Thread: Rust on pin

Hi, I am new to straights and have meticulously dried my razor after every use. I blow on the scales to remove any water. I dry the blade on a towel. And then strop on linen 25X.

Today I noticed a tiny bit of rust between the scales where the pin is. I moved the blade in every direction and removed as much as I could. There is still some left.

How can I remove this rust without removing pin? How can I prevent this from happening again? Is this even a big deal?

Thanks for any advice.

Oil will help as long as there ins not moisture trapped under the oil. I work very hard at not getting my hinge pin area wet and dry my scales very carefully with folded toilet paper after every shave. Some guy use mineral oil suspended in alcohol to dry and lube those areas.

Piece of string or razor blade or something thin worked back and forth a lot will get a lot of it out but to really clean out rust you have to unpin. Good luck. And keep it dry.

I always do as RezDog has said. Thoroughly dry everything with TP and then I finish with 20 or so rpunds on a linen strop. After this I leave my razor on the bedside table for the day before storing it until it comes round in the rotation again. Obviously if you have children around leaving your razor out is not a good idea, but that's my routine and I haven't had any problems so far. I don't use oil but then my razors are never unused for more than a few days at a time.

Good luck and I hope you sort it out without too much trouble.

I too do what the precious posters do, try not to get any water in the scales or the pin area. I always dry my hands before holding the razor.

Thanks for the tips gents. I think I am going to shoot some WD40 and work a string in there. I will keep in mind not to get it wet.

My recipe for protecting razors is a 50/50 mixture of 91% isopropyl rubbing alcohol and a non-toxic lubricant. If 91% alcohol is not available in your area, you can use 70%, but the 91% is much better as it does a better job of removing moisture.

For the lubricant, I use Ultra Lube which is a non-toxic penetrating oil. Other may use Ballistol, a non-toxic gun cleaner/lubricant. Other oils like mineral oil or cammelia oil can be used, but they do not have the same cleaning/penetrating properties of Ultra Lube or Ballistol.

When you apply the mixture, the alcohol helps remove moisture from the blade and pivot pin. Then the lubricant penetrates to clean and protect the steel.

When applying any oil to the pivot area, be careful to apply it only to the area between the scales. Some types of scales may be discolored or damaged by the oil, so keep it away from the outside of the scales.

I do have some Remington gun oil/cleaner. It had a small red straw, perfect for small spaces

Originally Posted by azgabe

I do have some Remington gun oil/cleaner. It had a small red straw, perfect for small spaces

REM oil may work. For use on firearms, some people love it and some people hate it. It is a very thin oil, similar to mineral oil. Although Remington claims the oil displaces water, it really floats on top of water, just like mineral oil would do.

These are all great ideas. You mentioned blowing between the scales to remove any water. I handle that by keep paper towels under the sink, tearing off a strip and then running that between the scales.

Also, you may want to consider a stainless steel razor in the future. This would definitely be a good idea if you live in a very moist area like New Orleans or in a place with a lot of salt in the air. You are in AZ, the last sentence probably doesn't apply