Thread: WD40: Does it have any place in straight razor care?

I use WD40 when doing restoration work. It's great for doing the initial cleaning of the blade, pivot, and scales.
For regular oiling I use mineral oil - I would probably make a big mess trying to spray wd40 on a pivot.

If my blade is oily, I wipe it down in alcohol before stropping.

Tuf-Glide Razor Oil - one drop in the pivot pin area once...then keep it dry and clean.

TUF-GLIDE penetrates hard to reach areas and displaces water. It provides cleaning, rust protection and lubrication. Pure mineral spirits carries the active ingredients and provides cleaning action. It quickly evaporates, and Sentrys proprietary ingredients bond to the surface. The bonding ensures long-lasting effectiveness, and reliable dirt free performance.

Tuf-glide is the best protectant, IMO.

For protection of the tang and pivot area of my razors, I use a firearm protectant called "Barricade". Spray it on, it penetrates and displaces water, then dries, leaving a dry protective film. It has prevented the formation of any rust in the bores of my soap-and-water cleaned blackpowder guns for years--it does the same for my razors. On the blades I use SRD's Razor Oil.

WD40 is not water resistant and metal coated with it will rust over time.
For storage one can use Mineral Oil, Ballistol, Tuff Glide, anything water resistant.

As above,mineral oil is all you need,and just do not get the pivot wet,no need to do so.

Maybe in restoration work but I would not allow it to sit long on a razor. If you want something for applying to your razor in between shaves I would use a good razor oil like that SRD sells or use Ballistol which I was told about by some very seasoned razor folks here on SRP! Smells funny but seems to work great. I alternate from the oil SRD sells and Ballistol.

Yea, don’t know what the real story is, some say it’s not banned, some say it’s re-formulated but, it is still on the shelves here in California as of yesterday, bought a small can for my tool box.

I buy the 3 large can packs from Costco and go through cans of the stuff. It is great for cleaning razors.

I spray them down between the scales and blade, let it soak a bit then, with a paper towel and clipped off wooden stir stick easily removes years of soap and crud from between the scales and scrape off active rust with a razor blade and fine steel wool.

For blade protection I use Ballistol. For the active rotation I do not oil, just dry well. WD40 is the best thing for removing tape residue and glue from old price tags.

Originally Posted by smolloy

..I was wondering about how best to keep water out of the pivot and some of the other parts that are tough to wipe dry. ...Perhaps WD40 is OK to use to force water out of those little corners?

Keep water out by not letting water in as said above. In Detroit there was a man who worked the auto assembly line wearing a white suit every day. He stayed neat and clean eight-hours/day because, he said, he paid attention to what he was doing and his movements were "precise". When I failed to pay attention there was water and soap on my hands, fingers, razors and pins almost every day; now I am more precise. Hands and razors never get soapy or wet except for lather on the blade. No grime or rust and never oiled a blade or pins with anything except a drop or two of baby oil from time to time.

It might be different in Skaene, Miami, Houston, Cincinnati, Darwin or the Marshall Islands where humidity is intense and everything rusts.

Wow! I wasn't expecting to generate a 3-page long thread! It seems use of WD-40 creates strong opinions!

Anyway, thanks to all for the help.