Slippery Rock Gazette

The new Shaveit tool means you save it… time and money, that is.

Braxton-Bragg’s newest offering is the Shaveit Filler and Seam Cleaner. It is from inventor David DeLarm. David also invented the Predator Electric Edge Profiling Router.  

The palm-sized device holds 12 single-edge razor blades. The Shaveit locks the blades in a vertical position. The Shaveit is designed to scrape and clean stone seams. It works best at removing excess polyester acrylics and epoxies. “There is nothing on the market quite like it,” DeLarm said.

“When it comes to patching or doing a seam, the industry standard is to use a single, flat-edge razor blade. You hold it in your fingers and you slide it across the polyester acrylic or epoxies that you were using for seams or fillers. You are basically scratching a tiny layer off.”

Scratching away at a seam for 20 minutes is tiring and dangerous. It is also not consistent. “The Shaveit is designed to go in and do it faster, safer, easier and without the stress on your fingers,” DeLarm said.

Using the Shaveit means patches can be made perfectly level. There is no more dipping below the surface. “The time that it saves on patching and doing a seam is just phenomenal,” DeLarm said. 

The Shaveit is easy on the hand, easy-to-use, and cheap. “It’s so easy, even a CEO can use it!” commented Braxton-Bragg President Rich Hassert, who personally tested this new product.

“It is also great for removing mesh from the back of slabs,” Braxton-Bragg Product Manager Steve Bussell said.

DeLarm is a 28-year-veteran of the stone industry. He owns DLD Granite. He is well-known as an innovator and inventor. His Predator router is available only at Braxton-Bragg. This well designed tool is lightweight and powered by a standard Makita grinder. It profile edges using standard bits. 

The product requires only 3 inches of surface material to balance. This allows the Predator to easily profile sink cutouts, too. A hydroplane base helps scratches from stone grit.  

Developing the Shaveit was quicker and cheaper than the Predator,  DeLarm says. He designed the new tool with a CAD program. The prototype was produced with a 3-D printer. This let him try out many versions cheaply. 

“A 3-D printer easily gives you the ability to do a prototype,” he said. “If you have an idea that is floating around, you can make it on a computer. If you don’t like what you are seeing, you can change it right there.”

Developing through CAD meant spending far less time and money. 

“My other inventions took a lot of time because with each design change we’d have to go back and have everything milled and CNC produced,” he said. “If it worked, great, but if it didn’t, we’d have to go back and have another piece manufactured.”

It took a decade and thousands of dollars to design the Predator. Each prototype took three-to-four months to produce. They ended up costing about $6,000 each.

By contrast, DeLarm created about 40 different versions of the Shaveit. This only took half a year. It only cost a fraction of the Predator to produce. “From 10 years to six months is pretty impressive savings on time,” he said.

DeLarm’s philosophy is “Work smarter, not harder.” It is what he wants his products to offer to the industry. “A lot of us work hard, but we don’t quite work as smart as we should,” he said.

The Shaveit tool is available from Braxton-Bragg at the lowest price on the market. 

Braxton-Bragg offers a full range of fabrication tooling and installation accessories including sinks, installation hardware, and every tool and piece of equipment needed to run a professional granite shop. For more information about Braxton-Bragg and its publications and products, contact them toll-free at 800-575-4401 or visit www.braxton-bragg.com.