Thread: Tally Ho!

I got this off ebay. Probably paid too much for it, but it was worth the gamble in my opinion. I was looking for something that I could really put some time into and learn some of the ins and outs of the razor restoration process. This would definitely do the job. The seller knew nothing about the razor. The makers mark was so rusted over, I had a hard time making it out too. Here's what I got:

Rust covered 100% of the blade. I knew there would be some bad pitting once I'm done with cleaning it up, but hey, it's probably old, right? Look at the thing.
The scales are a 'one piece' wood of some type. Can't really tell beneath all the grime and character. Probably nothing special.
I took some 150 grit sandpaper to it to see if I could figure out if it would even be worth my time and effort.

It's a Frederick Fenney Tally Ho! It dates back between 1824-1852. Not too bad a shape then for being older than my great grandfather. The rust ate up the fox, but he's there. The unmistakable Tally Ho you can make out too, some of the letters eaten by time, but still... am I right, or am I right?
I took it to the greaseless compound 150 grit for ~20min and here's how it looks now:

So now, the questions...
How much good steel needs to be visible for an edge? I'm wanting to get this shavable and back in those scales once their cleaned up (unless someone has some Tally Ho scales they wouldn't mind parting with).
Below are a couple 'edge focused' pics. If there's another angle, or more pics of something, let me know. I don't want to take too much steel off, while at the same time, I don't want the hone to run into any pits.

Thanks for the help guys! I appreciate it!

The pics on the bottom I don't know how to remove. They're some that I didn't know how to rotate in the forum. They looked fine on my computer, but wouldn't rotate. :P

Sorry guys... I'll blame it on my Newb status.

Thus far its a good find and a great job, keep going and keep a pic diary of your progress!

Brothers we be, on the quest beneath the Rust!

Because its never too far gone!

Originally Posted by Magpie

Brothers we be, on the quest beneath the Rust!

Because its never too far gone!

Indeed! Yours is coming along nicely. We should form an alliance.
I haven't honed before. Should I practice on a junk blade before I give this a go?

I would definitely practice on an easier blade first. There are bound to be problems due to uneven spine/edge. I like to think I'm pretty good, but I am still no Glenn or Sham, and I still get flustered on these tough ones!