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I know Carbon Steel straight razors are more common than Stainless Steel straight razors because they're easier to sharpen. I was wondering though, how much harder is it to sharpen a Stainless Steel razor? Also, if I get a Stainless Steel straight, do I need to oil it as often? I heard oiling a Carbon Steel razor once after each use is best. Would I need to oil it that often with Stainless Steel?
Thanks!
Some stainless razors seem more difficult to hone than others for me, but the same is true of carbon razors. I'm not sure at all that ease of honing is the reason there are more carbon blades. More than likely stainless just came along toward the end of the popularity of the straight razor.
As far as oiling, it depends upon local humidity. I don't think guys in Wyoming have as much to worry about as someone in southern Mississippi. Also, how often the razor is used is a consideration. I don't oil any of my razors that are in rotation.
I really don't think that stainless blades take much more work than their carbon cousins. I've had several Friodur's, & they all honed up like a dream. Sometimes they seem to like a few more laps over the finisher, but it's certainly nothing to be intimidated by.
Stainless razors are just that. They stain less, but can still suffer in an adverse environment. I've never had a problem with mine & there's not a mark on my most used Friodur, despite being forgotten in a humid bathroom overnight! I never oil any, carbon or stainless, but I'm in England. I guess it depends on your location, as Hawkeye5 suggests.
I never oil my stainless steel. Just dry it off well and let it air dry. My carbon OTOH I do oil. At first I didn't oil them, I was using some older carbon blades that weren't real shiny anyway. Then I purchased a couple new razors. I wiped them off well with a Kleenex and left them open to air dry. I noticed a few days later some brown spots beginning to appear. A quick flitz polish took care of that, and now I oil.
I suspect you could forgo the oil and see what happens. It's easy enough to shine the blades back up if you see spots forming. If you see spots, oil, if you don't, you won't have to. :)
My experience with stainless steel razors is that they hone about the same as any razor. The grind (wedge, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and full hollow) and the width of the bevel (which is correlated to the grind and the honing history of the razor) makes for much bigger differences in honing than the type of steel. Stainless steel is supposed to be more abrasion resistant than many carbon steel alloys, but at the same time it can't be hardened to the same levels as most carbon steel razors. The former might be compensating the latter. Either way, I never had a need for special hones or procedures when honing stainless blades as opposed to regular carbon steel ones.
I oil my stainless steel blades, just like I oil the rest of them. Stainless steel does corrode, albeit far less than non stainless steel. Still, the extremely thin apex of the very edge does not need much micro-corrosion to loose definition. I'm in the habit of oiling my razors after the shave anyway, so I don't really bother with making an exception for the stainless ones.
Best regards,
Bart.
I have a pretty big rotation so I oil mine all the time. If I only had a couple I probably wouldn't but I live in New Mexico so humidity isn't a problem. If I was in Florida I probably would though.
I usually find most stainless requires a few more trips on the hone but not really that many. I've honed some carbon steel razors that took alot more time than stainless models.
Hi there FSUser!Quote:
Originally Posted by frustratedSRuser
I've got three razors one full hollow and a half hollow from carbon steel and a half hollow stainless. The edge maintenance reqs of the stainless are on par with its carbon steel brother. The main difference is the cutting edge is a bit more durable and less susceptible to jostling and of course water. Aside from that, the stainless seems to hold a basic level of sharpness, like what you might get before you move to a polishing stone, longer but the peak sharpness declines a tad faster. So it seems to do better with regular touch ups.
Lastly, I've lived in a wide variety of climates: from the mangrove forests of south east asia to the concrete jungle of New York and my stainless is just that, all with out any extra TLC.
Cheers!
Don't forget that what we refer to as stainless steel is actually high carbon stain resistant steel. As far as I can acertain all modern "stainless" razors are cryo hardened 440C which is an excellent knife/razor steel.
I do nothing different when honing a stainless razor than when honing a carbon steel razor. Some carbon steel razors are a good bit harder than stainless ones - it all depends on the hardening/tempering process and how hard they have chosen to leave them.
