Quote Originally Posted by Neillo View Post
Thanks for your concern Glen,

The context of my solution however was one of a position of having very little to lose with this particular razor, and as I stated it's a method I've used for Western and Japanese tools designed to be as sharp as any straight razor.

What alex decides to to with his razor on the other hand, is completely his concern; my intention was only to help.

Thanks
-Neill
It's got nothing to do with the edge you intend to put onto the razor afterwords. A vinegar bath will result in black staining, so while it may help with one problem, it creates another one. It's much simpler to just deal with the one problem without making more. There is also the difference of how much steel you have to work with under whatever you are trying to get out. Putting some staining on a thicker piece of steel won't matter because you can do whatever you want to get it off. But on a razor, especially a full hollow, it's a whole other ballgame.

I believe that was Glen's point - we are not talking about old planes and other tools, we are talking about straight razors.

For surface rust or light staining (not really nasty Devil's spit), I like MAAS. A single edge scraper will take off any rust above the surface, and then I use synthetic steel wool (the 000) and MAAS to get off any remaining rust and light staining. If you keep the pressure light, it won't leave anything more than very faint scratches. Yes, this too will leave the pitting behind, but without creating any new problems.