Thread: cleaning razor? any advice

Anyone have any thoughts on cleaning a razor. Just getting the gunk off it.

Thanks

Graham

Depends on what you have. If it is rust some use sandpaper in progressive grits. Very labor intensive. I might use some 000 wool with a bit of Break Free or a some 600 grit paper lightly to get the main stuff off. Most of the time I use metal polish like Wenol or Semichrome.

If your talking about crud on an ebay special I like Scrubbing Bubbles followed by the fore mentioned metal polish.

Hi Jimmy,

Thanks for the advice.

I'm new to this, I meant more just how to keep it clean from gunk, shaving foam etc. I rinse it every day but after a few weeks it looks like it could do with something else.

Graham

Maybe if you told us your current cleaning routine, it would help people advise.

I rinse under a hot running tap. I then use tissue to wipe the bade clean, then use a stropping motion over a towel or washcloth. Then 25 laps on a linen strop.

Originally Posted by keenedge

Maybe if you told us your current cleaning routine, it would help people advise.

I rinse under a hot running tap. I then use tissue to wipe the bade clean, then use a stropping motion over a towel or washcloth. Then 25 laps on a linen strop.

+1 except I do the 25 laps or so .... on leather. I also wipe the blade afterwards with a silicone gun cloth impregnated with rust preventative.

I rinse the blade with hot water (always with the toe pointing downwards so to prevent water getting in the hinge area, even while shaving), wipe it down with the towel, pinching either side and being careful to stay a 1/4" away from the edge. I then strop the blade on the towel, and then 15 laps on a leather strop.

And here's the most important thing I do - I open the blade to 90 degrees, and leave it out to fully air dry (a couple of hours) before closing the razor and putting it away. Avoids rust without having to put oil or other stuff on the blade.

Good luck,
Mark

I spray the riveted location where the blade meets scales with alcohol (since last week when another member mentioned), dry the blade thoroughly and coat all exposed metal with vaseline.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I also wipe the blade afterwards with a silicone gun cloth impregnated with rust preventative.

I just looked for these on Amazon and I'm now on Birchwood-Casey's website, where they sell a bag for $6. If just used for razors, about how long would a single cloth last and can you buy it in retail stores?

Sounds like this would be a bit easier than using mineral oil on cotton pads and then wiping a blade, which I currently do.

Originally Posted by LarryAndro

I spray the riveted location where the blade meets scales with alcohol (since last week when another member mentioned), dry the blade thoroughly and coat all exposed metal with vaseline.

What grade of alcohol are you using? Many alcohol rubs contain water more or less and since the alcohol just degreases everything, the blade rusts in a jiffy. I did a little disinfecting test on a junker swede, immersing it to a disinfecting liquid and it produced visible orange rust in approximately 20 minutes.

Originally Posted by ursus

What grade of alcohol are you using?

70% Isopropyl

Originally Posted by ursus

I did a little disinfecting test on a junker swede, immersing it to a disinfecting liquid and it produced visible orange rust in approximately 20 minutes.

Well, it seemed to make sense to use alcohol to dry out the water that I can't get to with a cloth. Maybe, alcohol wasn't such a good idea.

Does anyone else use alcohol to dry out the parts of the blade that you can't reach with a cloth?