Thread: Does oiling mess with alignment?

Had a BAD shave today--tons of painful razor burn, even while I was doing it.

I suspect it may be because about a week ago I started following some advice I read to oil your razors after you've used them and dried them, with a thin coat of either a light gun oil or mineral oil.

So I've been dipping my finger in mineral oil and lightly lubing each side + spine and tip. Of course, I move my finger from spine to blade as I do each side

I let them sit for a few minutes with oil on, then wipe off the excess, wiping spine to blade but not with any kind of pressure applied.

'm wondering if apply and wiping off oil that close to the cutting edge is mis-aligning it?

Here's my SOP shave drill. It's usually done after a hot bath or shower, but not always. If not, I do wash my face first. Then...

1. Boil water on stove since tap doesn't get as hot as I need.
2. Use a tiny bit of HOT water in cup for lather.
3. Fill up basin with HOT, dilute as needed with tap, have hot towel & silvertip badger brush soaking
4. Apply hot wet towel to face & neck area as long as it stays hot
5. Remove towel and apply pre-shave oil
6. Repeat #4
7. Remove towel and apply lather
8. Repeat #4
9. Set towel aside and re-lather. NOW we're open for business!
10. Use Zowada lace wood damascus 6/8" for face except for moustache and part of chin area
11. Use Dovo Inox 3/8 or 2/8 SS razor for tight areas like moustache, part of chin, and neck
12. Blot face & with now-cool wet towel
13. Rinse face & neck with LOTS of coldest water out of tap
14. Blot face & neck dry with dry towel (never rubbing--that's bad for your skin. Just blot.)
15. Generously slap on some kind of Thayer's Witch Hazel--usually the blue-label medicated.
16. Air dry Thayers by waving hand around.
17. Apply rose Trumper's Skin Food
18. Repeat #16
19. Apply after-shave--usually Castle Forbes 1445
20. Apply regular moisturizer to non-shaved areas of face

Could putting on the mineral oil with my finger be misaligning the blade? (I remove it by running the razor under hot water...unless I'm fixin' to strop, in which case I wipe it with a towel, from spine out to blade.)

I've never had problems with an edge putting oil on like that. Although, I usually rinsed off with hot water and then dried carefully with toilet paper before stropping rather than a towel.

Tam - a lot of people say that mineral oil plays havoc with their skin - some say it is downright bad for the skin, others say that this is all hype. You may have issues with mineral oil, so perhaps you should try a natural oil. Camellia oil is a natural product, used in a lot of expensive skin creams, and not too pricey if bought as a small bottle of 100% essential oil (you occasionally find it on Ebay). It's a bit thick, but it matches natural skin oils quite well and has no issues for the vast majority of users.

Check what you buy though. Some camellia (aka teaseed oil) is sold by Japanese sword shops mixed with mineral oil - you want the type without the mineral oil. Clove oil is sometimes mixed with camellia oil (japanese sword-lore again) and although clove oil is a natural essential oil and antiseptic it may irritate skin in high concentrations.

Ballistol is another good choice - it is a natural, non-toxic oil. Much thinner than camellia oil, it is skin friendly and does not have to washed off or removed before shaving. It smells a bit funky, but it's great for a wide variety of things, including bringing old leather strops back to life!

Regards,
Neil.

I've always used olive oil to coat my razors prior to storage, it works fine, and I have never had a problem arise from it's use.

As said above, It could be an allergic reaction from the mineral oil; it is a petroleum based product (like gasoline).

I usually strop my razor after the shave (just a few licks will do). Your razor strop is probably dressed with neatsfoot oil, so stropping after the shave will displace residual moisture from the edge and protect the steel.
There are other opinions about stropping after the shave but you have nothing to lose if you try this.

Neatsfoot oil is animal based, and at one time used as an ointment for dry skin, so it’s less likely to adversely affect your skin.

Hope this helps.

You can often find Tea Seed Cooking Oil (Camellia) in Asian food stores. I've used the Camellia, Mineral, Olive, and Ballistol oils. I prefer the Ballistol by a wide margin, but you might like one of the others better (Ballistol's scent reminds me of licorice). The Ballistol will also emulsify with any water that may be left on the edge.

If you're worried about maybe using too much pressure with your finger, apply oil with a cotton ball or small cosmetic pad. They also tend to apply the right amount without needing to wipe any excess off.

Originally Posted by Englishgent

I've always used olive oil to coat my razors prior to storage, it works fine, and I have never had a problem arise from it's use.

Why not then use the pre-shave oil you already use for your face? Most of it is just olive and castor oil anyhow... It sticks to steel very well and should protect the blade just as well as anything else. It also contains preservatives so it won't go rancid either.

Originally Posted by Englishgent

I've always used olive oil to coat my razors prior to storage, it works fine, and I have never had a problem arise from it's use.

I would agree with the olive oil...i would never put the same oil that i put on my .30-06 barrel on a razor that touches my face. Another suggestion would be to buy pure almond oil or pure grapesead oil. Both are pretty cheap at a natural store and both actually make a good preshave oil at a fraction of what a oil like taylor or TGR or something like that.

is it possible that while stropping you maybe rolled the edge a bit, just a thought ive had a bad shave from doing that when i first started shaving with a straight, now i pay a lot of attention while i strop, but with the amount of prep work that you do prior to shaving it is probable that you just have an allergic reaction to the mineral oil, here is a link email dave and ask him if the oil he sells is free of mineral oil, its supposed to be non allergenic
JapaneseKnifeSharpening.com