This old Sheffield razor has been 'marinating' in a bag of Neatsfoot oil since the end of March. I figured it was time to give it a good cleaning.
The condition of the razor was, considering the age (circa 1835-1850), in pretty decent shape. The horn scales were starting to dry and split on the edges (hence the long oil bath). The metal cap on the nose end was indicative of a repair done somewhere in this razors's past. You can see where the scales were frayed on the bottom near the metal wedge cap. Years of gunk and grime built up at the pins, pivot point and around the wedge end.
Plenty of steel on this large wedge and I was able to remove many of the blade surface imperfectionspitting, gouges and some surface scratches. I gave the scales a light sanding, cleaning and buffing. The horn was much more pliable (not brittle) thanks to the long oil soak and I was able to remove the frayed section (see above photo) with no loss of integrity to the scale. The floral pin collars received extra attention as they were heavily encased in years of gunk.
Some shots post-cleaning & buffing .
The next step is to get this bad boy honed up!
Thanks for looking!
The condition of the razor was, considering the age (circa 1835-1850), in pretty decent shape. The horn scales were starting to dry and split on the edges (hence the long oil bath). The metal cap on the nose end was indicative of a repair done somewhere in this razors's past. You can see where the scales were frayed on the bottom near the metal wedge cap. Years of gunk and grime built up at the pins, pivot point and around the wedge end.
Plenty of steel on this large wedge and I was able to remove many of the blade surface imperfectionspitting, gouges and some surface scratches. I gave the scales a light sanding, cleaning and buffing. The horn was much more pliable (not brittle) thanks to the long oil soak and I was able to remove the frayed section (see above photo) with no loss of integrity to the scale. The floral pin collars received extra attention as they were heavily encased in years of gunk.
Some shots post-cleaning & buffing .
The next step is to get this bad boy honed up!
Thanks for looking!
