To rinse or not to rinse, that is my question.

So it is closer to Christmas and the beginning of my straight razor shaving. I have read much information, touched base with a helpful mentor (thanks greatly), and should have a strop, razor, and samples of Caties bubbles to begin my journey.

So to my question,

I had been reading about rust and water on the blade and in the scales and noticed some just wipe shave debris on a towel. I am thinking of going with this method. The problem is...


Do I have to rinse or wet my face between lathers?

Currently I am rinsing between passes and using my DE. I have no idea where to move the straight razor, towel, etc and the items in order for them to keep any resemblance of dryness in my small shaving den (half-bathroom 4X5). In other words it will be a pain to do so and knowing me if the items are in there they WILL get splashed.


What are your thoughts??

I usually rinse between passes to reheat my skin and remove any stray lather that may have dried out on my face while shaving. It also lets me know any spots that I missed. I usually move my razor off to the side while I rinse.

No matter how careful you are, you will probably splash the razor at some point. Just towel the outside dry, run a q-tip inside the scales to get that water, and oil your pivot pin monthly and leave the razor open to dry for a few hours. Then you don't have to worry about it as much.

I always rinse with hot water between lathers. It seems to keep the lather slicker and let it stay wetter for a little longer. With straight shaving you want a nice, slick, wet lather. I usually only lather half of my face at a time to prevent drying. This also force me to slow down and relax, but you have to take a little extra time and not be in a rush. Works for me...YMMV.
Enjoy the journey into the world of straight razor shaving!

Pete <:-}

Don't rinse. The razor has nothing to do in water.

I wipe the razor on a dry high quality car wash sponge in-between passes. After done wipe with tissue and alcohol and strop.

I rinse the blade frequently while I shave, but for my face I just re-lather and keep going. I rinse off my razor after I finish, and then immediately use bathroom tissue to dry the blade and scales. I then rinse my face off and finish my routine by stropping on felt or linen to make sure the edge is clean and dry before re-racking my straight.
I have never had corroding issues on my blades doing this, and my face seems to not really care one way or another in regards to my rinsing routine:)

I strop my blade across a damp sponge when needed to clean it during a shave. I wet my face between passes before I relather. When I am finished shaving the blade gets a rinse under running water, is wiped dry and between the scales also, stropped about 10 times on linen and laid out open for a few hours to dry. Then put away.

Bob

I am in the popular habit of wiping the soap from my razor on my wrist/arm and wash off when I rinse my face between passes.
If I were to worry about water on my razor it could be easily wiped between passes with a towel which is usually around my waist.
I don't believe there is anything in writing about the necessity of rinsing between passes but I can't imagine a second or third pass without hydrating between each.

I used to, but not any more. Now its usually wash/WTG/WTG/ATG/rinse.

I am pretty minimalist for most shaves. I just lather for each pass and then rinse after. I have no water shortages either, it's just the way I dooo's it!

I never rinse my face between passes. I see no need to. As far as the razor is concerned I always rinse it under a stream of water. I've had no issues with rust but I'm careful with drying.

As you can see, there are many ways to skin a cat (maybe not the best phrase to use for this subject matter).

I personally rinse the blade under a stream of water always angling the toe down so the water runs away from the pivot. Once the vast majority of the lather/hair is rinsed away I wipe the blade dry with a very soft short nap microfiber. I can usually shave half of my face or neck before seeing the need to rinse the lather.

After each pass, I set the razor on a small washcloth size folded up towel on the counter as far away from the sink as possible, then rinse my face (never tried not rinsing, but may experiment).

After the shave, I strop 15 laps on cotton, then 30 laps on leather followed by an alcohol wipedown. The last step is wiping the pivot and between the scales with a folded piece of toilet paper before storing open in my razor/brush stand on the counter until the next shave. Overkill? Maybe, but I enjoy the ritual and have never had a problem with rust despite living 10 feet from saltwater here in FL.:D

I rinse my face between lathers. It helps remove leftover cream film, and gives me a clean start. The razor is placed down on a towel while I rinse. I also rinse my razor during shaving to clean it off. I am not afraid of getting my razor wet while wet-shaving. After the shave I dry the razor with some tissue paper, folding it to dry between the scales.

This technique has been working for me for several years now with no problem.

Great feedback thanks. I am going nuts waiting for Xmas and it will be tough doing only one area of my face at a time until I get proficient but I am committed to taking it slow. Seeing people cutting themselves and rust/cell rot threads is making me a little apprehensive while I wait.

If you ever get to St. Louis, look me up for some shaving and honing instruction.

Happy Holidays,

Lynn

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Originally Posted by gflight

Great feedback thanks. I am going nuts waiting for Xmas and it will be tough doing only one area of my face at a time until I get proficient but I am committed to taking it slow. Seeing people cutting themselves and rust/cell rot threads is making me a little apprehensive while I wait.

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Never fear the shave. As your expertise grows you will marvel at how well you are shaving and how great you look.

For fun make up lathers and apply them to your face. Then use a butter knife to pretend to shave while doing WTG according to your face map.

Getting the lather making down will go a long way in your shaving knowledge growth.

