Thanks to a very kind PIF from @Weean I can post a how to carbon fibre handle repair. I've used stuff that most people have at home, no fancy tools or adhesives. EDITS FOR @TobyC in RED
A note of warning which should be obvious, do not breathe the dust in. You will not be creating much but be sensible, be careful.
You will need a few things before you start:
A happy place.
A cracked handle.
A length of 10mm Outside Diameter (8mm Internal) matt/satin finish carbon tube. You can buy a 200mm length here for £4 posted, this will be enough for 3 handles:
A saw. I used a piercing saw, you can use a junior hacksaw, coping saw or even a hacksaw. Do be aware that carbon fibre will blunt your blade, depending on what you're using, you may end up blunting the blade after making a handle or two.
Some masking tape, gaffer tape, insulation tape or even parcel tape.
A file or two. I used a coarse needle file.
Some sand paper or wet & dry. I used a 240 grit.
Epoxy resin. The bargain basement stuff from Poundland will do.
A ruler or you can do it by eye.
Before starting anything ensure that @TobyC is in a happy place self soothing by repeating his mantra of "Boar brushes, brass razors, and hard pucks ARE traditional wet shaving. Everything else is modern day fluff for the girly men." Done that? Good, now you can begin.
One razor with a cracked handle:
The ends just pull out, they're not soldered in place from the factory.
Measure your carbon tube and mark the correct length. Make it any length you want. Cut the tube to length. I marked mine with electrical tape, this is what I used as my guide to cut against. I didn't cut through in one go, I made a small cut, rotated a little, made another cut and rotated again, gradually working round and round 'till I cut through. I find it gives a straighter finish. It doesn't matter if your cut is a little wonky, you'll fix that in the next step any way.
You'll now need to gently sand the ends to clean up the cut. If your cut was a little wonky you can straighten it up. Put your sand paper on a flat surface (I used a steel bench block but anything flat will do like a kitchen work top when the missus isn't looking ) then rub your tube on it, make sure that the end is nice and clean and straight.
Put a small bevel on the outside of the tube, it'll just give a neater finish. Hold the tube at an angle to the sandpaper and rotate it a few times.
File (or sand) a small bevel on the inside of the tube, it'll fit better.
File the ends of the handle. The Gillette handle ends measure 8.4mm and the carbon tube is 8mm internal diameter. Just file round until they fit inside the tube without forcing in. You'll also need to file the ends of the fittings a little just to roughen them up.
Mix up some epoxy. Put it around the inside of the tube not the handle ends. This way when you push the end in to the tube the end will push it inside the tube rather than the tube scraping it off the metal end creating a mess to clean up. Only do one end at a time and stand upright while the glue dries, this way it will form a fillet between the tube and the metal end holding it in place better rather than running down the tube. Once it's dried, do the other end.
Admire what you've done
Cheerio All.
A note of warning which should be obvious, do not breathe the dust in. You will not be creating much but be sensible, be careful.
You will need a few things before you start:
A happy place.
A cracked handle.
A length of 10mm Outside Diameter (8mm Internal) matt/satin finish carbon tube. You can buy a 200mm length here for £4 posted, this will be enough for 3 handles:
Matte 200mm Length 3k 100% Carbon Fiber Tube OD 8mm to 24mm Short Sample | eBay
Weave Pattern: 3K Twill Weave. Made from attractive Toray Aerospace grade plain weave carbon fiber fabrics. Our special tooling and structural grade epoxy resin system assures a durable and beautiful mirror like - high gloss finish or Scratch resistant matte finish right from the tool.
www.ebay.co.uk
A saw. I used a piercing saw, you can use a junior hacksaw, coping saw or even a hacksaw. Do be aware that carbon fibre will blunt your blade, depending on what you're using, you may end up blunting the blade after making a handle or two.
Some masking tape, gaffer tape, insulation tape or even parcel tape.
A file or two. I used a coarse needle file.
Some sand paper or wet & dry. I used a 240 grit.
Epoxy resin. The bargain basement stuff from Poundland will do.
A ruler or you can do it by eye.
Before starting anything ensure that @TobyC is in a happy place self soothing by repeating his mantra of "Boar brushes, brass razors, and hard pucks ARE traditional wet shaving. Everything else is modern day fluff for the girly men." Done that? Good, now you can begin.
One razor with a cracked handle:
The ends just pull out, they're not soldered in place from the factory.
Measure your carbon tube and mark the correct length. Make it any length you want. Cut the tube to length. I marked mine with electrical tape, this is what I used as my guide to cut against. I didn't cut through in one go, I made a small cut, rotated a little, made another cut and rotated again, gradually working round and round 'till I cut through. I find it gives a straighter finish. It doesn't matter if your cut is a little wonky, you'll fix that in the next step any way.
You'll now need to gently sand the ends to clean up the cut. If your cut was a little wonky you can straighten it up. Put your sand paper on a flat surface (I used a steel bench block but anything flat will do like a kitchen work top when the missus isn't looking ) then rub your tube on it, make sure that the end is nice and clean and straight.
Put a small bevel on the outside of the tube, it'll just give a neater finish. Hold the tube at an angle to the sandpaper and rotate it a few times.
File (or sand) a small bevel on the inside of the tube, it'll fit better.
File the ends of the handle. The Gillette handle ends measure 8.4mm and the carbon tube is 8mm internal diameter. Just file round until they fit inside the tube without forcing in. You'll also need to file the ends of the fittings a little just to roughen them up.
Mix up some epoxy. Put it around the inside of the tube not the handle ends. This way when you push the end in to the tube the end will push it inside the tube rather than the tube scraping it off the metal end creating a mess to clean up. Only do one end at a time and stand upright while the glue dries, this way it will form a fillet between the tube and the metal end holding it in place better rather than running down the tube. Once it's dried, do the other end.
Admire what you've done
Cheerio All.
Last edited: