Thread: Deteriorating Styptic Pencil

I only wet the tip of the styptic pencil for use. The moisture that remains, corrodes the rest of the tube if the tube is stood up on the base. I store the pencil such that the tip is angled down, it keeps the moisture from travelling the length of the tube to the base. The pencil seems to stay cleaner since I've started doing this. I keep it in the medicine cabinet, and I'm not anal about drying every last bit of it anymore.

I get the crystalization all over mine too. I keep it in the medicine chest. All I do is rinse it off after I use it and then shake it dry. At a buck apiece, I can afford to let them disintegrate a little. I have enough things to wipe off in my life.

Thanks for the tips in this thread. I had the same problem with my styptic pencils until I read these posts. Now I keep it dry & leave it out of the tube until the next day. The pencil looks brand new.

I've tried using the pencil and found it left white powder then I tried the Proraso gel but I returned to my favourite allum block. I even wet my finger and dip it into the powder that is left when it is finished.

Styptic pencils should not be stored upright. They should be stored lying on their side.

If you look, you will see the air hole on the bottom. If you stand the case upright, the air hole has no access to the environment. So moisture stays inside and equilibrates.

If the stick does degrade, just dissolve it in a small amount of water to make a saturated solution (some crystals on the bottom). You then have "liquid styptic".

I stopped nicking myself after my first few shaves with a straight, so perhaps a new technique or routine using different quality products (quality pre-shave, nice shaving cream, etc.) will help you to avoid nicks and cuts altogether. I switched to a high-end Italian shaving cream and started using the T and F pre-shave oil, and I haven't needed my styptic in a couple of years now.

It's funny how little changes in technique, products, routine, etc., can totally change your shaving experience for the better! Because in my eyes, if you are having to use a styptic that often, something should be addressed so that you don't start leaving little scars on your face.

Just my two cents...hope it helps a little. Also, you may want to get a bar of alum...it works in the same way as a styptic pencil and will never crumble apart like a cheap styptic pencil...plus it will last forever. Have a good week, Friends!

Certainly avoiding nicks and cuts is a good way to keep your styptic pencil in good condition. One good way to reduce such cuts is to use the same or very similar razors most of the time. I find that I am most likely to cut myself when I'm in a rush and am shave testing multiple razors or an unusual razor. I can shave my entire face blindfolded with a razor (round point) that I use regularly, but that established muscle memory can betray me when I use an odd size, or especially length, of razor.

Alum will work for minor abrasions or nicks, but it won't help staunch a cut the way that a styptic pencil can. They don't work the same way.

Keep it dry I know that Turkish barbers keep their alum blocks just on a shelf.

Yeah the rushing is the biggest culprit for causing nicks and cuts.