Silicone Grease to prevent rust around the pin

Hi Guys,

Well, I'm no restoration experty, but I have been using a Sheffield razor that I restored for about a month now as my daily shaver.

I removed the scales when I restored the blade as there was some pitting to get clean and polished up.

I then reassembled the razor with a M2.5 stainless screw and nut and 4 washers. Seemed to be working great. However being the newb that I am I didn't add any kind of oil etc when I reassembled. I noticed that I got some rust in there in about a week. :cry:

So I pulled it apart again, cleaned it up and added some light machine oil that I had. Seemed to work great. However I was concerned that it would eventually evaporate.

Tonight I replaced it with a generous smeer of clear Silicone grease.

I work in the electronics industry, and it is used there. I also have seen it used in optics like binoculars. I expect that it will last a long long time as it doesn't evaporate and it is compatible with most plastics that I know of so is pretty harmless.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? Thought I would share the idea and see what you experts thinks.

Cheers,
Ash

It won't hurt the blade or pins, but it may interact with the scales. The old black hard rubber, Bakelite, Wood, Horn and Bone may discolor or degrade if soaked in grease. What I do before repinning is degrease to remove all oils and sweat, then put on a coat of Jigaloo (dry lube). Tuffglide would be a good alternative as well.

I know Traveller nickel plates his, but we can't all have the cool toys :(

If I may add a comment on rust and corrosion. There is a product that I have been using for years that is made for corrosion and rust. It is "Corrosion X" and bonds with metals and stops rust. It can be sprayed on Aluminium in a saltwater environment and it will not corrode. It is not toxic and is inert to most materials. It is really an exceptional product.

Disclaimer; I do not own stock or are otherwise affiliated with "Corrosion X" in fact I wish I did own stock because the number of people that I have shown this product and love it is in the hundreds.


Richard Adams

The scales that I have I consider sacrificial. They are pretty messed up already. I think that they are celluloid, but I'm not certain.

I tried the Si Grease because it was sitting on my desk. This is pretty cool stuff. I'll leave it in place for a month and report back if there are any issues with it. I don't expect that it will cause any.

I would rather not modify the original blade (it has survived 100+ years like it is) so plating is out :), but a good suggestion.

If it works, then there is another option for others to use if they want.

Cheers,
Ash.

I use Tuf-Glide as it also bonds to metal. But I rarely get my razor wet beyond the blade. I find keeping that keeping water away from the pivot area helps a lot towards preventing rust.