Is it safe to use WD40 to dry out the hinge of a razor?
Printable View
Is it safe to use WD40 to dry out the hinge of a razor?
I read in a post here ,that oil can color white bone scales.
Obviously there will be no problem with plastic and I assume celluloid and other artificial materials. I can't be sure on horn, Ivory, and exotic wood scales scales.
It's not dangerous that's for sure. It may not be advisable though. I've found over the years that WD40 will attack some synthetic materials such as 'O' rings and also some paint finishes.Quote:
Originally Posted by rupert87
I'm not a WD40 fan but I'll bow to someone with practical experience of the stuff on razors.
I wouldn't put WD40 on a ****roach I disliked :D Seriously though I talked to a knifemaker over 10 years ago and he told me that you never want to use WD40 on a either a good firearm or a premium folding knife or any piece of cutlery for that matter.
If you truly do need some serious lubrication on any hinge on a razor I would highly recommend a product I've used for the past few years called Militec. I am really sold on Militec's fine synthetic oil. Their synthetic grease has tremendous lubricity as well. Their grease is great for the internal gears of fishing reels and many other delicate mechanisms.
But I've used nothing but Militec on my pocket knife collection and the folders I carry on a daily basis for some time now and it's just great.
Even as much of a ghetto-rigging caveman as my late dad was he wouldn't even use WD40 in his last days :D That crap varnishes up and it's hell to get it off after it does.
If you do need a spray type lubricant for stuff that WD40 was designed for I highly recommend Slick 50 One Lube. It's 50 times better than dinosaur grade WD40 :rofl2:
It wasn't the lubrication I was after, but its properties for drying out hard to reach places. AIUI, that's what WD40 was originally designed to do.
Really!! I always thought that WD40 was meant to be a light/fine lubricant to get into tight places and to lubricate things that mainly require a light oil.Quote:
Originally Posted by rupert87
So when it does dry and have that varnish effect it's supposed to coat metal? I had never heard that before. All I know is that I've found at least 20 lubricants that I personally like better than WD40.
Just thinking about it I guess it would be good to coat garden tools for long term storage.
Another thing I like about Militec is that it doesn't create a static charge and it doesn't attract dust or dirt like some lubes do. And it clings to metal unbelievably.
Personally I never had very good luck with WD myself. But thank GOD for a huge selection
Indeed it was, and it took the research scientist who formulated it 40 attempts, hence the name W(ater) D(isplacement) 40.Quote:
Originally Posted by rupert87
Alcohol can do the same thing in many cases - but you would have to be sure that alcohol would not have an adverse effect on the scale material: on some plastics and celluloid it acts as a solvent.
On razors with scales not affected by alcohol it can be used full strength (although you will need a Customs & Excise exemption ticket to buy it in the UK) but it can be used in varying strengths - even the easily obtainable iso-propyl alcohol will work.
As a bonus it disinfects too. Strangely enough, for killing microbes, research has shown that alcohol with a small water content (eg 80 - 90% alcohol if I recall correctly) is better than pure alcohol.
Regards,
Neil.
Yes it works just fine,,,
I would call it safe on every scale material I have run across, except unfinished or beeswax finished wood, those it might penetrate, but then again so will anything else...
If you actually take the time to look at the test results out there, only a very few products beat it for rust prevention too..
It will gum up over extended periods but I have it on some of my seldom used collection razors (1 use per year) and have had no problems there either...
BTW The next thing you will hear is "I wouldn't put it on my face" I don't know about you guys but I actually rinse my razors before I use them.....
PS: This exact same discussion is on here at least 5 times that I can think of
I'm not sure how your shave den is laid out, but it would be much easier for me to reach for a hair dryer than a can of WD40. :beer1:
I don't generally get the pivot area wet. After I rinse the blade in hot tap water I wipe it with a tissue. Then I take a look inside the scales and if necessary stick the corner of the tissue inside and get any droplets if I wasn't careful when shaving. Then I give it 20 on leather to get any micro gunk that might be in the striations of the bevel. After I strop I wipe the blade with a silicone gun cloth impregnated with a rust preventative that is no longer made called R.I.G.. So far so good.
Dinosaur?Quote:
Originally Posted by jdX
Formulated in 1953 and released to the public in the same year as me - 1958.
I guess I must be due for extinction...:gaah:
On a funny note I had an old Viet Nam veteran friend of mine that is a knife collecting buddy as well. He would use WD40 for medicinal purposes.
No! I'm not kidding you. He had something wrong with one of his shoulders from the war and he would rub his shoulders in the evenings with WD40 and he claimed it had pain killing effects to it :gaah:. I think he was a bit wacko myself but he really believed it. And I've met a couple of other people in the last few years who claim the same thing.
He would also spray it on cuts and burns too :D.
Like I said earlier; I've found lubrication products that work better for me than WD40 does. But hey if it works for any of you guys then more power to you all. Personally the smell of the stuff kind of gets to me. And most chemical smells don't bother me but the smell of WD40 kind of makes me nauseated.
