Thread: Leather Scales

After a few days and alot of help from guys on here, im positive that my old Sheffield razor has leather scales. The razor is probably near 100 yrs old so hows the best way to clean and maintain them? any ideas. I will be keeping this as it has family ties and will be using it regularly. Im currently cleaning the blade and honing it, im just finding the scales look pretty grimy really.

Originally Posted by MoreWhisky

After a few days and alot of help from guys on here, im positive that my old Sheffield razor has leather scales. The razor is probably near 100 yrs old so hows the best way to clean and maintain them? any ideas. I will be keeping this as it has family ties and will be using it regularly. Im currently cleaning the blade and honing it, im just finding the scales look pretty grimy really.

wow! shes a looker! are the scales flexible or is the leather stiff? maybe mink oil?

I've never seen leather razor scales but Gutta Percha & other forms of rubber was common for that vintage. Probably dismantling & a light sanding followed by some kind of conditioner suitable for vinyls or rubber may be an option unless they are definitely leather.

Can't hurt to contact your local, professional leathersmith or saddle maker.

I'm no expert, but the old standard for horn scales is pure neatsfoot oil. It is actually made as a leather care product, so if the scales are leather it would make sense to use it (I think). Or just wait for some senior members who really know what they are doing to chime in!

A small amount of oil to refresh the surface - do not saturate the leather, it will get too soft and lose it's shape.

If those scales are leather, I would love to know what they used to treat them so they retain their shape when wet and do not shrink/warp as they dry.