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I know that it is extremely important to make sure the blade on any razor I use be dried thoroughly to prevent staining and/or rusting. If you make sure you dry the blade completely after each use, do you still have to apply oil to the blade, or is this really only if you are going to be storing a razor and don't plan on using it for a while?
What type of oil (mineral oil, tuf-glide, sewing machine oil, etc.)? Do you have to apply it everyday?
Keith,
I asked a similar question a couple of days ago and was told that oiling a blade wasn't necessary for daily use. The indication was to just oil it if you planned on storing it or just not using it for a while.
As for the oil, I was told mineral oil on the blade and hinge pin. I do know others use different types of oil.
keith, unless you are not going to use your str8 for months at a time or you live in the rainforest outside or in the tropics with the doors open there is no need to oil your blades...what is important is to throughly dry your razor including the scales(handles) tang ect and then strop the razor around 10 passes this eliminates any excess moisture on the blade that is missed when drying the razor...
I would add that...
Personally I keep a can of clippercide in the bathroom and spray my razors when I'm finished drying them... then I put them away in another room. There's nothing magic about clippercide... mineral oil, camelia oil, tuf-glide, etc. works as well or better. I just like it for the aerosol convenience.
- if you get the hinge pin area wet when you rinse the blade after shaving, it's not easy to ensure that you have it completely dry.
- many of us keep our razors somewhere other than the bathroom (since the bathroom tends to be a high humidity place, at least at my house the way my wife takes a shower, lol).
- rust can form in a matter of days, so if your rotation is sufficiently large that you won't use the razor again for a week or so, then you're at increased risk if it's not completely dry.
I oiled all of my blades with mineral oil for a 2 week vacation but I usually donīt if Iīm not leaving them for extended periods of time. Too messy.
Don't know how effective this is, but in my case I use a cotton (ear) bud to wipe dry the difficult area between the scales and around the pin. Seems OK so far.Quote:
Originally Posted by clarman
Very well said . . .Quote:
Originally Posted by clarman
I have until recently used talc in the razors card box as a way to make sure i get all the moisture off the razor.
I put a small amount in the tube, dry the razor as best as I can then put it in the tube with the lid on. Shake the tube so the talc gets into every crevice. next day when I use the razor I just blow off the talc.
Worked for me for quite some years.
You could I suppose use and razor tube box souly for this purpose:shrug:
PuFf
That's an interesting suggestion Puff.
Everyone's talking as if "thoroughly drying" a razor is easier and simpler than squirting a dab of oil in the pivot. I find the opposite to be true.
I have an exceptionally curious and playful cat, and leaving the razor open anywhere for any amount of time is just not an option – so maybe that's a factor for me. But I've got a little thumb-size squeeze bottle of mineral oil (came with an Arkansas tri-hone I use on my kitchen knives) right there on the sink. Squirting a drop into the pivot and then smearing the excess down the length of the blade with my thumb and forefinger takes about 3 seconds max.
I don't rinse the razor at all, which eliminates the pivot problem (except when honing). After stropping the razor on a towel and giving it a few laps on the leather strop, I give it a another few laps on an oiled rag. Seems to work well. Some guys claim that tuf-glide does a better job and only needs to be applied every few months. I've just started using it and can't say for certain.
If you lay your open razor on a towel and zap it with a hand held hair dryer for a few moments, that will get at moisture around the pivot too.
Scott
Some people suggest to strop the razor after shaving to remove moisture.
I've read somewhere else, though, that allegedly the razor should rest for at least 24 hours after shaving before it gets stropped, to give the microscopic "fins" a chance to straighten; and that stropping right after a shave would just snap off these micro-fins (presumably leading to a prematurely dulling razor).
So which is it? Stropping after shave OK or a big 'no-no'?
FWIW, I don't think looking to what barbers do is necessarily of value here, as they use the razor as a professional tool and perform many shaves each day, so it would never have been an option for them to let a razor rest that long.
I personally don't shave more than once in 24 hours. But, I use the same razor day after day, stropping before and after each shave.
If the rest theory were true my razor should be very dull by now, but it is not. Therefore, I have my doubts about the validity of resting a razor for longer than 24 hours.
And, FWIW, I haven't honed that same razor since May or June of 2006. No abrassive pastes either. Still passes the HHT and shaves very nicely too.
Scott
honedright,
That seems like a long time to be able to go without honing at all - do you not have a tough beard? Or do you attribute this long lasting blade to stropping effectively? Is the razor carbon steel or stainless?:shrug:
Oh, no. Here we go... :D
Keith, a few months back we had a very long thread with Scott about this subject. You might want to do a search on the phrase, "Stropping is King." It'll turn up the thread, which is good reading. :)
Josh
I have a heavy beard.Quote:
Originally Posted by Razorburne
I think it is my stropping.
The razor is carbon steel (Puma).
And I won't bore you guys with the "Stropping is King" stuff again. ;) Just threw that info in to strengthen my case against the razor resting theory. In my experience, it just doesn't hold water.
Scott
The razor resting thing is nothing but an old barbers tale. Even if the fins on the edge grow or do something for 48 hours it does not affect the shaving. many use the same razor day in and out. Heck years ago most only had one razor and thats all they used.
As far as drying the razor goes I usually try and not get water on the pivot but I always blow the water out. Some people use that bottled air stuff. I have a 60 razor rotation so I always wipe the blade down with sterol after use.
I don't want to beat a dead horse here and if someone says they have shaved with the same razor for 6 months or more without any honing I won't dispute them but the only comment I'll make is that when I did my stropping experiment a while back I found that when you use the same razor or even a couple of razors day in and out there is this very insidious thing that happens. You think you are getting a great shave but the shaving quality really does deteriorate but it happens so slowly you don't realize it. Its only when you then pick up a really sharp or newly honed razor that you say wow I didn't realize that. I know that's what I found so...