Now I have used it on very rusty bolts and let it set overnight and it does loosen them. But recently I've found a product called ZEP Super Penetrant that works better at those jobs than anything I've ever seen.
Hey my overall philosophy is "WHATEVER WORKS" >> and if it works for you guys then that's great.
I believe it - try googling "gout WD40" and you turn up loads of amazing stories about people using it on their joints and such. Some reckon that after prolonged use, you can taste it - ugh!Quote:
Originally Posted by jdX
Ballistol oil was used in the field to treat wounds, too.
I am a huge fan of Ballistol or mineral oil. Ballistol not only lubricates buy it keeps corrosion and rust away from my razors, it really does a very good job.
Take Care,
Richard
Years ago axle grease would be applied to cuts or burns. Same principal maybe ? :shrug:
I've always found WD40's a pretty lousy lubricant. It tends to dry off quite quickly. I tend to keep the hinge dry but I accidently got some water on the hinge, and it's quite a tight fit between the scales and the blade.
WD40 is old technology now but still completely viable. Mythology says that it has been used as a cure for fits, farts, freckles and other ailments real and imagined. Seriously though:
When you are putting the engine in your vintage car, hot rod or race car in mothballs for the winter spray WD in short bursts into the carb/injectors with the engine at slow idle until the plugs just begin to foul. When you light 'er off next spring there will be NO corrosion on the cylinder walls. Same thing can be done with plugs out and cranking with starter motor. Enjoy!
Hey you and I both buddy!! That Ballistol is a miracle working compound as far as I'm concerned. I've collected many pocket knives over the years and Spyderco and Benchmade mostly. Spyderco has many of their knives with G-10 handles. G-10 is a type of laminated polymer that is just rugged as hell. The problem with G-10 is that it tends to either dry out or fade over time. But when you treat G-10 handles with Ballistol it's just like you made them new again. Ballistol is also great on Micarta handles as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by riooso
Also I've used Ballistol on all kinds of cleaning jobs and on many of them it works good to where you don't have to use toxic and dangerous solvents. Ballistol has rejuvenating properties and well as being a great cleaner for certain jobs. It's also a great rust and corrosion preventative and it protects anything you use it on from moisture and harsh environments.
When you clean with Ballistol just use a soft bristle toothbrush and you'll be amazed at all the different cleaning jobs it will do. But believe me it is the product to have for cleaning and treating many synthetic knife handles.
So if it does gum up, how does one go about removing the gum? I think that's happening to my folding knife.Quote:
Originally Posted by gssixgun
Quote:
Originally Posted by donputnick
Any "Gun Scrubber" will work instantly to clean and dry a folding knife same with the internals on guns...
The problem with these cleaners if they are very harsh so be careful with it...
I find that what was etched on the old IXL pocket knives,"Oil The Joints." works for me. A drop of 3 and 1 and work the blade back and forth and I'm usually good to go. I sometimes stick the knife under the tap and run hot water in the jaws and then dry it and oil it. Cutting those tomatoes can gum up the works if you let it get up in the jaws. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by donputnick
I have experiance of WD40 and it will do what you ask of it and not cause any prblems just be very light on the use as it tends to get everywhere and once on the scales is a little diffucult to remove and hence makes them slippy when wet and you can picture it slice or ding on the basin.
But I would not use it on any form of blueing as it can lift it off but thats the hunting forum not here lol
+1 on Ballistol, its a gun oil so t cleans and prevents rust.Quote:
Originally Posted by riooso
You need a solvent, not a lubricant for this application. Use neat isopropyl alcohol.Quote:
Originally Posted by rupert87
In my experience, WD40 is terrible stuff in any application. It is a temporary fix for moving parts as it gums up by attracting dust and dirt. A far better ultra light lubricant is spray silicon. I also use a spray teflon which is excellent - use very sparingly though. Note that I haven't used either of these on razors. Spot testing in a non-visible area is a good idea, particularly on plastics, to ensure there is no reaction.
WD40 Its basically paraffin. Very useful stuff as long as you know what its good for. Paraffin is cheaper but it doesnt usually come in a spray can. WD, like paraffin is handy for cleaning things such as the engine casings on my motobike :)
Unbelievable!!! A thread about WD40 that's already 3 pages strong :D. Who would have thunk it on a holiday especially :shrug:
It's like my old buddy Don King would always say>> "Only In America!!!!"
I think he would have made a better president myself :D
Seriously though WD40 in it's day was a good product but there are a myriad of petroleum based products on the market today that have succeeded it IMO. AS I open my can of pink Salmon :gaah: I wish all you guys a Happy Thanksgiving.
I do like the one brother's suggestion of Isopropyl Alcohol. Just make sure you get the 91% because it dries out a bit faster. JD
Slow news day. Even the newspaper was thin.Quote:
Originally Posted by jdX