Thread: A few first-time questions...

Hi Haim, and welcome to the SRP forum. +1 on the above post on stropping, as for oiling you could use one of the treated gun cleaning cloths since it would protect your razor and you would not have to clean it before every use.

Welcome, Haim! You seem to be on a proper track. Take your time and read here. In Israel, we have Manah. Give him a PM and he might be able to give you some hands-on and introduce you to some better razors!

Welcome. I find that the tension I hold the strop taught with has a direct effect on the pressure I use while stropping. I try to keep the strop just tight enough that is doesn't sag but not so tight that I put pressure on the blade. Slow and steady is good. The shaves get even better. I think it is probably better to have someone else sharpen your razors in the beginning. Razor storage is kind of a variable. It depends on humidity amongst other factors. I use oil or wax on my blades f they are not being used this week. I also wrap them in anti corrosion paper. I also live in a marine environment. Silica gel packs are in all my storage boxes.

Welcome, Haim! I still consider myself to be a beginner, but I can comment on your second question. For several months, I only had 2 straight razors, so each got used every 2 or 3 days. They are kept in my bedroom, where the air is drier. I dried them with very absorbent tissue after each use, so I saw no need to do anything more. Thanks to one of the gentlemen on the forum here, I got to see one of my razors under a microscope recently. The razor hadn't been used for 2 days, and there were round markings on the bevel of the razor under the microscope. I asked what they were, and Utopian told me "Those are tiny little drops of water" After 2 days! There was also some bright orange rust on the bevel that couldn't be seen with the naked eye. I'm still not perfect about oiling a blade if it is to be used again in 2 or 3 days, but I now always strop it for 50 strokes to remove all the water before I put it away. If you have patience, you will enjoy the learning process. Have fun.

Thank you all for a very worm welcome!!

About oiling - i read in a few places about using gun oil. And while i'm not a very sterile person, i have a sensitive face skin, and am not exited about getting it on my face when there's a high probability of freshly open cuts. That aside - i'm not sure this kind of oil will be good for the strop..
I was thinking about vaseline as an alternative, but i figure it wont be a picnic getting it off..

Thank you for introducing me to manah! I visited his site, and he looks like a fine craftsman!
I will defenitly contact him

Haim, I can always recommend Tuf-Glide. As I clean a blade up and before honing, I apply a drop on the tang and 3 on the blade.
Smear it down the blade and off the edge with my thumb and all over the tang and tail. Flip over and smear the other side same. Wipe it all off with clean towel. It stays in there, micro-bonding. Then, I hone the razor, so it is not on the bevel. I have had some for 10 years with no rust kept in a dry place. I don't get water in the pivot and dry the blade, strop on a dry towel after the shave.
Never any issues. Have not needed to reapply! Many other uses for it as well!

Haim - Great advice from Sharptonn on using Tuff-Glide. However, if you do choose to oil the blade, you should wipe it off before shaving or before stropping. A simple tissue and some standard rubbing alcohol will work fine to remove the oil. Be careful not to dull the blade, and be very careful so as not to cut yourself. Simply use the same technique you would use to wipe off a knife.

I never use oil. I dry my blades carefully, never getting water near the pivot. I also make sure there is no water on the insides of the scales. After the shave, I have gotten in the habit of "stropping" the razor on a rolled-up towel with windex on it to make sure it is clean, then wipe it dry the same way after turning the towel over. For storage, I just keep them in a drawer of my dresser which is NOT in the bathroom. I have stored blades that way for months, sometimes a year, and when I brought them out again for shaving they were fine.