Thread: Am I hosed?

Wanting to get started in straight razor shaving, I recently got one as a gift. Well, I hadn't even used it before it was used to pry off the back of a watch to change the battery. Needless to say the watch won and there is now a little chip off the end of the razor.

Is it ok to use? Is it fixable? What do I do with it? I will try to add some worthwhile photos.

Looks like an easy re-grind job or some serious honing. Shame on you for abusing your razor!

Could we get a close up of the chip?

First off, get some precision flathead screwdrivers. The only time your razor should be used as a tool is on your face- but I'm sure you know that now

I would say contact a honemeister. I doubt your razor is shave ready anyway, and they'll be able to take care of it best. The razor isn't lost, it'll just mean a little money to get it back to normal. May I ask if the razor is even worth the trouble?

I never said I tried to use it to open the watch.

Is it worth the trouble? Honestly I wouldn't know. It was a gift. It is my first. I was going to try and get into straight razor shaving. I've never done it. I was going to try it out tomorrow or monday for the first time.

I'll work on close ups, I tried earlier but I could never get the camera to focus.

Well, let me put it another way. Was it a gift from someone important that would be hurt if you didn't try to shave with it? For instance, if my wife gave me a razor, I would do everything possible to shave with it, even if it was a Zeepk.

Are there any markings on it at all? Do you know where it was bought from? I can't tell from the pics, but it looks like one of the cheapo razors from a BudK catalog. Maybe if we can decide whether you'll ever be able to shave with it, you can decide whether or not to try to salvage it.

Looks like a Wapi to me.
If so definitely worth fixing & doesn't look a tough job.

It was purchased from thewellhonedrazor.com. It is a Wapencia (supposedly). It said shave ready. I think I recall the owner (or an employee, I forget it has been a while) mentioned on this board he had some. In some thread where the other guy (rupprazor?) said he was out.

It WAS a gift from my wife. Even though she was the one that chipped it, I may have to have a go.

Yup, send that baby out. It's definitely worth saving and will make a great shaver. Besides the fact that it's from SWMBO, it's a great piece of history too.

I think you could just use some sandpaper to grind that smooth. I had a little hook on a robeson I bought and just sanded it back down no problem. Your chip may be worse but I bet it's not too hard to self fix.

Rupprazor = Kenrup on here you might actually send him a PM and ask if he has the time to fix that for you and re-tune up the edge,, He has a ton of experience with the Wapi brand...