Thread: Straight Razor Care, Oiling

The quality of oil is something I hadn't thought about. What are the significant qualities to look for? I assumed that all oils were made equal, which of course doesn't have to be true.

Carl

Originally Posted by DistortedPenguin

Use a good quality blade oil. Check Straight Razor Designs or Classic Shaving for some. Also tuf-glide works really well for me and it's not an oily product.

I just ordered some from SRD's. THe stuff found on the dovo razor section. Ordered it today. Get an email 30 minutes later that told me it was shipped. Amazingly quick.

My little FYI that I always drag out on these oiling threads..!

When you apply the oil, do so sparingly. If you put on too much you could stain scales that are made out of wood or bone, or some other porous material.

If you do stain your scales you can get it off by opening the razor out straight, wrapping the blade in a thick cloth, wrapping the scales in a tissue and leaving the razor on a warm radiator. The heat will sweat the oil out of the scales, or most of it at any rate..!

Back to the topic: Oiling is good for long term storage, but I dont oil mine as they are in fairly constant use. Plus I dont keep them in the bathroom and the UK is not too humid!

I thought it was an urban legend that a regularly used razor would get rusted, that's until it happened to me, less than two weeks into my ownership of a Dovo Quality 6/8. Granted you have to be a bit anal to be a straight razor user but I guess I wasn't anal enough. I generally wiped it clean and dried but I forgot about the scales. I should have never get the scales so wet and "dirty" to begin with. So a couple of days into my ownership I found out some pit happened on the blade. I was able to remove the giant share of the spots. And I used some MAAS cream to clean the remaining. It did a decent job but there is still a tiny tiny dot on it. Good thing is it doesn't have any on the cutting edge so it doesn't affect the shave except maybe psychologically. I would never ever open the blade and let it air dry because I have young children around. So I try to keep the scales dry, the blade dry, and sometimes just put some olive oil or wd40 when I feel like it. It probably isn't the best advice ... but I guess it would keep it from rusting.

I have 5 straight razors, but I still use only one. Other four are covered with olive oil and kept away from moisture (bathroom).

A decent gun oil will also work, but the Camellia oil, I believe is formulated such that if you ever forgot to clean it completely, and nicked yourself, it wouldn't create a health problem. I have been using a higher quality gun oil with good results, but have asked for some Camellia oil for Christmas.

Originally Posted by Tuxedo7

A decent gun oil will also work, but the Camellia oil, I believe is formulated such that if you ever forgot to clean it completely, and nicked yourself, it wouldn't create a health problem. I have been using a higher quality gun oil with good results, but have asked for some Camellia oil for Christmas.

How come I never thought about it, the health aspect of things? That's a very good point. So maybe I shouldn't be too crazy about the WD40 after all. Thanks.

I do not oil mine, and have no problems with rust. If you do opt to oil, just use a light mineral oil (sewing machine oil, food grade white oil).

I oil after every use. It takes 5 seconds and why not protect your investment.

I guess the "health" issue would only be a problem if you didn't clean your razor very well before shaving. Since the camillia oil is really not very expensive, it probably makes sense to be safe. The primary use of Camillia oil, I believe, is for skin and hair, and can be found for $6 to $15 per ounce ... which should last a long time. I do like the tuf-glide "style" applicator because it is effective in oiling your pins ... the gun oil I use has a similary applicator, and it is great for putting a very small amount on pins and avoiding waste. When I get my Camillia oil, I'm actually going to see if the applicator will fit on the Camillia oil top/mouth so I can use it more sparingly.