DE Razor Replating


Hi there. I'm about to take delivery of a 1961 Fat Boy adjustable and understand that it shows a little wear...I'd be very interested to know if such an item could be re-plated without affecting it's performance, which I believe is good - everything works well. Also, what kind of cost would this involve?
Any advice would be gratefully received!
 
Hi @Greybeard

Thanks ever so much for the enquiry. If you drop me a quick email via the website I can pick the convo up there. It would be great if you could send a photo or a link to an auction with pictures if at all possible.

Just so you are aware, I'm currently finishing off a mammoth project this week, but after that probably won't be accepting any new orders for a month as I've been working way too many hours and am taking a holiday in the sun !

Best wishes,

Jay
 

I've bookmarked your website, jaycee, and I'll send you pics etc when I receive the razor. I'm really pleased to find somewhere that specialises in razor plating...I have been in touch with a general plating company but they have no experience with razors so i was a bit dubious! I'll be in touch.

BTW...your website is great...very easy to navigate and good examples of the work you do. I also find the fact that you don't bullshit about when things can be done quite refreshing! Personally, I'd rather have something done right over time than rushed and screwed up...
 
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As somebody who has been responsible for two of those "mammoth" tasks (sorry Jay !!! )I can highly recommend the quality of Jay's work Greybeard and say that the finished article looks even better than it does in the photos.
 
Hi Ian,

It does look really good for its age. If I'm honest I'm torn between whether you should replate it or not.

One thing I would double check .... The 3rd photo showing the silo doors open .... Check carefully as it very much looks from the photo to be back to brass on the left hand door internal - particularly the lower section where the hinge arm is. If it is the case whatever you do don't go anywhere near an ultrasonic cleaner. If you use ultrasound on a razor that has brassing and sections of nickel that have been lost, it will make the razor look fab but do a lot more damage than good. There also seems to be patches on the baseplate too. It may be the photos but do check as its otherwise a lovely razor and its worth a double check.

One option considering it is otherwise looking great it to do a touch up. Rather than a complete disassembly and strip back to brass of the entire razor, it's possible to chemically clean the sections that have lost plate (to remove the oxides) and then selectively plate using a swab electrode. You would not see any 'join' and it would be completely invisible - but it would stop any deterioration in its tracks. A chemical clean of the rest of the razor and a touch up of the numbers where the paint has been lost would then make it look spot on. It would avoid the cost of a replate and keep the razor "original".


Best wishes,

Jay
 
I appreciate the feedback from everyone, and thanks for the detailed information, Jay.
You're probably right about the small area where it seems to have lost its plate...at first I thought it was some discolouration, but it didn't respond to any cleaning.
As I've mentioned in my separate email, I'll definitely give you a shout first if I decide to get a full or partial re-plate done. For now, I'll hold fire and see how it works out.
Thanks again!
(TBH I think I'm just a little jealous of Blademonkey's FB)
 
GrumpyTerry said:
Is there still someone doing De razor restoration
Thanks
Click to expand...

There's Restoredrazors.com based in New Zealand. Dave, the guy who runs it, used to be based in the Newcastle area, but emigrated a few years ago. He does really good work, but obviously shipping and any import duties will cost you. There are a few guys doing similar work based in the US, but the better ones have huge waiting lists, and again the costs will be pretty high. I'm not aware of anybody repairing or plating DE razors in the UK or EU atm.
 
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