Thread: Rust prevention

I am a newbie. So after getting my very old razor cleaned up and sharpened I am running into a rust problem. High carbon steel rusts. How do I prevent this? I have an old Boker King Cutter.

First, keep it out of high humidity places - i.e. the bathroom
Second, when rinsing - don't dunk past the blade. If your pivot gets wet, it will begin to rust.
Third - this is personal opinion - you can use an oil. Lightly oil the blade with a tissue. Personally, I can't stand this. I keep all mine in a few little boxes from joebehar, and there's a couple silica packs in each.

Does the trick for me.

After a rinse, I dry the blade with some tissue, the hit it a few times with condensed air; the type you use to remove dust from your computer and such. I find the condensed air to be very valuable as it gets into parts of the blade that tissue cannot, as well as in corners of the scales. Finally, I apply some oil and store.

Just beginning with an SR but this is what I do:

I use a damp sponge in a low walled container on the counter to wipe the lather off the blade while shaving.

When finished shaving I hold the blade under hot running tap water but never past the blade.

Then I wipe the blade dry with tissue and do between the scales too.

If I am not going to be using them for awhile I think I would give the blades a very light coat of mineral oil. We don't have a humidity problem here and I store them away from the bathroom. So far so good.

Bob

In general check the relative humidity where you live. It gets in the high 90's here so I go with thorough drying, oiling, & silica packs in a container with a good seal.
Whenever the razor is wet e.g. rinsing or honing it is also wiped dry.
btw, if you go overboard with the silica packs as I did you will also eventually dry out any unsealed timber scales or boxes & see cracks & warps develop. Silica packs need periodical drying in a oven or microwave & some form of indicator is helpful to know when.

I use hot water, dry with tissue and then coat with a drop of mineral oil, I use balistrol - it works like a charm for me.

I rinse off lather under hot running water being very careful not to let any water get into the pivot area. I also wipe lather off my fingers holding the shank of my razor to keep lather and water away from the pivot.

On the final rinse, I let the blade get hot to help with drying and wipe dry. Be sure to examin the space between the scales carefully for any water drops or lather residues which must be removed, if present. I leave my razor closed, but not in any container as I finish my shaving cleanup prior to leaving the bathroom. I store my razors in my bedroom and strop the razor immediately before putting it away. I also strop immediately before each use. Carbon steel razors get a wipe with camellia oil, but mineral oil also works well. For prolonged storage, I wipe each blade with an oil made for firearms as I think that it protects longer than mineral oil.

Gun oil should be cleaned off before putting the razor back into use. Mineral oil is cleaned off the blade before stropping and shaving.

Razors are stored in my bedroom in 7 pen display boxes which allow good air circulation.

This works for me. It is easier and best to prevent rust rather than have to deal with stains or even worse, pitting of carbon blades.

If water gets between the blade and scales at the pivot, the water must be removed to keep rusting from starting. I like the compressed air trick, it can't hurt scales. Some users use alcohol to extract the water, but the alcohol used must be compatable with the scale material. When dried, the pivot can be oiled for protection. Oiling the pivot may decrease the friction against rotation of the blade which may make it harder to keep the blade in the position wanted while shaving, if the blade already has minimal friction. I would check with experienced user/collectors before applying anything contacting an exotic scale material.