I tend to find, as a person with sensitive skin, that the after care that I get from a soap is better if I don't rinse in between passes. If I have a large amount of dry soap then I may gently wipe my face with a hot damp flannel, but it's all voodoo really. You will find over time what does and doesn't suit your face

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Originally Posted by gflight

Great feedback thanks. I am going nuts waiting for Xmas and it will be tough doing only one area of my face at a time until I get proficient but I am committed to taking it slow. Seeing people cutting themselves and rust/cell rot threads is making me a little apprehensive while I wait.

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Waiting can cause cell rot.

No Doubt...

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Originally Posted by Damo

I tend to find, as a person with sensitive skin, that the after care that I get from a soap is better if I don't rinse in between passes. If I have a large amount of dry soap then I may gently wipe my face with a hot damp flannel, but it's all voodoo really. You will find over time what does and doesn't suit your face

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Same for me. I like to leave all that goodness on my sensitive skin till I'm ready for alum. For me the dry soap re-hydrates with application of fresh lather. As my lather making improves and my shaving skills improve I having less dry lather.

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Originally Posted by Lynn

If you ever get to St. Louis, look me up for some shaving and honing instruction.

Happy Holidays,

Lynn

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If you want your very best opportunity for a great start, take Lynn up on his offer.

I most definitely plan to take him up on the offer. I have already met oldblades and cleared up some misconseptions I had and I'm hoping the Missouri and neighboring folks will have a get together at some point. After my Xmas carving of my face with my new straight of course...

I rinse, not between every pass, but I do. This may seem odd, but it works for me so I will continue to do it, I apply cooking oil to the blade. Have been rust free, never had any set in since I've started doing that. Just a random idea.

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Originally Posted by Ciarad

I rinse, not between every pass, but I do. This may seem odd, but it works for me so I will continue to do it, I apply cooking oil to the blade. Have been rust free, never had any set in since I've started doing that. Just a random idea.

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I used to do that too, in the form of olive oil dissolved in isopropanol. My rationale was that the alcohol would help to evaporate water and the olive oil would be left behind as a thin coating to protect the blade. The only problem was that olive and other cooking oils actually are fats (triglycerides) that break down and become acidic and corrosive to steel. After that simple epiphany I switched to simply wiping my blades with a very light coating of food grade mineral oil. It is available in all pharmacies and drug stores as it is used as an intestinal lubricant (constipation aid) so that should help you find it. One bottle for a couple bucks should last the rest of your life.

I put tyvek type rag (blue workshop paper towels would work) wadded up into a plastic mustard jar and then pour in about a teaspoon of the oil. Wait a day and put another wadded up rag on top of the first one. The top one draws up just a small amount of the oil but in time it becomes uniformly distributed in it and this is what I use to wipe my blades after shaving. I change the rag whenever I think it needs it, which ends up being once every couple of years and even for that duration the rag is still transferring a very light coating of oil onto each blade.

I've also found tufcloth does the trick too. If it works on my guns, it'll work on my razors

I like the workshop paper towel idea too! 😃 good love the wealth of forum knowledge

It depends on how dry my lather is, if I think it is a bit dry I will wet my face between passes.
As for my razor, I strop off the lather on my forearm and just wipe the dregs off on a towel then strop. The only time my razor comes into contact directly with water is if I am honing or I notice a patch of hair after I have rinsed off my last lather.

I always rinse between passes, just seems natural. Helps remove any dried cream or stray hairs, and re-hydrates the face for the next application of cream/soap.

I used to run the razor under water, did get a few specs of rust but I didn't care for the lather and whiskers drying in clumps on my towel so I now wipe the blade with the cushy pad of my Palm below my thumb and rinse my hand, the towel stays clean and so does my razor.

Also I like to splash alittle water between passes because it gives mea good spot check that I can feel my fave and see how I'm doing. Mainly I think just male sure you wipe well when you're done, strop alittle, and let your scales dry before closing it.

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Originally Posted by gflight

Currently I am rinsing between passes and using my DE. I have no idea where to move the straight razor, towel, etc and the items in order for them to keep any resemblance of dryness in my small shaving den (half-bathroom 4X5). In other words it will be a pain to do so and knowing me if the items are in there they WILL get splashed.

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I too have a small bathroom and no counter space. I put a washcloth on top of the closed toilet lid and that is where I place the razor while lathering. I use that washcloth for wiping off my blade in order to keep the blade dry. My razors never get near water.

I don't "rinse", but I sometimes splash some water in drier areas before I re-lather...depends on the soap and my speed. Sometimes I need all the help I can get.

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Originally Posted by Utopian

I too have a small bathroom and no counter space. I put a washcloth on top of the closed toilet lid and that is where I place the razor while lathering. I use that washcloth for wiping off my blade in order to keep the blade dry. My razors never get near water.

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My shaving shelf is above the toilet so I close the lid anyway to keep items out by accident. Forgot they gave me more table top[emoji106]

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Originally Posted by gflight

My shaving shelf is above the toilet so I close the lid anyway to keep items out by accident. Forgot they gave me more table top[emoji106]

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That's what I did/do. I was able to enlarge the small work space above the sink with a board and inexpensive board shelves above the toilet. Gave me enough room to practice some RAD and rations. ;)

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