Razor Box

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Given that I prefer things that last, rather than disposable things, I use a straight razor to maintain my magnificent face-fluff. When the plastic pouch that my razor originally came in started to wear out, I wanted to make something more appropriately solid to contain it. This was a perfect time to use up some of the wood scraps left over from my chair, and indulge the urge I had to practice using my router freehand.

A straight razor slightly unfolded to show the cutting edge.
This deserves a nice box.

I started off trying out a few ideas by attacking a bit of MDF with my router. The first idea was to use a foam insert to hold the razor, then I would only need to cut a rectangular hole into the wood, which would be easy. I rejected that idea because the box would have ended up larger than I wanted.

The second Idea was to cut a razor-shaped hole directly into the wood. I first placed the razor onto the MDF and drew around it with a pencil, then added a large circle at one end to give my fingers somewhere to lift the razor out of the hole. I wasn't sure if I could cut it neat enough to look presentable. It turned out ok.

A small MDF sheet with two recesses - one square, with a sheet of fowm inserted into it, and one in the shape of a razor.
Experiments in MDF.

With the plan laid, I repeated the process on a bit of oak. A also drilled a small hole in each corner for magnets to hold the lid.

A small block of oak with a razor-shaped hole cut into it, like the MDF was cut in an earlier photo.
After sanding, it looks smooth enough that I can pretend my routing was actually straight in the first place.

Placing the razor directly into the hole would leave it loose, so I also needed some padding to help hold it in place. For that, I used some of the kevlar fleece I had left from a previous project. By nature, kevlar is hard to cut; I struggled to cut it into a curved shape with even the sharpest scissors I have.

The box, inside which is a piece of paper in the same shape as the hole. Next to it is a piece of yellow fluffy material, also cut into the same shape.
Raw kevlar is yellow. In the box is the paper template I used for marking it up.

Next, a lid. To contrast with the beautiful, natural wood, I chose to use a very artificial sheet of carbon fibre.

A sheet of carbon fibre the same size as the box. In each corner is a small disc-shaped magnet. Layed partly on top is a sheet of rubber the same size.
The underside of the lid. I didn't bother gluing the magnets neatly, as they will be covered by the thin rubber sheet also shown in the photo.

I used a cylindrical tungsten carbide burr to cut flat-bottomed holes in the corners for some neodymium magnets, to match the ones in the box. To prevent the lid from scratching the razor, and to prevent the magnets from hitting each other when the lid closes, I used a sheet of rubber to cover the underside of the lid. I had originally planned to use more kevlar fleece for this, but it's too thick for the magnets to work through.

The box with lid closed.
The complete box.
The box with razor inside. The lid has been swung aside slightly, with the magnets still keeping it attached.

And that's it. I left the wood bare, because it feels and smells nice. The magnets hold the lid tightly enough that it won't accidentally come off, even if the box is chucked around a bit.