Thread: How to....??

How do you stop a brown patina from devolping on a new carbon razor tang?I have a new Dovo BQ and in 7 months of use and oiling with camilla I've hade to repolish the tang 3 times to remove my finger prints in brown patina.Do you think Ren wax would work better?Blued guns end up naked and brown in my hands,thus all my carry guns are stainless,aluminium or plastic.I have been using a gun polishing cloth to take the brown off,but I'd love to stop it forming in the first place!

Hi there,

I had the same issue and have been told that this is probably due to microscopic soap residue and oils from your skin. The advice I received was to clean with blade with alcohol after use. I've only been using the alcohol thing for the last 3 days so I can't vouch for it but I think it's worth a try.

Regards,

Ash

Some people just have corrosive sweat and must take care with carbon steels or as you mentioned, go stainless. Soaps and oils can cause issues as well so each person needs to find out what their personal issue is. A friend of mine had the same issue with gun blueing and nothing short of wearing rubber gloves fixed it. It only took a couple weeks to wear the blue off any carbon steel gun he had, they where easy to spot thats for sure lol.

Ren Wax may help but you would have to keep up the layer as you will wear it off rather quickly, but not as fast as oils.

Persistence. My father rusts everything he touches because of the grime associated with his career. It absorbs into his skin and slowly releases. We just keep reminding him to clean and oil his guns on a regular basis. He doesn't shave with a straight, but if he did I would suggest a good wipe down after a shave and coating with a wax based protectant.
Remember, owning a stainless razor doesn't mean it won't oxidize.

At the risk of ridicule , and the possibility of becoming a pariah ; I would advise that you don't worry about the patina . It's normal for carbon steel to have a patina . This patina actually protects it from rust , as long as the blade is properly cared for . It's a common practice to induce this patina on carbon steel knives , by slicing the blade through a lemon , or other acidic fruit , and then rinsing the blade off and drying it .

I do so love this place - so many points of view - discussed in a civil manner.

You may just have corrosive sweat - not much you can do about that I suppose - just more care when handling metal

Thanks for all the ideas guys.I would not be concerned with patina,but the color is brown instead of grey like my othe two razors.It looks to me like the start of rust,otherwise I'd let it go.So I guess wax will be the next thing to try or maybe Tuf-Glide.

Have you ever tried Flitz polish . I've been using it for years , and I think it's the best stuff I've ever used . Not only will it remove rust without hurting the finish , it also leaves a protective coating on the metal . It also works great on guns ,too . It will remove rust , without hurting the bluing . If you can't find it where you live , you can get it from Welcome to FLITZ USA! : Flitzusa.com, Flitz Metal Plastic and Fiberglass Polish! . BTW , I don't sell Flitz , and I'm not connected to the company , in any way . I just think it's a great product .

Originally Posted by dave5225

Have you ever tried Flitz polish . I've been using it for years , and I think it's the best stuff I've ever used . Not only will it remove rust without hurting the finish , it also leaves a protective coating on the metal . It also works great on guns ,too . It will remove rust , without hurting the bluing . If you can't find it where you live , you can get it from Welcome to FLITZ USA! : Flitzusa.com, Flitz Metal Plastic and Fiberglass Polish! . BTW , I don't sell Flitz , and I'm not connected to the company , in any way . I just think it's a great product .

Agreed. Flitz is tremendous and a tube lasts forever, moderately priced. Renaissance wax seems pricey -- but there's enough in one little tin to wax about 20,000,000 razors (maybe). Surprisingly durable, works on nearly anything. I think I might have waxed my cat earlier.

Ahhh... "patina". Reminds me of the pasta ads on the old Sgt. Bilko show -- "EEE-yah... pas-TEEN-ah!"

Which also reminds me of Jimmy Smit's line on Tuesday night's season-premiere of "Sons of Anarchy", in which he says to Gemma: "I like a little patina on my precious metal."