Loosen or not to loosen?

Some of the instructions for vintage razors say to loosen the blade after using the razor, presumably to aid in drying. Other vintage razor instructions are silent on this issue.

My guess is loosening the head is for the older razors when carbon steel blades that were prone to rust were the norm. But in more recent years with modern stainless blades there is no need to loosen the head and the blade to facilitate drying.

What is your take on all this? Or is it better to always loosen the razor's head after use to aid in getting ride of residual moisture, regardless of the type of blade?

I've done both and noticed no difference in the shave or condition of the blade. Of course if you take the razor apart and wipe it and the blade down it will look better but I haven't found it to work any better.

I think your assessment of carbon vs stainless blades likely to be accurate. Carbon steel + moisture = rust (and this does not take long).

I always loosen the blade, but this is just a habit. I do not know if it really makes any difference.

My take is the same as yours, Steve. I don't loosen my razors.

After I finish shaving, I rinse my razor and blade, remove the blade and wipe it with my shaving towel, I reassemble the razor--leaving it slightly loose. I then dip the entire head, and blade in rubbing alcohol--I read on this forum, that alcohol removes water, and of course sanitizes the razor's parts. This practice has worked well for sometime. I also cork the blade strop the blade on a microfiber cloth after before the alcohol dip.

I'm not certain it makes much if any difference.
I do take my three piece razors apart to dry them and the blade.
I got into the drying habit with my straight razors.

Loosen the head if it's Zamak, that stuff will deform under constant tension.

I always figured you loosened the blade so that the hot water post-shave rinse would clean out all of the parts.

Saxonbowman said:

I always figured you loosened the blade so that the hot water post-shave rinse would clean out all of the parts.

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+1

BlackBard said:

I always loosen the blade, but this is just a habit. I do not know if it really makes any difference.

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Me too!

just rinse, shake, wipe and hang with my 2 and 3 piece razors. They then get a full clean when I replace the blade I tend to take a little more care of my Gillette adjustables though...I'll remove the blade and rinse the blade and wash the razor inside and out. then dry with a soft cloth and replace the blade with the doors open for a while. If I'm in a hurry I might forgo that ritual.

I also dunk n swirl my razor in a small jar of alcohol to dry it. I normally don't loosen the head unless I'm storing the razor or I can't get it rinsed out otherwise.

This B/B thread discusses this topic at at length.......

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...emove-the-blade-from-the-razor-between-shaves