Safety Razor Plating Room Tour: Could our Revamp Service be BETTER than Original Vintage Gillette?
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- Опубликовано: 4 окт 2024
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I’m Matt Pisarcik, founder of Razor Emporium, welcome to our channel!
At Razor Emporium, we believe in empowering men and women to practice traditional grooming using quality new and vintage shaving supplies. Our business is made up of three core areas, Service, Retail, and Education.
Our service technicians restore, repair, and revamp your treasured shaving items, bringing them back to their original glory. Our downtown Phoenix, AZ lobby allows shavers to experience quality products before buying. And our educational resources are wide and always expanding. Today's video is not about who patented the safety razor in 1895, it's all about single edge safety razor and are safety razors better.
We hope you join us every week for new videos about shaving technique and insider knowledge you can’t get anywhere else. Thanks for watching, and please consider subscribing!
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As chemist I have to say I love your processes! After I saw your videos, I refinished one of my razors from 1934. I first washed the razor with dish soap followed by deionized water, quick nitric acid and water again. I didn't do electroplating, but I used a chemical reductant. My mixture was nickel chloride, nickel sulphate and sodium hypophosphite at 90 °C for 4 hours. This mixture gives you a very strong layer of nickel as the metal contains phosphorus which further helps with adhesion and hardens the alloy. If you can, please make more videos about your workshop! I'd like to see more.
Just got my grandpa’s 1940 Gillette Super Speed razor back from being revamped. Let me tell you this razor looks brand new now. It was so bad when i sent it in and now it looks like i bought it brand new. The whole process was amazing communication. Now i have a gillette vintage razor that was passed down in the family that i can use. Thank you Matt and team. Truly amazing job! Highly recommended!
Always love to see anything of quality being restored and saved. Totally the opposite from today's throw away society. Great to see the behind the scenes work and process which also shows and explains the true cost of this work which a lot of people don't usually understand. Great job, and always love to see your videos 😎👍
Matt, I had you plate my 1959 Gillette Fatboy in Rhodium about 2 years ago and it still looks amazing, it is my go to razor. I use it twice a week, I've only used the.polishing cloth a few times and the razor always looks stunning. Rhodium is so easy to maintain, I just rinse in warm water and dry with a soft cotton towel after every shave. I love your amazing videos and keep up the good work.
Just what I needed to make my mind up, now I'm definitely putting a refurbished razor on my christmas list
I have 3 revamped vintage razors from Razor Emporium. A gold, a nickel and a rhodium. They are 5-6 years out from the revamp. And still look gorgeous. Thank you Razor Emporium!
Very very cool to see the whole process and also learn about the science behind it.
So glad I opted for my Ambassador in rhodium. The hard part is deciding if a add a Konsul or revamped vintage Gillette next. Either way it will be plated in rhodium. I’m such a Razor Emporium fan boy. 😆
Wait, so can stainless steel also be plated in rhodium? If that’s the case then I’m definitely keen to send Razor Emporium my Rex Ambassador to bling it up. Are there any photos of rhodium plated Ambassadors on the website?
Impressive! I had no idea how invested Razor Emporium is.
I'm one of the few the proud and the brave that have had Razor Emporium restore my dads 1958 $1.95 Gillette Fat Boy and replated in Rodium a few years back. One of my best decisions in life!
If you don't have a Fat Boy or a Gillette Slim get one! I own 2 Fat Boys and one 1966 Gillette Slim! For the best shave a man can get just say Gillette Vintage!
Far more involved than I imagined, with respect to chemistry particularly. Restored at a level above the original truly. Ensures that these razors live generations ahead. Razor Emporium is doing work unlike anywhere in the world.
It's a very educational video. I loved how Matt explained the basic chemistry of individual finishing processes. It goes to show how much labor goes into the revamp service they provide and makes me love my RE Rhodium-finish 1962 Slim Adjustable evermore🙌🏽
I purchased a $1.95 Fat Boy from Razor Imperium, it truly came is new condition. If you need your Razor restored, this is the only place you should consider! I would rank them 10 out of 5 start!
