Wood Handles for Razors - Little help here

[WalkOn]

I need to make some razors for my boys and wanted to see if anyone ever had any problems using wood with a CA finish. I've looked around and see that many folks make/sell these, so I guess it's fine, but just wanted to check.

I often shave in the shower, and just not sure if that would cause problems.

Thanks in advance.

Kev

 

[wood-of-1kind]

Safer bet is to use acrylics but if you want wood, I would suggest TEAK. That's the way I would go.

 

[WalkOn]

That's what I was thinking. Deal is, these will be the first razors I've made and I'd like to make sure they last.

Thanks,

Kevin

 

[wood-of-1kind]

That's what I was thinking. Deal is, these will be the first razors I've made and I'd like to make sure they last.

Thanks,

Kevin

Kevin, another suggestion would be to get wood that is stabilized and coat with CA to get more waterproof protection. Just a thought.

 

[WalkOn]

Yes, stabilized bank would be better.

One thing that concerns me about using an all acrylic blank is what happens when you drop it in the tub, seems I've done that more than once with my razor. Not sure, maybe I'm just overthinking this, but thought it best to ask.

Kev

 

[Rodnall]

I think it was Brooks that posted a razor set using white oak. I had asked about using wood for a razor and was told that the white oak is what they use in barrels and that it wood be ok.

 

[WalkOn]

Interesting about the white oak. Wondering if anyone has a wood handle razor fail?

Kev

 

[Brooks803]

I think it was Brooks that posted a razor set using white oak. I had asked about using wood for a razor and was told that the white oak is what they use in barrels and that it wood be ok.

Yup...it was me. As a safety net I also applied a couple coats of TruOil finish. Just to make sure any of the softer grain was filled in.

If you are planning on using wood just make sure it's either stabilized, or a wood with very tight grain. Also apply a little CA to the ends of the barrels after trimming to seal them. That'll help keep water from being absorbed, and with expansion in the humidity.

 

[Bowhnter]

I made one for my wife in Olive wood with satin poly, and no issues so far. That was in early May.

I am making them now and using craft coat, so it is too early to tell on that. I would think CA would be just fine.

 

[WalkOn]

Thanks for all the information. I'm going to play it safe for now and go with acrylic, but will try some of the suggestions here out on myself. I really prefer wood, but I want to make sure the ones I give as gifts last a long time.

Thanks again for the help.

Kev

 

[robutacion]

Thanks for all the information. I'm going to play it safe for now and go with acrylic, but will try some of the suggestions here out on myself. I really prefer wood, but I want to make sure the ones I give as gifts last a long time.

Thanks again for the help.

Kev

Making razors for your own use in wood, is not so much a big deal, after all if it doesn't last, how much will it cost to make another handle...???

I make a few blanks for razors, they are either all wood or a combination of wood and resin (Resifills), the rule #1 is to stabilized the wood and do it well, the CA finished if applied with care on the ends where it will soak water first, it will seal the wood well and you will have a handle that will last a long time.

However, when making these sort of items as gifts or for sale, is only normal that its durability, plays havoc in your mind as you want it to last so, following these simple guidelines I made above, also mentioned by Brooks803 , you should get the best possible results if wood is what you would like to use...!

Good luck...!:biggrin:

Cheers
George

 

[darrin1200]

When I'm doing the wood handles, I completely seal them.

I drill the hole and glue in the tube using lots of epoxy.
I soak the ends in thin CA.
Turned down to finished size.
Wipe down with DNA or acetone to remove any moisture and oils.
2 coats of thin CA
6 coats of med CA
Wet sand lightly with green MM pad
6 more coats of med CA
Wet sand and polish to finish.
I epoxy the ends fitting into place, so that there is no chance of moisture getting in.

I still tell people not to leave the razor laying in water. So far, none have come back.

 

[WalkOn]

Thanks George. I'll be giving the stabilized blanks a try. I really appreciate the advice.

Darrin, looks like you have given this a fair amount of thought and come up with good process for working with natural wood.

What got me thinking about all this was a problem I had with a few wooden pen blanks.

I'd do the following:

Turn the blank to size.
Apply CA, let cure.
I'd then clean up and square off the ends using Rick's Sanding Mill, which does a nice job.
I would then wet sand with MM.

On a few blanks I noticed that I was getting "ghosting" on one or both ends of the blank, especially dark colored blanks. So, seems like the water was entering the unsealed ends and causing this problem. What I now do is apply friction polish after using the sanding mill, which seems to work. I thought about using thin CA, but was concerned I'd get it on my finished barrel.

Now that I think about this, maybe it would be best to change the process, i.e. apply CA and then sand the ends and reapply a thin coat of CA, and then do my wet sanding.