Razors and rust.

With 1 week, and 2 shaves under my neck (that felt more appropriate than "under my belt"...), I noticed my brand new Dovo was developing rust like a teenager does pimples during my second shave. I nearly stopped my shave as soon as I noticed it, but calmed down before I cut myself.

So I massaged her with the oil that came with my SR and 3" SRD strop and managed to make more than half of what appeared go away. I'm hoping further massages will get rid of this one week rusting.

Was this bottle just mislabeled?
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*I'm using my phone (galaxy s3), and never see an option to rotate the photo from the default forum orientation*

I, for some stupid reason, assumed that having only one shaver that was used all the time would keep it from rusting. Don't ask me where that flawed train of thought came from. I also put a drop of the oil in each side of the pivot & gave it several open and closes.

That's another lesson learned. Any thoughts?

Did you dry the razor off after the first use?

I don't think that is oil for the blade.
I do believe it is for the strop to be applied as a finisher. :shrug:

Get some Mothers Automotive Chrome Polish or Maas Metal Polish. Polish your razor and try no to get the wax directly on the edge of the blade. Always dry your razor after your shave. Don't fold the blade back into the scales until you have dried the inner scales. After drying my S.R. I allow the scales to air dry twenty four hours before folding the blade.

I did attempt to dry it, then stored it, open, under the sink of the bathroom that is never used (I store emergency preparedness items in that bathtub, so no showers). A day or two after the first shave, I closed it and put it in the sack-ups thay I also got with my razor, then put it back under that same sink.

And the crox spray on SRD is a green fluid, from the picture.

All the razors in my weekly shaving rotation are stored in an open air environment. No closed spaces without air circulation. I use a Tuf Cloth and wipe down my other razors not used for daily shaving. I have never experienced a rust problem following this method.

I don't know if it is still the case, but in the past I found that many of the new Dovo's tended to oxidize rather easily. They really needed to be dried thoroughly and kept in a very non-humid environment. Which model are you using.

The Dovos tend to be high carbon and can be prone to rusting if mis-treated. Rather than worrying about drying the blade, it makes a lot more sense to not let the blade get wet in the first place. If you use a sponge or cloth to wipe the lather off, your blade can remain dry. When finished, wipe it dry again and then wipe it with a light oiled cloth.

Also, it can help to store it outside of the bathroom in a lower humidity area. The space under your sink may have poor air circulation.

I store my razors in a humidor, well, dehumidor now. After use, I wipe my razor dry, strop a few times to clean/dry the edge, then place the razor on top of the humidor until the following day. After it has sat out in open air for 24 hours, it goes into the humidor. I don't oil any of my razors, ever. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with doing so, I just don't like oil on my razors and their scales.

That said, I had one razor that did not like to play nice with this routine. It was a Wostenholm pipe razor. I don't know why that particular razor was different, but no amount of drying seemed to prevent oxidation. Eventually I had to take some metal polish to it, and after polishing it the problem went away.

When finished shaving I dry my razor blade and scales with tissues. I then strop and then use a drop or two of SRD razor oil and wipe the blade down with it. if the razor is going to be a month or more before I use it again ( I shave about 2 times a week and have several razors) I use R.I.G. grease on the blade. I then wrap in wax paper from the kitchen and store in the coffin. I know this sounds like over kill but none of my blades rust. If a person has one or 14 dozen I think they should be taken care of. Carbon steel will rust and the proper steps should be taken to prevent this. Drying should be the first thing after shaving the next should be stropping to be sure there is no moisture on the edge and depending on the rotation oiled lightly. Now each to his or her on ( being politically correct) may do things differently. this is just my opinion and everyone has one.

That bottle looks to be Mis-labeled. Oiling a wet razor will result in rust. Dry the razor well, I use a microfiber cloth. Once it's dry then just a drop of oil gently wiped along the edge will keep the razor in good shape. As mentioned Maas polish will wipe away any early signs of rust.

After shaving, I strop my razor, ensure it's thoroughly dry, then put it away in a small sleeve/sock made from a rifle gun sock treated with anti rust silicon. My better half is great with her sewing machine, so from one rifle sock she made me 12 razor socks. I then keep these in a container with silica gel sachets. No rust for me!!

