Nice idea, and it works too. Congrats on a creative fix. 
Broken tooth fix
- Thread starter highball
- Start date
Great idea and ingenuity. Thanks for sharing this "new and improved" quick. Cheers.
Nice work, Mike! Now where were you when I tried to sell this Bostonian? 
- Thread starter
- #24
Nice work, Mike! Now where were you when I tried to sell this Bostonian?
Wow Bill, that is one sad looking razor
I'm the guy who benefited from Mike's generosity. (Thanks again, Mike).
I really liked his fix, but I wanted to try something else.
I've had really good results fixing metal and ceramic objects with a product called FastSteel. It's a metal reinforced epoxy putty. It has the stickiness of epoxy, but it hardens into a steel-hard surface. It's supposed to be functional submerged in water and at a wide range of temperatures. As I said, I've used it for various things around the house without any failures over a period of years.
When I got the ND head, I cleaned out the broken tooth area, and then machined (Dremel) a little groove to maximize the contact area the epoxy would have. I then mixed the epoxy putty and started to 'fashion' the tooth - by hand (as can be seen in the pics). This is not as easy to do as it sounds, as the putty sticks to everything, even your fingers (it takes a few days to scrub off the last few bits of metal from the fingers). I used an SE blade to cut off the extra bits. I then let it cure overnight.
I only received the comb plate from Mike, but I have a fat-handled Tech so I used the handle and head-cap from it. It is nickel-plated, so I made a bit of a franken-razor.
I finger-tested it this morning, and the 'tooth' seemed to be solidly built in place ----- so it was time to see if it survived a shave.
It did great (at least over one shave). I didn't notice any difference between the two sides of the razor at all.
The only issue will be the longevity of this fix. I have no idea how long it will last - it could break off during the next shave. I've used this epoxy on items that would be repetitively put under strain and had no issues, but I've never fashioned something so delicate before.
The next thing I have to do is get my hands on a gold Tech, so I can have the rest of the razor match the head.
I'll keep people posted on how this turns out over the next month or so.
NOTE: My handiwork on the tooth leaves a lot to be desired. The great thing is that I can remove this tooth and remake it if I so desire (it was a pain to make the first time, so, since it works, I don't see myself voluntarily doing it again).
--> This should be possible to do for inner teeth as well. However, they're much thinner, so it will be even harder to fabricate one properly. If you want to try this, I'd strongly recommend cutting a notch into the head where the tooth would go. There's no way a tooth would adequately stick to the head without the notch. Personally, I wouldn't be bothered to replace an inner tooth - a missing one won't affect the shave.
--> This epoxy cures in 1 h. I have another version of this that takes 2 days to cure, and hardens even further than this one. If this one fails, that's the thing I'll try next. That one hardens into a metallic silver surface, instead of the dark grey of this one.
I really liked his fix, but I wanted to try something else.
I've had really good results fixing metal and ceramic objects with a product called FastSteel. It's a metal reinforced epoxy putty. It has the stickiness of epoxy, but it hardens into a steel-hard surface. It's supposed to be functional submerged in water and at a wide range of temperatures. As I said, I've used it for various things around the house without any failures over a period of years.
When I got the ND head, I cleaned out the broken tooth area, and then machined (Dremel) a little groove to maximize the contact area the epoxy would have. I then mixed the epoxy putty and started to 'fashion' the tooth - by hand (as can be seen in the pics). This is not as easy to do as it sounds, as the putty sticks to everything, even your fingers (it takes a few days to scrub off the last few bits of metal from the fingers). I used an SE blade to cut off the extra bits. I then let it cure overnight.
I only received the comb plate from Mike, but I have a fat-handled Tech so I used the handle and head-cap from it. It is nickel-plated, so I made a bit of a franken-razor.
I finger-tested it this morning, and the 'tooth' seemed to be solidly built in place ----- so it was time to see if it survived a shave.
It did great (at least over one shave). I didn't notice any difference between the two sides of the razor at all. The only issue will be the longevity of this fix. I have no idea how long it will last - it could break off during the next shave. I've used this epoxy on items that would be repetitively put under strain and had no issues, but I've never fashioned something so delicate before.
The next thing I have to do is get my hands on a gold Tech, so I can have the rest of the razor match the head.
I'll keep people posted on how this turns out over the next month or so.
NOTE: My handiwork on the tooth leaves a lot to be desired. The great thing is that I can remove this tooth and remake it if I so desire (it was a pain to make the first time, so, since it works, I don't see myself voluntarily doing it again).
--> This should be possible to do for inner teeth as well. However, they're much thinner, so it will be even harder to fabricate one properly. If you want to try this, I'd strongly recommend cutting a notch into the head where the tooth would go. There's no way a tooth would adequately stick to the head without the notch. Personally, I wouldn't be bothered to replace an inner tooth - a missing one won't affect the shave.
--> This epoxy cures in 1 h. I have another version of this that takes 2 days to cure, and hardens even further than this one. If this one fails, that's the thing I'll try next. That one hardens into a metallic silver surface, instead of the dark grey of this one.
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- Thread starter
- #26
Great idea yohann, you might be able to clean it up with your dremel and a file now that the epoxy putty has set up.
- Thread starter
- #27
I was just asked about a broken tooth fix, so I am bumping this old thread
I used the razor with the fix I mentioned above for several months. There were no issues with the fashioned tooth.
However, I wanted the head replated, so I asked Michael (buddydog) if he'd be able to tackle fashioning a tooth for it.
He was happy to give it a go. I still haven't received the head back, but here are some pics of the process that he sent me yesterday (pics used without permission, I will take them down if Michael asks me to):
The head still needs to be replated, so I haven't had a chance to try it out after the fix. However, it's unlikely that it will be any less robust than my hokey fix. It's not like these teeth are put under that much of stress. If the join can take submersion in water and soap, then it should last.
This is just a heads-up that some tooth damage can be fixed.
I don't know if this would work for narrow teeth (like on the Old-type, or inner teeth on the New/New Deluxe), but there's no harm in asking if it can be done.
My fix (with the epoxy) was cheaper, though.
(buddydog's charge was very reasonable).
That's one of the great things about B&B: it puts us in touch with some real artists!! Thanks Michael (buddydog), and thanks Mike (highball), for giving me the ND head.
However, I wanted the head replated, so I asked Michael (buddydog) if he'd be able to tackle fashioning a tooth for it.
He was happy to give it a go. I still haven't received the head back, but here are some pics of the process that he sent me yesterday (pics used without permission, I will take them down if Michael asks me to):
The head still needs to be replated, so I haven't had a chance to try it out after the fix. However, it's unlikely that it will be any less robust than my hokey fix. It's not like these teeth are put under that much of stress. If the join can take submersion in water and soap, then it should last.
This is just a heads-up that some tooth damage can be fixed.
I don't know if this would work for narrow teeth (like on the Old-type, or inner teeth on the New/New Deluxe), but there's no harm in asking if it can be done.
My fix (with the epoxy) was cheaper, though.
(buddydog's charge was very reasonable).That's one of the great things about B&B: it puts us in touch with some real artists!! Thanks Michael (buddydog), and thanks Mike (highball), for giving me the ND head.
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Very inventive. Looks like it would work well. Good job!
Once I become a vendor I'll be offering this service here.The new tooth is silver soldered in place.
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Nice craftsmanship! Shaping the inside of the tooth must be especially time consuming.
-jim
- Thread starter
- #32
Well done, that tooth came out nice
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