Aristocrat replated - questions now for others who have had it done.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 10:52 AM

So I had my Aristocrat re-plated in Rhodium. I received it back today and am honestly disappointed in the quality done on it. It had the old plating removed, polished and was re-coated. The coating is sort of speckled on the top and there is a red discoloration on the TTO knob that was present on the original plating. Since it is still present this appears to me that the old coating was not properly removed. The coating is also uneven to the point that you can see discoloration on the top. It also appears that the edges were polished off. BTW what do you do when a TTO does not open smoothly and makes a squeaking noise?

Edit: The inside of the handle now has rust in there as well. This is turning out to be a bad experience - too bad the company is closed on the weekends.

**verdict** · 09-24-2011, 11:03 AM

Who replated it?

**mctmatt** · 09-24-2011, 11:05 AM

Can you post a pic of the razor?

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 11:08 AM

Originally Posted by verdict

Who replated it?

I will keep it quiet in public until I talk to them, do not want to hurt their reputation if they can resolve it quickly once I contact them. I will PM you in the mean time this way I can keep track of who to notify if they do resolve it.

**mmack66** · 09-24-2011, 11:11 AM

There shouldn't be anything that would rust.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 11:16 AM

Look at the center of the blade holder (Not previously present before plating):

Rust inside of handle (Not previously present before plating):

Speckling / Pitting on head of razor (Not previously present before plating):

Redish color in between grooves on knob:

**mmack66** · 09-24-2011, 11:30 AM

I agree that the replate job looks substandard. As for the discoloration inside the handle, it could be brassing.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 11:35 AM

I agree that it is substandard and was quite shocked that it came back this way after hearing such high remarks about the company prior to sending it in. If you look at pic 3 you can see where the safety bar has the lines you can notice where they over-polished the head and it caused the lines to be mostly removed.

**natchez** · 09-24-2011, 11:51 AM

I do not think that is rust. Likely, the plating just did not get up there and either some copper under layer was applied or the underlying brass is showing. With re-plates they first strip to bare metal with a caustic bath and then plate. I have heard that TTOs can be a bear to re-plate.

As to the rest of it, it does look a bit off. Contact the vendor with your concerns and they will most likely address them to your satisfaction. Was this a pricey re-plate or a cheapo job?

**cernel_joson** · 09-24-2011, 11:59 AM

What bothers me the most is the eradication of the lines on the guard bar. I tend to judge the quality of a replate on whether the knurling and lines are as distinct as they should be.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 11:59 AM

Well compared some members here wits almost double what they charge. This place charged $57 and a member here quoted me at $30 but he is from the UK. His razor's do come out excellent though. Only reason I went with this place is because they were also highly recommended by other members and local enough for me to expect decent ship times.

**stm378** · 09-24-2011, 12:02 PM

Originally Posted by CyiDev

So I had my Aristocrat re-plated in Rhodium. I received it back today and am honestly disappointed in the quality done on it. It had the old plating removed, polished and was re-coated. The coating is sort of speckled on the top and there is a red discoloration on the TTO knob that was present on the original plating. Since it is still present this appears to me that the old coating was not properly removed. The coating is also uneven to the point that you can see discoloration on the top. It also appears that the edges were polished off. BTW what do you do when a TTO does not open smoothly and makes a squeaking noise?

Edit: The inside of the handle now has rust in there as well. This is turning out to be a bad experience - too bad the company is closed on the weekends.

Well, it's not the place I was guessing, since they're open Saturday's according to their website. I had guessed a banned member with a bad rep for shotty workmanship. Are you suuuure it's not open Monday-Saturday 8a-5p Pacific time, might want to recheck the website.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 12:03 PM

Originally Posted by cernel_joson

What bothers me the most is the eradication of the lines on the guard bar. I tend to judge the quality of a replate on whether the knurling and lines are as distinct as they should be.

To be honest I am upset it looks that way and believe the guy who polished it didn't tape it off when polishing the head. But at this point that part is done and there is no way to really reverse that - but you would expect that the amount of hands it changed someone would have noticed the small things in the end wrong with it. The speckling was the very first thing I noticed because when you have something shiny you just have to move it around in the light.

**stm378** · 09-24-2011, 12:05 PM

Originally Posted by CyiDev

Well compared some members here wits almost double what they charge. This place charged $57 and a member here quoted me at $30 but he is from the UK. His razor's do come out excellent though. Only reason I went with this place is because they were also highly recommended by other members and local enough for me to expect decent ship times.

Well if they were highly recommended than that knocks out my original guess.....but not that I think about it the only other logical place has the same initials as my first guess.

I'm guessing on the UK member that you were initially considering (but didn't go with) you were talking about Dave (onotman), from what I've seen he does great work, and I'm going to be sending off my prized Bulldog to him shortly, I can deal with the notion that it will be a while before I have it back (I'm in the States too) if he does as good of a job on it as he seems to.

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 12:13 PM

Originally Posted by stm378

Well, it's not the place I was guessing, since they're open Saturday's according to their website. I had guessed a banned member with a bad rep for shotty workmanship. Are you suuuure it's not open Monday-Saturday 8a-5p Pacific time, might want to recheck the website.

Monday - Friday 8 AM - 4:30 PM ET

Yes, you are correct on onotoman doing a great job from what others have said. I am starting to regret not being patient and sending it to him in the first place.

**natchez** · 09-24-2011, 12:16 PM

Originally Posted by CyiDev

Well compared some members here wits almost double what they charge. This place charged $57 and a member here quoted me at $30 but he is from the UK. His razor's do come out excellent though. Only reason I went with this place is because they were also highly recommended by other members and local enough for me to expect decent ship times.

That is a pricey restore; I would have expected more as well.

**bakerbarber** · 09-24-2011, 12:16 PM

I'm not sure that's acceptable. The guard bar shouldn't have been worn that much in polishing.

I can only speak from personal experience. I would rather spend the extra money buying a nice example of an original razor than send something out for work. The only replate I have ever had done and been happy with came from someone who doesn't do it as regular service. I have only had three different people do replating for me. I can't say there isn't someone who does it consistently as a service and is both affordable and quick with turn around.

I've purchased a couple razors from eBay that were replated and listed as such. One was decent, but the surface was poorly prepared. It has a lot of swirls and scratches. The handle it came with was very poorly done and thinly plated. I bought a TTO as well and it was disappointing.

You should get that redone for free if the people who did it care. At the end of the day I believe if you need a razor replated, you should be prepared for long turn around. Anyone who is worth it, is not going to be the cheapest either. In theory most razors should only need replated once. If they are 50+ years old, and are getting new plating, someone 50+ years from now should be the only one concerned about having the job redone.

It's a trade off though. If you own an irreplaceable item you want done, make an investment of time and money- if you want a nice looking razor, buy one in stellar condition.

I hope it works out for you in the long run!!

**CyiDev** · 09-24-2011, 12:19 PM

I absolutely love this model of razor and have had a hard time finding an identical shave to it. My EJ89 comes close but there is just something about the 1946 Aristocrat that just shaves perfectly to me.