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Black and red rust prevention.

Ok so long story short I have two straight razors that are less than a month old each. Both are dovo and exhibit signs of rust at the pivot pin. It is getting on the tang but it is not severe. There is one spot the size of a pea from black oxidation on the blade. What can I use to remove the black oxidation completely on the stainless steel. I doubt there is anything safe for the gold plated one. What can I do to stop this from happening altogether? My razors are dry to the touch but obviously not enough. Today I wash my razor and dried it then used a hair dryer to get near the pinning. My razors are stored in my closet in the bathroom. For the record our house is a steady 66 at night and 70 during the day. Are there any ready made devices that would dry the razor with heat automatically to ease along the process.
 
for future prevention:
I grabbed an alembicase to store mine in....air tight case with a spot to hold desiccant packs to absorb the moisture http://www.alembicproducts.com/

So far I've been good about not getting water in the hinge, but I always blow it out just in case after I'm done. A quick dip in alcohol after use could help evaporate anything left over on it
 
The problem is water getting in the pivot. As your skills improve you will learn to keep the pivot and scales dry. To get the rust out use dental floss and Maas polish to buff inside there. Its that or unpin it.
 
Step one is to keep water off. I wipe lather and whiskers off between my forefinger and thumb, rinse my fingers and dry them and then proceed with the shave. Quick and clean and keeps the blade dry.

Stop two is to oil the blade after use. Strop to create friction and hasten evaporation and then oil. Others will chime in with other rust preventatives.

Heating to dry is a mixed bag. Heating will also speed up the rusting for the interval before the water is gone.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Seems like an impossibility, but you can keep your hands and razor dry by careful rinsing and wiping your hands dry. The pivot, sandwiched as it is between the scales, is subject to capillary action, where water just gets sucked in there quicker than a fat kid eats cake :). After a while the caution becomes second nature and is no longer a hassle.
 
I don't worry about water in the pivot area. I dip the razor in alcohol to dissipate the water that gets trapped in there.
 
Would Maas be safe for the Pearlex at the pivot area where it has gold plating? I've heard the black oxidation is from the soap so I purposely rinsed it out real good after realizing I did get soap there last night. I am thinking about using a can of air to blow the water out after use and then use rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle to dry it quicker. I don't think a hair dryer is really a feasible idea everyday.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Not sure about Maas, but Flitz took the gold off the tang of my Schumate pretty easily, so I would be careful at first.
 
Canned air is not a good idea. It is so cold that it will cause condensation and moisture buildup, especially in the relatively warm, moist environment of the bathroom.
You'll blow off the large drops, and create a "fog" on the tang.
 
I dont my blades after every use but every so often add a bit of oil in the hinge area as a preventative.
 
I don't have any experience from straight razors (just getting started), but I do use a product called tuf-glide on my knives. Its an lubricate that protects against rust but I'm not sure how it may react to the scales. I haven't had any issues with the product but I also cant guarantee it since I use it mainly on knives that see a lot of use.

For my DE razors, I just tip them in a container with alcohol. It helps to remove any remains water.
 
OK, so today I re-honed one of my razors and my father brought over some Filz after I finished. I ended up using a Q-tip on it and I was able to remove the spot. The marking on the tang were to minimal to risk the gold so I had no strong urge to do so. It was a pain to wash off the Filz with-out getting any on the gold but I believe I was able to do it. I had to be even more careful because I had already honed it and did not want to get any near the edge.
 
Almost a month later and I wanted to make sure this thread got an update. It has been almost a month since I started checking to make sure I got no water / lather in the pin area. Being careful while rinsing the blade has allowed me to keep it dry. I do still use the alcohol in a spray bottle post shave and have had 0 occurrences with rust.
 
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