can make more improvements . Maybe try a shim.

Also, the next think I would try would be to even up the "teeth" on the comb a little. How important are they to the quality of the shave? They must set up the skin somehow before the whiskers hit the blade.

What the of blade gap should I be measuring under the blade?

Any advice at this point?

Thanks,
Dirty

 

[Northstonehill]

No advice as I never made peace with any OT… I am too soft, sorry.

 

[NorthernSoul]

I always liked the Gillette NEWs a lot more. Similar idea, but more refined, with precise blade alignment (especially the Short Comb version). That's not a direct answer, but maybe try a NEW if you can. Mine has been replated and looks really nice.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Well I've made some progress. After dealing with the 4 corner cap "nibs" I began to look at the base and the bent teeth. I have those resolved as best I can tell.

I have shaved with the razor a few times and things have improved. I've needed to adapt my style of shaving to accommodate this somewhat aggressive razor.

The one remaining issue is that the base has what I've heard referred to as a "frown". The cap also has a slight crown but I thought that would resolve itself once the cap was tightened. I must admit that there doesn't seem to be any gaps between the base/blade/cap when things are assembled. The blade does seem to have a slight crown which matches the base/cap (of course).

I've tried a few things to gently straighten the base and cap but I haven't had much luck.

Is having a "frown" that big of a deal as long as the blade is held rigid? One issue that I see is that the blade is now asked to bend in two opposing directions.

Another item I noticed is that the blade does not fit tight over the locating pins which allows the blade to twist slightly. That really messes with blade exposure. It may be just one blade. I can keep an eye on that and adjust it before I tighten.

Just how does the base plate get bent that way? I can see teeth being bent but if it takes that much pressure to bend the base plate straight, how is it that it was bent in the first place.

I'd like to get this lovely razor performing to its full potential. I haven't used the old style razors much so I'm not sure what my expectations should be. I'm more of a Tech/Slim/Super adjustable/aristocrat guy.

Thanks for any advice.

Dirty

 

[BigJ]

First, congratulations on your progress!!

During my ‘trying new razors’ phase, I eventually decided to move on from any razor that I could not make peace with within a week or two. So, so my second comment is to congratulation you on your persistence!

 

[Rob72]

These are old, old boys, which have generally seen hard use, so my first suggestion is to see if Chris, at BackRoadsGold, would consider tuning it for you. If not, I generally only try this recognizing that I may destroy the razor:

Use a light epoxy to glue leather or rubber slabs in the jaws of a 4-6" bench vise. You can buy the magnetic ones, but if you do, cut off the lip that goes over the top of the jaws, as you need a hard surface there.

Buy some 1/4" thick wall stainless tubing, and cut two sections to fit under your cap/baseplate. Start with the top cap and suspend it on the two sections of tubing and lightly clamp the post in your vise (if you can, I don't remember how long the Bulldog post is). You have the tubing running parallel to the lips of the jaws, top cap suspended between them. Using a plastic (preferred) or rubber mallet, begin tapping the cap along the centerline, and viewing the edges to see when you are coming flush with the tubing, e.g., you are more than less parallel at this point.

Repeat with the baseplate.

DO NOT firmly clamp the post or handle, as you want to leave some flex for vertical movement as things realign. Plastic is preferred over rubber, as it hits harder. The brass is hard"ish" and it's easy to get to hitting too hard with a rubber mallet, as it loses a lot of energy. If you are used to delicate hand forming, use whichever hammer you're comfortable with, but if not, again, I would suggest plastic and start with light, multiple, taps before repeating with more force.

Edit: to do this "right", you should really use probably a 1" or so stainless or bronze rod, and drill precise holes for the cap posts and the handle, then use the rod as a precise mandrel for matching curvature. Do not use steel pipe, as miniscule flakes can become imbedded in the brass during forming, and will cause really bad corrosion spots, which look even worse if you have it replated.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Rob 72,

Thanks for the detailed instructions. I have a method of straightening that I could use based on what materials and knowledge I have on hand.

My question was more about the need to have a straight base/cap. I am dragging this along a curved surface (my face). It would seem to me that a little curve may even play in my favor.

Is it worth getting it straight if the blade is clamped well?

Dirty

 

[nemo]

Is it worth getting it straight if the blade is clamped well?

I think it should be as straight as possible otherwise the blade edge may be wavy/uneven in spots when clamped.

 

[Rob72]

Rob 72,

Thanks for the detailed instructions. I have a method of straightening that I could use based on what materials and knowledge I have on hand.

My question was more about the need to have a straight base/cap. I am dragging this along a curved surface (my face). It would seem to me that a little curve may even play in my favor.

Is it worth getting it straight if the blade is clamped well?

Dirty

Yes, because you have a "variable slant" if the cap/base plate aren't in spec.

A prime example is the Le Coq OC. Many of them are lightly bent, as the base is stamped and the top is comparatively thin. Having squared mine, it is still very aggressive, but not nearly so inclined to bite. 1-2mm off square makes a substantial difference.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Well I managed to straighten the cap and base and here are the results.

I rebuild old woodworking equipment to I usually have som old roller bearings around.

I found a piece of wood (Ipe in this case) and drilled a hole in it and mounted the razor like the pic below.

I found that a 6203 bearing ( I think 40mm OD) worked well to support the razor. I placed a 5/16" nut in the middle of the base over the handle hole and gave it a little tap with a ball pin hammer and bingo! it was done. I repeated the same process for the cap and now the blade gaps are all straight and even. I tried a shim under the blade but that didn't seem to help much. I think the width of the shim is pretty critical and I didn't feel like experimenting more. Not sure an "under shim" can be used to change the blade angle that much. Has anyone found a good width shim dimension that may work to take a little aggression out?

I tried another shave and although it was a little bit better I still had some drama. There was blood.
After all was said and done and I got my face back together I found it was probably the closest shade ave I've had in my 1 1/2 year wet shaving journey. It did that at the expense of my skin. I realize now the difference between aggressive and effective is a pretty fine line.

I just don't feel that these earlier razors are a good fit for my bumpy old face.

I love this razor and I'll try it again sometime. The uniqueness of the Bulldog is appealing and it just has a certain "presence" that I like. Triple Silver plating and the unique handle make it into the cool razor category for me.

Thanks,
Dirty