I can say from personal experience purchasing more than one Fatboy and Slim from Razor Emporium that the end product is absolutely phenomenal!
I wondered what the process was for the restoration. Pretty awesome to see it...
Great video. You are correct about proper cleaning before plating. I used to plate the bare metal on aircraft to prevent corrosion. You have to clean the metal really well or the cadmium plating won't stick to every spot and then you had to remove the plating you just put on when you went back cleaning the spots. Cleaning is important for proper adhesion for the finishes and that takes time.
I just today mailed you a Gillette Tech Ball End for this service. I am uncertain of the true age of the razor and I know very little of it's history. I believe it was originally purchased by a man who became a mentor and friend to my uncle. This person passed away some years ago. His entire razor collection was rescued by my uncle from the landfill and he passed part (or all?) of it on to me several years ago. I just hope the Post Office does its job properly and gets the razor to you. I'm excited to see what you will do with it. I have shaved with this razor and will shave with it when the revamping work is completed. I also wish to honor my uncle and this is a way to thank him for decades of kindness shown to me and to his own family.
How did it go?
@@ClaudioMau-iw1kz It all went very well. The razor was refurbished and plated in rhodium, and I really like that lovely finish. I think the razor shaves better for me, too, but I don't have useful metrics to prove that it does. It is just a feeling on my part. I am very satisfied with the work that was done on it. I did pack the razor with great care so it would have a damage-free trip, and Razor Emporium packed the refurbished product with equal care for the return trip home. So for me the project was easy: just pay for the refurbishing service and shipping costs and be really careful about packing the razor for shipment by U. S. Post Office. The next time I use the Razor Emportum refurbishing service, I will ship by United Parcel Service rather than the Post Office. United Parcel Service does a better job, and that gives me peace of mind.
Fantastic! I worked for many years in the field of environmental consulting to the metal finishing industry. Just about everything you are doing in your plating shop is spot on. I did not see air agitation, bravo! Deionized water for ALL baths and rinsing, yes! Baths that use tap water often need to be dumped early due to hardness buildup. One thing I did notice is you have spray rinse followed by still rinse. Why not the other way? If you still rinse first you can use that water as makeup to the heated bath. Your racks are pretty small so a still rinse tank might fit in a portion of your spray rinse station. Some shops put the spray station above the plating tank so plating solution is knocked back into the process tank. This can get tricky though when dealing with small tanks. Too much rinse water and solution control becomes unstable. Do you have an issue with process solution drying on the parts? If not, then you should withdraw the rack slowly. That will reduce drag-out and solution loss. I would love to see more video of the plating shop. Are your baths continuously filtered or carbon treated? How do you handle spent baths? Do you have onsite wastewater pretreatment?
Thank you! this is likely the most in depth video of our plating process we will ever produce for a variety of reasons.
For your questions:
1) Spray baths pump the solution back into the process tank to combat evaporation. Rinses are not "still" they are continuously pumped through discrete DI columns and carbon filters to keep them at a 0 ppm. By spraying first and deep immerson second, we keep the most amount of chemistry and our rinse baths are as clean as possible. The DI columns end up lasting much longer because of this arrangement as we have to pay a monthly fee to rent them but a much higher fee to exchange them with the local water treatment company.
2)Not a job shop - so everything is layed out to be as close as possible. No issues with drying - everything moves quickly and is exposed to air for less than 5 seconds. Everything is kept wet.
3)Process baths are continuously filtered through 1 micron polypro filters 24/7. Carbon treatment is only used to "reset" the bath if we need to start over with the brightener system or if there is a buildup of organics in the bath.
4) No spent baths as everything is a commercial product with full analytical support so we can add back what's needed and keep it in balance.
5) We are permitted by the City of Phoenix to be a Zero Discharge facility. Any wastewater is treated via de-ionization (point 1) or evaporation (mostly our ultrasonic baths as they get loaded).
Thanks!
Matt
Watching sausage being made was fun and informative. Thanks!
I love this type of “behind-the-scenes” video - I find knowing the “how” makes me appreciate the “what” much more. Beautifully shot, too!!
