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How to: Get rid of your Weber wavy blade for under $4 and 10 minutes!!!!!

I am a big fan of the Weber Polished Head Stainless Steel Razor but was always disappointed in the quality of the head. I bought one months ago and the blade was very wavy. I contacted Weber and they exchanged it for me. The next one was better but it still bothered me. I ended up selling it. I recently have become intrigued with it again so I bought another. Again the blade was slightly wavy although not as bad as my original. I decided to fix it myself.

The issue:
The rails that the blade line up against are not perfectly flat. This causes the blade to have an inconstant gap along the blade. So to fix it the goal is to level that out.

Test:
To see if you have this problem you can load a blade and take a good look at how the blade sits. Is the gap even across the blade or is it wavy and inconsistent? This is the most obvious test. Another thing is to take the baseplate and lay it on a hard flat surface on the rails. Most likely it will rock back and forth slightly due to the rails being uneven.

Here is a picture of the rails in question.

$ImageUploadedByTapatalk1408736951.960017.jpg

What you need:
- Weber Polished Head Razor
- Hard, Flat Surface. I used my bathroom countertop.
- Cup of Water
- 1500 grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper

The sandpaper can be found at any local hardware store. Ace, Home Depot, Lowes and even Walmart. An assorted pack can be had for around $3. I used 1500 grit and found it course enough to remove material but fine enough to not take too much too fast or scratch the finish.

$ImageUploadedByTapatalk1408736651.759292.jpg

Process:
- Lay the sandpaper on hard flat surface.
- Pour some water on the sand paper.
- Dip the base plate in water and place on sandpaper.
What you are going to do is keep the sandpaper stationary on the counter and move the baseplate. Use light, consistent, and even pressure. You will sand parallel to the rails. Back and forth in the direction of the green arrows. Do not go the other direction. Try to be a even and symmetric as possible.

$ImageUploadedByTapatalk1408737134.217294.jpg

- GO SLOW. After 10-20 strokes dry off the baseplate and assemble the razor with a blade and see how it looks. Test if the baseplate still wobbles on a hard flat surface.
- I was able to get rid of the wobble and get the blade much improved in as little as 30 seconds.
- It will take a little longer to get it perfectly straight.
- GO SLOW.
- Sand slightly, reassemble razor and check blade.
- Make sure the sandpaper is always wet. Add water if needed.
- Continue sanding and checking until you are happy with the new blade alignment.

Enjoy your new straight blade Weber!

$ImageUploadedByTapatalk1408737384.572305.jpg
 
My experience with using loose sandpaper on a flat surface is that you are always going to get sagging corners. The paper will bubble up ahead of the workpiece. Better to use a flattened sharpening stone or glue the sandpaper to the back of a granite tile.
 
My experience with using loose sandpaper on a flat surface is that you are always going to get sagging corners. The paper will bubble up ahead of the workpiece. Better to use a flattened sharpening stone or glue the sandpaper to the back of a granite tile.

Definitely true. There are more exact and precise ways to do this. The method proposed is something anyone of any skill level could do and have access to all the materials. If you have the ability to use a sharpening stone that would be better as like you said it is more consistent on corners. I do not own one but I am sure many here may as they have them for their straight razors. The sandpaper method will clear up 95%+ of the blade inconsistencies making it much nicer then how it arrives from Weber. Looking at mine I have no rounded corners as you are not removing much material at all.
 
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I did the same thing with my Weber. I sanded those rails your talking about. It did fix the wavy blade, but I was still unhappy that I had to do that to a brand new razor, so I sold it. And like you I'm still going to buy another one someday.
 
I tried this using my Spyderco Sharpmaker, it did help a bit but the grit's too fine for this kind of thing. Planning to pick up some sandpaper on my way home tonight. :thumbup1:
 
Is there anyone from Weber reading this stuff? It seems they could include a lapping stage at the end of the base production that would take very little time or effort and fix this problem! I'm not at all impressed with a machine shop that knowingly allows degraded quality out the door.
 
I now have a straight Weber! Well, I don't think it's laser-straight but it's close enough to make me happy and it did actually feel smoother for this evening's shave.

I agree that this is something Weber should be sorting before the razors make it out of the factory. Apparently someone contacted Weber and they claimed that it was a small problem, and the shaving fora were making it sound worse than it is. All I can say is that I've had three Webers now and none have been straight. They do shave really well, and it's a bargain price for a stainless razor, but you shouldn't need to finish it yourself.
 
I now have a straight Weber! Well, I don't think it's laser-straight but it's close enough to make me happy and it did actually feel smoother for this evening's shave.

I agree that this is something Weber should be sorting before the razors make it out of the factory. Apparently someone contacted Weber and they claimed that it was a small problem, and the shaving fora were making it sound worse than it is. All I can say is that I've had three Webers now and none have been straight. They do shave really well, and it's a bargain price for a stainless razor, but you shouldn't need to finish it yourself.

That's great. It is difficult to get it perfectly 100% straight especially at the risk of taking too much material but you can easily get rid of a huge amount of the issue. My first one was really crooked and you can feel it on your face.

Also that was me that contacted Weber with the first one I bought in May and had it exchanged. Still wavy blade. I sold it. Still love the concept of the razor and bought this one. Still wavy blade. Just like you I have had 3 with the wavy blade. I do not think it is a coincidence. I literally think they are all like that. It's a shame because it is such a nice razor but it personally bothers me so much.

I have $10 cadet and RazoRock razors with perfectly straight blades so I don't think it is an unreasonable request.
 
I bought one this summer and its perfectly straight. Hopefully they've cleared up the issue. It would be interesting to hear if anyone has bought one in the last few months that has the issue.

Could anyone with the wavy blade post a picture? I'd like to make sure I'm checking correctly. I can't see how I'm not, but I'm capable of some pretty boneheaded stuff from time to time!
 
I bought one this summer and its perfectly straight. Hopefully they've cleared up the issue. It would be interesting to hear if anyone has bought one in the last few months that has the issue.

Could anyone with the wavy blade post a picture? I'd like to make sure I'm checking correctly. I can't see how I'm not, but I'm capable of some pretty boneheaded stuff from time to time!

I got mine last week with a wavy blade. The one before that was in May and the head swapped out also in May. I have had 3 wavy blades. I can not see that being coincidence. For the people with straight blades can you please post a picture?

This is the picture from the other thread of my original one. The gap is inconsistent. Smaller in places and bigger in others. It is hard to photograph but should be obvious when comparing the gap left to right.

$ImageUploadedByTapatalk1409190445.698190.jpg
 
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Mine (purchased in June) seems to be okay, I think.

I've been peering at it with a magnifying glass for the last 20 min.

$weberblade.JPG

--Bob
 
Since more than one year I was perfectly happy with my Weber and how it shaves - until I saw this thread and checked those rails with a straightedge... :cursing: :laugh:
 
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