Stains!

http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/7923/img2012.jpg
http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/5738/img2008.jpg


I've had my brand new Dovo (prehoned) for about 10 days. I've shaved with it every day. I always dry it thoroughly with toilet paper. At first it starting building up some stains so I started covering the blade with olive oil after I finished. That didn't seem to slow the process. Then I started putting on aftershave. That didn't slow the process. So here I am 10 days in with a blade that looks like this ^^^^.

2 questisons:

How can I make it pretty again? I have a dremel tool with a buffing wheel. Should I use that. Also, I don't want to spend any money if it is possible.

How can I keep it pretty? What is causing these stains and how can I stop it?

why don't you try toilet paper with oil. and don't touch the edge, you'll dull it.
i'm thinking it's not rust because you're drying it and covering it in oil, so it must be scum from the water and lather. of course you don't want to use any strong acid, but if the oil doesn't help try vinegar.
And you shouldn't need any power tool, that's way too aggressive.

I am guessing that if it is not scum as gugi says, if your water is to hard, it could be it could be staining the metal. In any case, a picture of the stains may be helpful. What I normally do with my razors is to dry them with a towel after I shave and give it a few laps on the strop to dry the edge. I leave the blade open for awhile until it dries and then close it. I am sure that there are other ways to do it too. Depending on the type of stains, a metal cleaner like Maas could help but before you start doing anything you may want to identify the stains, assuming that it is possible ;-). Good luck!

Al raz.

try some never-dull they sell it at autozone and wal-mart it will bring the shine back on 50 year old chrome. when i oil my blade i dry it then strop and put a little mineral oil on my finger and apply it to the blade starting at the spine and going twoards the edge :gl:

Wiping the blade with rubbing alcohol cleans up similar stains on my blades.

It's hard to say why it's happening but from the pics it doesn't look to me like the factory put a very good finish on the blade. The rougher the surface the easier it is for rust and stains to get traction.

I've had pretty good success at both removing and preventing those sorts of stains by using a metal wax. I'm partial to Collinite's No. 850. If the stains are stubborn you might have to use a metal cleaner or polish first. In order of aggressiveness (most to least) cleaner, polish, and wax.

The Dremel is a fine tool to polish the blade with but it's messy and you have to be VERY careful...and if the blade has gold wash it will remove that in a heartbeat so you have to either accept that or work around it. The wax works great for polishing (with or without a Dremel) as it does have some silica or something in it for grit but as you work the metal it gets ground up finer and finer until it has very little grit left and you end up with mostly just wax...which makes it less likely to over do things than using some of the more aggressive compounds.

That's a frikking big coin you are resting the razor on! :D

Maybe you are being too gentle when wiping off the blade with tissue. As long as you avoid the cutting edge it's OK to wipe with a cloth/towel.

I find the easiest way to make sure a razor ends up clean and dry is to run some fresh hot water into the sink, rest the razor in the water (on top of a cloth for protection if you like) then let it soak for a minute or so while you tidy up other stuff. Take the razor out of the water and dry it quickly while it is hot. Tap the scales against the towel gently to remove drops of water from inside. Any remaining moisture will soon be gone because of the heat. I don't know if this method would be safe on exotic or wooden scales though.

Someone said olive oil can be slightly damaging to steel. I doubt it is responsible for what you are seeing. But if you can get some mineral, camellia (tea seed), or Ballistol oil instead they might be an improvement.

I'm going to throw in my usual warning about not using the blue Dovo presentation case. I have no proof they cause rust, but packing foam+moisture=trouble in my book.

I would also try a good alcohol wipe first. Then Ballistol lightly rubbed around with a scotch-brite pad. The latter might dull the edge a bit. I wouldn't use the Dremel except as a last resort. Not even then if some of it is "water-marks".

Well, on my monitor it looks like rust. I would just try some metal polish. It won't hurt it and see what happens. use it on the side that's plain in case the other has gold wash.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Alraz

I am guessing that if it is not scum as gugi says, if your water is to hard, it could be it could be staining the metal. In any case, a picture of the stains may be helpful.

Al raz.

---

Can you not see the photos above? Can everyone else see them?

I see the photos. Maybe they were just slow to load for Alraz.

Some Maas or turtle wax rubbing compound should get your razor cleaned up.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by calamusink

Can you not see the photos above? Can everyone else see them?

---

Well you added the photos after his response that you quoted.
They are fine but I can't tell from them what it is (I'd guess it's rust but it's not very consistent with your description of how it developed). It's up to you how you want to proceed, you have plenty of adivice and I don't think anymore can help you.
Actually you have also the option to sending it to one of the guys that do restores and they will take care of it properly. But I presume you want to avoid the expense and time out involved in this.

Looks like rust on my monitor, too. If it is I'd be choked if a 10 day old brand new Dovo of mine looked like that after careful treatment. I wouldn't be thinking about dremels or polish, I'd be thinking about writing a letter of complaint to Dovo or taking it back to the shop...

I am taking it for granted that you thoroughly dry it, though. I dip the blade of mine (just up to the shank - don't want to get water resting round the pivot area) in hot water so it absorbs a bit of heat, towel it dry and leave it in a dry place for a while before stropping it a bit and closing it. If it wasn't dry before you oiled it, rust can still develop under the oil.

Regards,
Neil

The bottom picture looks like either a rusty fingerprint or a pattern from whatever you used to wipe the razor with.

Attachment 21483

Fingerprints are acidic and can rust steel, even under oil. Unless you use an oil that is capable of neutralizing acids.