Just Joined in search of advice

Hi Everyone,
My girlfriend bought me a really nice straight razor about 6 months ago. Recently its dulled quite a bit and needs to be honed, plus its starting to get a bit of rust on the blade. I read that steel wool was the best way to get the rust off but haven't had much luck, in fact I have more with rubbing alcohol and paper towel to be honest.

So a couple of things, what does everyone recommend as the best way to get rust off of a blade, and can I get some votes for the best member to go to for honing?

Thanks all, looking forward to contributing.

It depends on how much rust there is. I've used Maas to remove small spots.
There are a lot of good honemeisters here, look in the Classifieds.

Good luck and welcome onboard.

Rust may take a little more than Maas, but it's often better to start gently. If the polish doesn't work, you may need wet & dry paper. Again, start with a high grit, such as 2k, & work back till you start seeing results.

As for a honemiester, they're all good here. I've not tried any, but their reputations are solid. Pick one, or browse the forums for free honing. Many members will do it. You'll just cover postage. You get a sharp blade, & they get a little more experience, or simply give something back to the site.

What kind of razor ???????????

If the polish doesn't get the rust off the sand paper is an option but will leave a mark that will require more work to remove. Try scraping the rust off with a single edge razor blade you that you can get in a hardware store used fro paint scrapers and box cutters. Go gentle and take your time. Then try the Mass again. With the single edge blade you will not need to clean up the scratches left by the sand paper, but the sand paper will be able to get below the rust with some elbow grease.

+1 for the maas or simlar polish and the classifiedshave some of the best honemasters around

If you have a way of taking a photo of the blade it would be more helpful in prescribing a method for dealing with it.+1 on the member services in the classifieds to find someone to hone it.

+1 on all the info (including pictures). Not knowing your location the classifieds is where to look for a Honemeister. By the way welcome to SRP look thru the WIKI there is a bunch of info there not just for newbies but for just about every other question razor related. Good luck.

Hi and Welcome BKW all good advice especially the picture.:)

Welcome to the forum BKW! Once you get the blade cleaned up, how are you going to keep it from getting rusty again? I don't know what post shave maintenance you did after shaving with the blade, but some common things people do are:

* Rinse and wipe the blade dry.
* Strop on the cloth side around 25 rounds, to dry and clean the edge.
* Leave the blade open to air dry for a few hours or overnight, if the razor can be placed in a safe spot.
* Use a blow dryer to dry the razor.
* Put some type of light oil on the metal, after drying.

Hope the blade cleans up nicely for you. :)