Morning Matt. This was a great video for those that often wondered how the process went.
Your set up is chemistry perfect to keep everything clean and to eliminate the possibility of cross contamination. This is why the rinse step is so important. Everyone should also know that you are an environmentally friendly shop and capture all of your rinsing in a tank and not running it to the city sewer system.
I also glad you stressed the fact that the prep work for all of the pieces is so important. Garbage in Garbage out, so true. You have such a well-trained staff and are very conscientious to doing it right. I don't think they often get the credit they deserve.
Excellent operation.
You are presently replating a Gillette Toggle for me in nickel, a rarely seen plating of the Toggle. I intend on using it on a regular basis.
Take care, be safe, and thank you.
Thank you! Yes we are a permitted Zero Discharge facility and reuse most of our rinse water to combat evaporation. The deep DI water baths are constantly filtered through rented DI canisters and that company comes and exchanges them when the ppm value exceeds 1.
Now one year out from a replating in nickel of a 1967 Gillette slim adjustable....my daily razor. Should last my lifetime, as I am 75. Craftsmanship!!!
Great video, almost makes me want to send in my R89 for an unnecessary refinish.
I love how R-E is engineering driven, and not just some entrepreneur's side hustle.
Wow. I couldn't be more impressed by this video. I'm only now getting into safety razors and I've been visiting the websites of dozens of retailers, including yours. After watching this video, you're now at the top of the list of retailers who know their stuff and are committed to excellence.
Okay, I have to leave a second comment! Your media production (camera and editing) are fantastic too! Spot on! And I just love how organized you are with this whole process!
We’ve seen bits before but it’s great to follow the production line start to finish!
As always, an excellent video Matt. Razor Emporium did a 24k gold revamp on my Gillette Executive several months ago, and it still looks like new. And the shave it provides is fantastic. What a great company!
For those who want to get into small scale plating, one thing that I'm sure RE has taken into consideration that too many others ignore is waste. The waste material from nickel plating is often considered toxic waste that has to be processed correctly, and finding a good waste disposal company can be expensive and difficult. Not to mention cobalt.
We capture and reuse all spray-off / rinse as the 145⁰ bath evaporates. So there is no nickel waste in our shop. But at small scale it is certainly a concern. Plating is a regulated industry and without a permit, home plating is not allowed in most cities and minicipalities.
@@RazorEmporium - Exactly, but there are a lot of rural areas that don't have any real regulations, and people can order the stuff through the mail. I looked into it for some low end nickel plating, and decided that what I would have to go through for disposal wasn't worth it, and I wasn't going to dump it into a sewer.
I loved seeing that process, Matt. Very fascinating. Appreciate the work you and your team do to restore classic razors.
The Mister Rogers comment resonated with me so much. I love finding out how things are made and it all stems back to those How Crayons Are Made videos on Mister Rogers. Great video, love to see the process. I hope to have a vintage razor worthy of refinishing sometime.
My 1959 Red Tip is still awesome. You did a terrific job restoring it👍👍
Happy to hear Ken 😁
Interesting watching Matt. I used to work in a factory that made shopping trolleys, roll containers and shelving, and our plating facility was massive, so it's interesting watching what is the miniaturised version, but just as precious to the customer.
Purchased a Fatboy from you guys a few years back....still loving it! Great company! Great customer service.
Very cool to see the process. I had my Rockwell 6S done in rhodium and I’ve gotten a lot of complements on it.
Thanks for another great video.
Gives me joy to see people still around that love what they do! Really comes through that you love doing this and give top quality in everything that you do! Hat off to you sir!
I've bought a Gillette flare tip and a Gillette rd tip from Razor Emporium and all I can say is what a great job they did revamping both razors, I use both almost everyday switching back and forth between the two. You can't go wrong purchasing a Razor from them.