I've yet to hone as all I've been doing is stropping but here's what Lynn had to say about that:
The only real variation to the pyramid that I do is toward the end of the process on stainless razors or the newer harder feeling type steel razors. The variation starts at the 3 stroke level.
3 Strokes on 4K
5 Strokes on 8K
1 Stroke on 4K
5 Strokes on 8K
1 Stroke on 4K
7 Strokes on 8K
I find that these razors do better with more polishing strokes.
The pretty much sums up the pyramid method that I use. With a little practice, this is a very consistent and repeatable process and once learned can really lay the foundation for experimenting with various other honing techniques.
Pyramid Honing - Straight Razor Place Forums
Here's everything at Wiki
My stainless steel razors hone just as easy, last longer, and shave better than my carbon steel razors, although carbon steel feels smoother on the skin. Is there any non-custom razor better than a Friodur?
It's ironic, because stainless steel razors are made out of 440C which in theory is the worst steel possible for razors due to large grain size. 13C26 "razor steel" would be better, it is much more fine-grained than 440C and can reach hardnesses up to 63 hrc. The Friodur at 57 hrc already outlasts the carbon razors between hones.
Bottom line, the reason why I prefer stainless is not because they are lower maintaince or because they last longer between stropping/honing, but because they shave better.
I heard a representative of Smokey Mountain Knife Works telling a customer the other day " Carbon is softer and will dull faster but is easier to sharpen, a stainless blade is a little harder to sharpen but will maintain a cutting edge much longer". Carbon does need to be oiled more often as carbon steel is more prone to rust, but then again like another user that I agree with......
Hawkeye5
"As far as oiling, it depends upon local humidity. I don't think guys in Wyoming have as much to worry about as someone in southern Mississippi. Also, how often the razor is used is a consideration. I don't oil any of my razors that are in rotation."
Interesting stuff.Quote:
Originally Posted by cotdt
Thanks for sharing.
I really like my Friodur too.
Bart.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bart
I think the same as Bart just wrote :)
plus 1
One of my favorite sayings is that it should be two words, Stain Less not one word Stainless....
The answer to the oiling question depends partially on the nature of the climate you're living in with particular regards to proximity to the ocean. If you're on the shore, oil often! Here in central Massachusetts I rarely have to oil a carbon steel blade and it sits in the bathroom cabinet. Bathrooms are the highest humidity rooms in many homes.
Stainless can be looked at as "stain less" and not "stain free" so my advice is to clean it after use, keep it dry, and keep an eye on it to see if any discolorations or spots are forming. To remove water absolutely from a wet blade, dry it and then wipe or douse with alcohol. Alcohol displaces the water and that procedure is used in many laboratories to clean glassware.
While I don't have a stainless razor I'm familier with sharpening stanless knives of different makes of steel. With carbon steel I have found that I get a sharper edge that drops off sharply once it starts to dull. Stainless doesn't get as sharp but holds that lower edge a hair longer than a carbon steel edge does. I believe it has to do with the oxidization of the edge, when it comes to how fast it dulls. Carbide grain size has alot to do with it as well, but that for its sharpness at the start. I have a few knives with fine grain that still don't quite make the edges of my carbon steel edges.
I also think personal style and use effect how steel, from one side to the other, perform on any given day. I'm not a fan of stainless steel, I rather hate the stuff... and it don't like me ether :p
At the moment I only have one stainless kitchen knife that I use. One of Butch's monster :) kitchen knives. It's fun to scare the other cooks with :)
My carbon steel blades easily take an edge from regular stropping and some passes on the 4 sided pasted paddle strop which has Chrom ox pastes on them.
My staineless steel blades need passes on the diamond pastes strop side to sharpen up. My Chrom ox pastes take a long time to sharpen up the stainless steel blades, while the diamond pastes takes a fraction of the time.
I like cleaning up all the razors real nice after using them, but if I didn't all I would buy would be the stainless steel razors.
Pabster
One of my faves is actually a Rust Less....:)Quote:
Originally Posted by gssixgun
http://www.badgerandblade.com/vb/att...1&d=1246552190