Are "all" blades today stainless steel?

I'm wondering because i ordered a Feather razor and the instructions say to only use stainless blades in them.

Thanks,
Steve

Nope, there are still some Carbon Steel Blades avalible out there...

Thanks Dalejr!

There are indeed carbon steel blades as well though there are not many of those anymore. When you bought the stainless Feather razor the statement is probably just there to prevent oxidation claims for (possible) stains from carbon steel blades. Apart from that I do not see a reason to avoid those blades; you like them or you don't but they will agree with your razor without any problem.

Thank you talibeard - i haven't actually received the razor, just ordered it, but in my reading online "they" said (i think it was the actual Feather company) that you should ONLY use stainless blades. And, yes, as you said, it is because of oxidation.

Thank you!

Don't leave any blade in your razor. If you want to re-use your blades, take the blade out carefully, pat it dry, and put it in a safe place. Even very high quality stainless steel blades can rust in short order and will stain chrome plating or your fancy all stainless razor.

Thanks cvac - the Feather site said the same thing and i was planning to ask the experts here about that. I read another thread here and some do leave their blades in and some don't. I'm not going to take the chance - just going to take the blade out each time. Thanks again!

cvac said:

Don't leave any blade in your razor. If you want to re-use your blades, take the blade out carefully, pat it dry, and put it in a safe place. Even very high quality stainless steel blades can rust in short order and will stain chrome plating or your fancy all stainless razor.

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I have never had a stainless blade rust and never taken it out of a razor either.

I never bothered to take my blades out. The only thing I ever manage to have to clean out of my razors is accumulated soap scum. I usually average a blade a week and a cleaning bi weekly.

I would like to see a stainless steel blade that has gotten rust on it during normal use.

Removing SS blades after each shave seems counterproductive to me. For one thing, you're increasing your risk of cutting yourself each time you handle a blade. Secondly, blade manufacturers recommend not wiping a blade; probably because you could end up removing the various coatings and plating that help provide a smooth shave. I've never seen a SS blade rust while in a razor, at least not in normal usage.

Kilroy, SyntheticBadger, Larry - Thank you for your replies.

I'm more worried about my razor getting "stained" than the blade. Stainless steel can rust depending on the grade of stainless but i'm guessing that the case here wouldn't be a problem. Still since i dropped $179 on this beautiful instrument i'm being overly ADD about it.

Somewhere i read that Feather recommends removing the blade after each shave and patting it dry. I agree that you may cut yourself and you have to find a safe place to store the blade. Luckily no kids at home any more...

On another thread i was surprised to see that many do remove their blades after shaving and many don't.

The waiting game is still on - placed my order for the razor with WCS yesterday.

I've always left any blade in the razor until its time to change it. Never had any problems at all doing that.

Dalejr said:

Nope, there are still some Carbon Steel Blades avalible out there...

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+1

I remove my blades and dry them, then return them to the razor. I have never had a problem.

The Feather is different than other razors, being stainless steel instead of brass.
I couldn't explain the chemistry, but blades CAN stain/rust the Feather if left in.

Thanks Paul, Sledge and Chris - My reason for the original post was the Feather recommends only stainless blades (perhaps to promote their own?).

The Feather is different than other razors, being stainless steel instead of brass.
I couldn't explain the chemistry, but blades CAN stain/rust the Feather if left in.

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Per Chris's post above I think i'll be conservative and remove the blade.