Razor care (question from a newbie)

I recently purchased my first straight razor, and have been shaving with it for about a week now. It came with some care and maintenance instructions, which mentioned that cleaning the razor periodically is necessary. How often do I need to clean the razor, and what do I use to clean it? Can I use regular dish detergent?

I also bought some mineral oil to keep the blade from rusting, but how often should I use it? Do I coat the blade after every shave, even if I use it every day? Or do I only need to use oil on the blade if I won't be using it for a while? I do make sure to dry the blade quite thoroughly after each use, and I keep it in a dry place.

I appreciate your input.

You dont need to wash the blade with dish detergent as it gets enough soap from the lather..!

What I do is rinse and wipe the blade between passes and then rinse it well when I'm done.

After I've dried the blade I do 10 canvas and 15 leather strokes on the strop and then I give the blade and scales a last wipe down before I put it away. I always stick something between the scales as well to make sure theres no water droplets in there as they will easily rust the pivot and blade.

You dont need to oil the blade after each use if the blade is in regular use. You only need to oil them if they are going to be used less frequently than, say, a week or so. For daily use its fine to just make sure the blade is dried well.

I really cant recommend stropping after the shave. This cleans all the micro-gunk off the edge, as well as going some way to maintaining sharpness. It really is one of the best things you can do to keep your razor in good nick!

I live in the UK and I have three razors in my rotation and I dont oil any of them. Its not very humid here so I've found I dont need to oil them. That said, if you live in a humid area, or near bodies of water (which will increase humidity) or near the sea (humid and salt!) it may become necessary to oil more regularly. It'll depend on how the razor reacts to the conditions its kept in so just keep half an eye on it and make sure nothing is happening to it..!

If you do get any small rust spots or tarnish you can get them off using a mild metal polish such as MAAS or Flitz and a Q-Tip. Just avoid any gold washed areas with the polish as it can remove the gold.

But as long as you are drying the blade carefully and keeping it in a dry place you should be fine! Sounds like you're doing the right things so you dont need to oil it every time, unless conditions call for it or its not going to be used for a while!

If you're following this sort of cleaning regimen you'll find that you wont need to do any periodic cleaning either.

Good luck!