Matt, seeing you show this process in detail and seeing each of the tubs of chemicals and how each is used to refine and revamp customers' razors... all this shows such a great level of professionalism and care in this service from Razor Emporium. A nice attention to detail, taking time for each part of the process, and really making sure that all of your PH levels and materials are balanced to provide each razor a premium finish and just shows how your service goes above and beyond in making a happy and satisfied customer at the end of the day. I'd certainly want to send one of my razors to you just to get a better finish and stellar look. I've always looked at this service since purchasing items from your company, and I will really consider this in the near future. 😊
Well Matt, two weeks ago I received the Gillette Ranger that I'd sent in for your Revamp service and now I'm in a state of indecision. It looks brand new and I can't bring myself to use it. There's a special day coming up next week and in honor of my father, whom I'm sure used a Ranger, I'll lather up and shave with it. I look forward to using it for many years and pass it on to my grandson. Great job to you and your folks for the Revamp, it is beautiful! I enjoy your videos and your history lessons!
I think one’s razor(s) and/or a quality wristwatch are up there with the most personal and meaningful heirlooms that could be passed on for generations to come!
This was a great video. If I ever find that one vintage razor that I fall in love with, that gives me that perfect shave, I will send it in for a rodium plating. I appreciate you guys keep old razors out of the landfill. Keep up the good work.
I picked up a replated ‘48-51’ Gillette Aristocrat from y’all a few years ago and it’s one of my prized possessions.
Just purchased a revamp on my red tip can’t wait to see my daily driver looking all tuned up.
Thanks Matt !!
I love seeing factory tours. I really enjoyed this quick overview of your revamping and plating process, Matt. Thanks for sharing. 👍👍
Glad you enjoyed it!
Another excellent video Matt. Very impressive setup you have going on at Razor Emporium. I’m definitely going to add a rhodium plated razor to my collection very soon!
Cool vid! It was pretty cool seeing this at the AZ Meetup. 😁👍🏼
Another meet-up is coming soon.
@@Tmanaz480 one month away!
I really enjoy the behind the scenes videos Matt. It's very interesting to see the process. Another fantastic video.
Great video , sending my Gillette Super 109 to get 24k gold plated , can wait .
Great video that highlights the care and craftsmanship that goes into plating and revamping. Very impressive.
Love these behind the scene videos. Lots of fun to see how this stuff actually works!
Thanks for the plating factory tour, very interesting and great information. 👍🤠🤟
Very interesting and informative info regarding how you deliver excellent quality to Antique collectible de razors
Matt I have become a big fan of yours and appreciate the content you put out to the wet shaving community. I had recently started getting into vintage razors and I had pick up a few gems recently that are in really great condition. It’s definitely been a rabbit hole as of late for me but I enjoy it. But I do have a Fatboy that’s in excellent condition that I’m considering sending to you to have a rhodium finish added to it.
I bought the revamp service for the brass Karve Overlander and received the razor last night. The razor looks fantastic, it's absolutely spectacular. The Karve Overlander is my favorite daily shaver, so I just had to have one plated in nickel. My first shave with this razor was perfect, exactly what you'd expect from the GOATlander. Absolutely amazing ! Well done Razor Emporium. Do you have a service for a polished stainless steel Overlander ? Your Rex Konsul is a gorgeous razor and I'd love to have an SS Overlander with that finish. The Konsul is my favorite adjustable razor, it's perfect.
Yes look at the tune up service - polished SS razor is an option.
My 1964 Gillette i bought from your company several years ago still looks new and works great. Best razor investment i ever made.
Great video! I have sent 3 vintage razors in for your Tune-Up service and I was delighted with the result. If I ever need replating, this video gives me the confidence to send it your way.
Amazing tour! Would be sweet to see it all up close.
The first time I ever heard about Matt was a guest post on the art of manliness "How to Make a Wallet That Will Last the Rest of Your Life". Then a couple of years later I get into razors. Funny how things work out some times.🙂
Matt .....You are a $ million dollar man. Your explanation is terrific.!
This is absolutely awesome.
Great video Matt. Mr. Rogers would be proud. also remember the crayon episode. 🖍️
great video matt, i think what you do is amazing, making old unloved shaving tools look better than new, if i ever manage to find an old vintage razor that needs some loving i know where to come, rhodium is my favourite but i love stainless steel nearly as much
I can’t wait to get my Gold Tech Heavy redone. I just can’t decide between Rhodium or 24k Gold.