I would contact the vendor and ask, as the bottle is possibly mislabeled it could have anything in it.

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Originally Posted by Utopian

The Dovos tend to be high carbon and can be prone to rusting if mis-treated.

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Carbon content has nothing to do with rusting tendencies. We only refer to it as carbon steel as a means to differentiate it from stainless. All steels that we refer to as "carbon steels" are iron based. Rust is Iron Oxide...thus it is the iron not the carbon that "rusts."

Some stainless alloys also contain some iron and thus "rust" quite well.

Sir, very sorry that bottle is mislabeled. That is oil for sure. Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Don

Sir, very sorry that bottle is mislabeled. That is oil for sure. Thanks!

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Thank you for the final ruling on that, kind sir.

Now for a related follow up question to any willing to respond. Would that be bad to get in on my strop? Train of thought: if I stropped my razor that was oiled before storing, without removing the oil, later stroppings might apply a thin coat of protection. (No, I haven't done this yet.)

I could also be thinking TOO far outside the box with that one.

Do not get oil on your strop. The oil will attract dust and dirt.

I live in a climate that is not humid. My routine when finished shaving is to rinse the blade under cold running water which never touches the tang. I then wipe the blade dry with some folded toilet paper and also between the scales. The blade then gets 10 laps on a hard felt strop to insure the edge is dry. I then lay the razor open outside the bathroom to air dry for a couple of hours before it goes back into a converted cutlery box for storage. Rust has never been a problem. If I want to store the razors while on holidays I simply give the blades a light coat of mineral oil. Before use the mineral oil is rinsed off with hot water and the blade wiped dry with toilet paper. Rust has never been a problem.

Light rust on carbon steel or stainless blades will usually come right off with a metal polish like Mothers Mag polish. If you have gold or other light etching on a blade it will take that off too. Metal polish may effect the edge and you might have to touch it up after too.

The only time I oil a strop is if I am rehabbing a dried out old strop. I use a very small amount of Neats Foot Oil for that and allow the strop to dry thoroughly before using it.

Bob

I was thorough about drying it & did a few strokes on the webbing and leather sides of the strop the first time around; and did some light stropping motions on a dry hand towel before I oiled it after the second shave.

It's frustrating that my brand new shiny was blemished so quickly.

What stores are y'all buying this Maas from? My web-fu suggests it is available either everywhere or nowhere. Depending on your area, it is found at Wal-Mart, Ace Hardware, the usual big box home improvement stores, AND EVEN WALGREEN PHARMACY!! Apparently, I fall into the available "nowhere" category. I have spent the better part of two days, and sporadic moments before now looking in person & on retailer websites for that go'ram:cen polish that everyone recommends, and came up bingo every time! :soapbox:

Also, I picked up a "bone" sponge from the automotive section to sit in the sink and wipe my blade off on. Already had the idea for a wiping sponge, but couldn't find one big enough.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Crawler

I was thorough about drying it & did a few strokes on the webbing and leather sides of the strop the first time around; and did some light stropping motions on a dry hand towel before I oiled it after the second shave.

It's frustrating that my brand new shiny was blemished so quickly.

What stores are y'all buying this Maas from? My web-fu suggests it is available either everywhere or nowhere. Depending on your area, it is found at Wal-Mart, Ace Hardware, the usual big box home improvement stores, AND EVEN WALGREEN PHARMACY!! Apparently, I fall into the available "nowhere" category. I have spent the better part of two days, and sporadic moments before now looking in person & on retailer websites for that go'ram:cen polish that everyone recommends, and came up bingo every time! :soapbox:

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What may have happened was that the razor wasn't thoroughly dried, and the oil actually trapped a layer of moisture against the blade.

I dry with tissue, blade, between the scales, and let air dry, then into a razor sock - never use oil.

Metal polish is in wal-Mart in the auto section.

i've had good luck using Renaissance Wax on my blades. it's kind of expensive but a little container lasts forever. as stated before i also dry the blade with toilet paper,strop and let air dry over night (or longer) before putting into my cedar chest storage box (kept away from the moist bathroom). a little oil on the pivot is all i use, plus i try to keep the whole thing dry as i can during use.