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white gunk on razor?
I just got my straight razor a few weeks back. It's always dried off with tissue, and wiped with a drop of oil on each side of the blade after use. Today I noticed that there is white film/ gunk on both sides of the razor that does not come off with soap and water nor 91% isopropyl alcohol. Any idea what this could be, and how to clean it off? Any advice is greatly appreciated!
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What kind of oil have you been using? My bet is it's the culprit.
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How hard is your water? That might be clue one.
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I have been using olive oil. It hasn't left any residue before though.
I am in New York, as far as i know our water is supposed to be fairly soft water.
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I've used oils but found that if I dried the blade properly there was no need for it. I'd eliminate that variable. You may have to use Maas or Flitz polish to get the residue off.
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Thanks! I'll be sure to get some. Just out of curiosity, how do you recommend drying the razor?
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I just leave mine out to dry in the open position for several hours. If you have kids in the house, I'd suggest getting a can of compressed air to use to dry it so that it is not sitting out.
I should add that before leaving it out to dry, I rinse it off and wipe the excess water off with some toilet paper.
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I dry mine after shaving by wiping longnitudally with a super dry towel, with two fingers, avoiding the edge. Then I gently strop the edge on the dry towel a few times, leave it open in a dry, safe place for a day and restrop it. Back into rotation! I am always carefull to not get the tang, nor scales wet. Rinsing only the blade.
I treat mine with Tuff-Glide after polishing and before honing and have never had an issue doing this. No re-oiling has ever been necessary. YMMV
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If it's a "gunk", meaning sticky , gooey, spray it with WD-40, let it sit a little, try to wipe it off. If successful, then clean the WD-40 from your blade before use.
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I store my blades in Baby oil for a few reasons. One, I kinda like the smell! Two, you can buy the stuff anywhere and it is relatively cheap and lasts forever! Works well for me, even though I live in pretty dry place I still use oil. YMMV