Great video. I just mailed off two Razors to you. Went with the tuneup. After watching this maybe I should have gone with the Revamp.
I sent two razors off for a tune up and they came back looking brand new. Mine still had all the original nickel plating. Very happy with the result
@@saevans63 awesome! Thanks for letting me know. I’m pretty excited about it. One was my grandfather’s that hasn’t been used probably since the 60’s.
@@brendenbrandi you won’t be disappointed. RE does great work
Another fantastic video, Matt! I’ve got a 1959 (E2 - my birth year but wrong quarter) Fatboy that is in pretty great shape but I’m thinking of sending it in to you for a rhodium finish. I also have an English Gillette that was sold in Canada as a Rocket but I think is just like a Super Speed. Anyway, the nickel finish on that is in rough shape, especially on the handle where it’s come off in blotchy patches. I’d like to have that one revamped in nickel. My problem is between shipping from Canada and the exchange rate on our dollar, it’s probably going to cost me a bundle. So I’m saving up. 😊
Excellent video. Loved the factory tour. Question about the process: how come the thin Copper wires that you string all the pieces together with don't leave gaps or stains in the finishing process?
They are very thin (24awg) and are not wrapped as tight as they may appear. With good agitation in the bath, the parts move around enough to not leave a wire mark. It's an art more than a science and takes practice to know how and where to wire a part as to not leave a mark. Great question!
Truly enjoyed the video showing the process. I can’t wait for my Fat Boy to arrive. Totally worth the money. And I really appreciate all the input.
This video did it. My G4 Slim is in the mail to you for that beautiful Rhodium finish. Thanks
It's a real good documentary worth watching.!
Why is that we have to remove the safety blade from the safety DE shaving razor and not the cartridge blade from the cartridge razor, huh......?????
The blades on a cartridge razor are surrounded by plastic. The blades on a DE are surrounded by metal.
I thought about nickel plating my Gillette new LC myself after I took chemistry in my junior year of high school, though I figure I’ll leave it that good old brass instead.
This is the video I’ve been waiting for. Super interesting. Thanks so much for putting this together.
I keep thinking about it - maybe one day I'll pull the trigger and get one or more of my vintage razors re-plated. If I do they will be with Razor Emporium!
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Just started watching your videos and learning a lot. Thank you!
Very interesting! Great to see the process. Might have to look into a Rhodium kit.
Thank you Matt for sharing this! It shows how much work goes into restoring these vintage razors and keeping them alive for generations. When my fatboy or slim needs some TLC I’m sending them your way:))
Great peak inside of the process, appreciate it very much!
I love these science vids ❤ increased temptation to get a rhodium plated Rex
Watched second time interest the Rodium finish is actually is three finished to get it right.
Hands down, your revamped razors are the best.
I love my rhodium and gold revamps. Not only do they look better, they shave better.
Thank you sir :)
You won my sale, just ordered service for my Fatboy F2
WOW - very interesting. Thanks for the tour.
great inside tour. really enjoy and razor emporium vides.
Great video seeing behind the curtain, thanks Matt !
Also love Mr. Rodgers the tours were my favorite also like How it’s made! this was a great video I always wandered ever since I sent in my first vintage razor what does it look like what do they do? Thank you!
Absolutely love watching your videos, all the way here in Australia .
Excellent, excellent Maestro! Thanks Matt, great video👍👍 I'd seen snippets of this process in other Razor Emporium videos but not to this depth and clarity. Amazing work being done there, painstaking intricate hands on all the way and perfect every time. Again thanks for the behind the scenes look at a magic process. Now, which razor do I want "Diamond" plated? Enjoy!
Thank you for the informative and fascinating video. The quality of your work is of a very high caliber, and reflective of the manufacturing standards of an earlier time in American history.
Thank you for the video. Remind me of chemistry class back in college lol. But on a much different level. Finishes y'all do are beautiful. Keep it up. Thank you.
