Putting my efforts into one sock - Ladykate

[ladykate]

First things first: For those who may be confused about my handle - Ladykate was my first Golden Retriever and I used her name when I was surfing the Internet (before there was a web). The name stuck.

Decided to start a thread for my efforts at restorations and rebuilds. I seem to be posting all over the place so this might be less confusing for at least me.

I'll start with the following Kamisori object. It is amazingly like the one I did earlier this week ( http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthr...t-for-a-Dollar ) but it has a downward swooping handle and I decided to replace the epoxy center that was painted black with a proper knife-handle like affair. It isn't any harder to make... mostly.

This one uses a red oak center with black walnut scales. The tang was bobbed a bit and trimmed down. It is also sealed with epoxy and I wicked in CA in the cracks to prevent water seeping in. The reason for the downward swoop was to lower my hand just slightly when I have the razor on my face. I haven't shaved with it as yet but will do so tomorrow.

The length of the blade is 50 mm (the other one is 60 mm). The blade is a Gold Dollar that was bobbed, fricasseed and tweaked.

I like this one better than the first one. I decided the epoxy center looked dumpy. The oak looks much better to me.

[paco664]

i still love it.....

and you know it will shave....

[Legion]

Looks great.

[tomjr]

well done!

[ladykate]

I cleaned up the other razor by adding in a gripping surface to the center which originally only had epoxy that was painted black. The surface is a very complex but small rope that I had my factory in China produce. It is called... string. In this case, tarred string with CA coating. I think it looks nicer. The picture below is both razors together.

Something I just noticed that I forgot. Both razors have black walnut for scales. The razor on the left was coated with black stain (Minwax) before it was treated with Tung oil.

[Giant Kiwi]

Looking good Dan

[tomjr]

nice, i like them. the idea of a western grind kami makes perfect sense to me.

[ladykate]

nice, i like them. the idea of a western grind kami makes perfect sense to me.

I like the idea of shaving with either hand without adjusting the angle like you would if you used an asymmetrical grind - symmetrical grinds work well. The smaller blade is easy (easier?) to sharpen and you can get a very keen edge on it. Also, and for me, my neck hair grows in different directions with the right side of my neck having hair with a grain that faces to the rear. This makes almost all straights hard to use if I want a BBS on my neck. I usually just settle for a couple of good atg passes or obsess with it for a while before I get a good shave there.. With these blades, getting the angle right without doing a sword swallowing stunt is quite easy. The smaller blade is very easy to adjust for an atg just about anywhere on my face.

[paco664]

i love it......

[Kentos]

Nice! Now make one that works like a folder with a liner lock! Then patent it!! Then get rich and buy everyone gold contributor badges!!

I like em both btw, but lean toward your most recent creation.

[ladykate]

re: Now make one that works like a folder with a liner lock!

That would be a knife... right? ;-}

Has anyone tried to use one of those Tom Anderson knives as a razor?

[Kentos]

No it's a folding Kamisori razor!!

:)

[ladykate]

Well... been experimenting - and with experimenting comes failures. Here is one that I thought would work but all it did was dull my DMT. ;-}

It is a piece of 1" saw blade that has been cleaned and then 'grayed' with vinegar patina. The edge and everything else came out swell... except it won't sharpen nicely and the edge goes away after the first pass. However, I did learn how to make a nice patina on a blade so it wasn't all lost:



This next one has two aspects. The first is that it is a nightmare to sharpen a stainless paring knife unless you put a spine on the blade. What a junky mess it was! After dorking with it for a day or two, I just about tossed it in the trash but decided that I might as well experiment and see if I could actually get it to shave. This one wore out my second DMT. However, as razor trashy as it looks, it shaves well.

[ladykate]

Well... I can't find the thread but TstebinsB had a Feather RG without a handle. I asked him if he wanted to sell it and I became the proud owner. I wanted to see how hard or easy it was to add a handle. After I got the razor, I must have gone over a dozen alternatives and finally settled on plain and simple. The handle has an oak center and bone sides.

However, I now have acquisition disorder for old Feather AC razors. These are fun to mess with.

[paco664]

hmm... interesting...

[ladykate]

hmm... interesting...

Yeah... kinda looks like a cheap kitchen knife in the pictures. In real life it isn't bad. Will shave with it for a few times and see if I like it.

The balance seems very nice - better than the normal RG. The weight of the handle is a tad more so the thing feels pretty good. Also, the edges seem like they provide a grip. We'll see.

Hmmmm... wonder if putting a couple of faux pins in it will make it dressier....

Something like this:



Update: It shaves like you would think it would. The few grams of weight shift towards the handle seems to make it more controllable although when I first started the shave, I had to concentrate a bit more because just a few grams of shift gives a different feel. The square design seems to be relatively non-slip. I got soap all over it and could still control it. My SS and Feather RG with the original handles get pretty slippery.

[ladykate]

A recent thread got me wanting to make a seamless handle for a 'Western' Kamisori-like object. This is black walnut. The handle ended up being easier to make - which sort of surprised me. Again, it is minimalist - which seems more appropriate for a Kami (-like object).

The handle is just a tad longer than the others. I intend to use this one so I made it for my big hands.

[tomjr]

i like the last one there partner!

[paco664]

show closer photos of the mate between wood and steel....

i like the looks of that fixed blade...

[ladykate]

show closer photos of the mate between wood and steel....

i like the looks of that fixed blade...

Here is a close up. There is a pesky piece of lint there - but I didn't smudge it out.

Nothing spectacular. The tang was ground down to 3/16" and the edges rounded so it fit a 3/16" hole. Right where the handle ends a slight step was carved in the metal so the hole wouldn't show as much. Epoxy was used to hold it all. Once set, any small gaps were naturally dark and matched the dark ends of the walnut.