How many t-shirts have you given away so far? I kind of want one.
Matt, how do you know so much about electrochemistry? Are you a chemist by training? I wonder how you were able to achieve such technical skill. Surely it extends beyond a passionate love of razors.
No formal training past high school chemistry. This career path of mine forced me to learn all of this or else I'd be out of business :)
This process is fascinating. Thank you.
Just wait on mine to get back. High hopes.
Awesome walk through. Great to see the process on how everything works!
Yes Matt I have a couple of your refurbished razors both Gillette but I find getting anything from the US to Australia is really prohibitive because of the outrageous shipping costs. For example, I like the wind-up alum block from another site which retails at US$13 but the shipping is US$98 and to me makes getting stuff from the US so expensive and I cannot see why those shipping costs are so because one can ship from say China for a fraction of the costs. Personally, I prefer getting stuff from the US because of the quality of items that I want as opposed to some of the other countries products which are to me inferior.
We ship to Australia all the time time. Cheapest cost should be around $15-$20 USD via USPS first class international
Great video Matt! That's truly an impressive setup and I can see why you get great results!
Amazing look into your process-great video.
Thanks, I have seen this in person, very great work space and process.
What an amazing video!!! I thoroughly enjoyed this tour. I’m really thinking about buying one of your MTO. Thank you, and keep up the GREAT videos.
How important is timing in the process (how long is something dipped) and if tanks require top up are they left a little longer, likewise if tanks were just topped up is the time required a little shorter? I'm wondering about timing or does visual inspection have a part. Obviously inspection is involved but that's after the process is complete.
On another question would you consider re-doing the gold wash on straight razors? It would involve a stencil machine and a database of manufacturers "stamps" or logos. Copyright wouldn't be an issue as most manufacturers are long gone.
Timing is very important. Not necessarily seconds but minutes. Like the nickel process is 6 minutes. You can go a bit longer like 8 or so but if you did say 15 minutes you may have tolerance issues. The gold wash thing sounds like more trouble than most people would want to pay. We have redone the gold tang on the dubl ducks without problem.
you've reviewed a lot of razors now. How about a vid of your top 5 razors 2022?
Great idea!
Hi, I`me from across the sea`s .UK England, and I own a few fat boy Gillette even got my son on them, the joke is though I had to buy them our to from your country lol.
This is a quality service from what I can see, and I am very judgmental.
You have the passion and love `for the work you and your team put into these vintage razors,
I`ve watched your passion grow into a business and must say you've just got better in what you do, its great that others out there hold on to what was quality and want to get them rebuilt and plated to keep that razor ongoing.
On the other hand its a shame so many quality items get passed down to the younger generation and many don`t understand, the quality things were back then , this ain`t there fault though ` its the movement of the world how its become.
Hopefully vid`s like this may re wake there way of thinking` all items should not be thrown` quality is repairable.
I also like how you explain your process not like many that keep the process a big secrete, as if we the nation could not find out this day and age lol. being transparent equals trust.
And just one last thing , cheers for one of your other vids explaining how to take apart the Gillette, I dropped mine last month and not to sure how I should go about repairing it correctly, your tutorial on razor not closing correctly really helped.
When you mentioned being shown around factory when you were a kid,
I was the same especially when I walk into a old junk shops all musky smelling and dusty, now I now it possibly was the smell of damp and mold , we called them second hand shops in my days as a kid,
They reminded me of magical places with all the old different stuff I had never seen in normal shops, it was like stepping back into my granddads days It was fascinating ,they have all gone now, charity shops an`t the same, to cleaned lol.
closest we have to that are car boots and even them are dwindling,
I constantly buy broken vintage stuff and repair it, its just in my blood.it is a passion.I will never loose it, even though my kids and misses just say throw it away,some just don`t get it.
Anyway all the best for the future keep doing what use do.and I and expect thousand really appreciate these vid`s use do.
Thanks for the kind words. I don't worry about telling people how we do it because the investment needed is 6 figures and most people aren't willing to take that risk.