Guide to maintaining your straight razor

Mark

Mark

Ze Honemeisterer
Artisan Producer
Joined
Nov 25, 2014
Location
Sydney, Australia
I have put some tips together on looking after your precious hardware, ie. Straight Razors
Feel free to post any questions or opinions based on your experience.

- It is recommended that you strop your razor (20 laps or so) after your shave to remove any moisture or dead skin cells from the edge to prevent pitting or corrosion, this will prolong the life of your edge, give it another 20 laps before the next shave to ensure that the edge stays aligned. No pressure or speed is required on the strop.

- After your shave, carefully wipe the razor clean with a towel and oil the blade to prevent rust. (clipper oil, mineral oil or machine oil works well)

- When opening or closing the blade, be very careful so that the cutting edge does not touch the scales so use both hands watch it carefully and watch your fingers, in other words do not treat it like a pocket knife.

- Do NOT cut anything but your own hair to test sharpness as a freshly honed or sharp edge is very delicate and could easily be damaged, the best way to test a razor is to simply shave with it. (hair from your brush is a no no)

- It is very common for gents to accidentally bang the edge when putting the razor down or while rinsing it in the sink, be cautious of that too. If you drop your razor, don't try to catch it, let it go, it's not worth it! Otherwise, treat it like a baby.

- Most importantly, the edges are SHARP so don't leave them where the little ones can get their sticky fingers on them. Store them in a dry place. NOT in the bathroom
 
Not sure who invited you here @Mark , (actually who was responsible?) but I can say with complete confidence that none before you has presented such the temptation to try straights. Even this very cautionary tale, betraying the work and attention needed to wield a cut-throat, makes me want to take to my tender face with a very unsafe (from a barred perspective) piece of sharp metal. Also doesn't help that there is nothing sexier to my eye than a kamisori.

Great tips here and I look forward to the longer narrative that will come from your (hopefully) prolonged stay here mate.
 
stillshunter said:
Not sure who invited you here @Mark , (actually who was responsible?) but I can say with complete confidence that none before you has presented such the temptation for the more squeamish of us to try straights. Even this very cautionary tale, betraying the work and attention needed to wield a cut-throat, makes me want to take to my tender face with a very unsafe (from a barred perspective) piece of sharp metal. Also doesn't help that there is nothing sexier to my eye than a kamisori.

Great tips here and I look forward to the longer narrative that will come from your (hopefully) prolonged stay here mate.
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Thanks @stillshunter. Thought I'd share them here so that maybe someone will benefit from it. Who said anything about dangerous? It's great fun. Anyone can learn, benefit and enjoy the experience. I'm just waiting for you and another 100 blokes to crack. Trust me it will happen. :)
 
Damm Mark, if you keep this I'll be forced to consider getting a sraight.

I've been happily convincing myself that it was too compilcated and confusing for me
 
Mark said:
Thanks @stillshunter. Thought I'd share them here so that maybe someone will benefit from it. Who said anything about dangerous? It's great fun. Anyone can learn, benefit and enjoy the experience. I'm just waiting for you and another 100 blokes to crack. Trust me it will happen. :)
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I'm enjoying it so far. Plenty of fun and so far easier than I thought. It's a new skill so it takes time to learn. But with $35 honed, shave-ready razor and strop you're all set to start.

Do you sell strops @Mark? How much?
 
StueyB said:
Damm Mark, if you keep this I'll be forced to consider getting a sraight.

I've been happily convincing myself that it was too compilcated and confusing for me
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I will certainly keep at it @StueyB. Trust me, it is not complicated at all. There's a small learning curve for stropping and shaving with one but you'll be kicking yourself for not starting earlier. @filobiblic has a razor from me and it's his 4th day and he's not far from hitting the nail on the head. DO IT! :)
 
All up, it's just like learning a new skill set. A challenge that has its rewards in the long run... (More razors to collect! [emoji13])

Edit: moved Stropping comment to relevant thread.
 
filobiblic said:
I'm enjoying it so far. Plenty of fun and so far easier than I thought. It's a new skill so it takes time to learn. But with $35 honed, shave-ready razor and strop you're all set to start.

Do you sell strops @Mark? How much?
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Yes I do @filobiblic at $35 each. They're made in Germany, I have a strop maker there that supplies me with them, they're a 16.5" x 2". Only 2 left as we speak. More on the way.
 
Mark said:
Yes I do @filobiblic at $35 each. They're made in Germany, I have a strop maker there that supplies me with them, they're a 16.5" x 2". Only 2 left as we speak. More on the way.
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Sounds better quality than the cheaper one I got (and paid more for as well!). Perfect for starting on...
 
stillshunter said:
You still got your JGS roo strop mate?
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Yep. But using the cheapie first. I've heard too many stories about cut strops... Really, it's just to clean, warm up and "align" the edge. You could actually use paper or material... But leather is the best. I'm just going to stick with the small, thin one for now until I get it down pat.
 
@Mark what is your experience/opinion of kangaroo strops and the different stone qualities, such as zulu grey v shapton v belgium yellow stones ?
 
borked said:
@Mark what is your experience/opinion of kangaroo strops and the different stone qualities, such as zulu grey v shapton v belgium yellow stones ?
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Funny that, I don't have a Roo strop yet but I have tanned roo hide coming on the way so I could put a strop together but I will let you know when I receive it.

The nats and synthetic stones are 2 different animals. I've never used a Zulu. I don't have a belgian coticule either because I've never liked the edges off them, I felt like they needed a bit more, It's a big hit and miss with Coticules because most of them are rated between the 5-8k even down to 3-4k, you'll be the luckiest person alive to score one around the 10k level, although their edges are comfortable but not very crisp, I've sent one out to get honed on a coti (wont mention who) after the third shave it was painful so I killed the edge and put my own edge on it, in saying that, some swear by them YMMV. My go to naturals are Jnats, Purple LM and the Apache Strata which I have been quite impressed with, and a few others on the way.

I use the Shapton pro almost daily, I find that they're a very hard hone which I prefer and they're very fast cutters and don't clog up. Reason for that is because they're ceramic magnesium based compared to say... Naniwa SS which is resin based. I would highly recommend the Shapton pro in a synthetic hone setup and the price tag isn't bad at all imo.
 
So a mineral oil? I have a container of "3-in-one" which is petroleum based but when I wiped it onto the blade, it sat up into beads. Like water does on a waxed surface. What oil do you use @Mark ?

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Sxot said:
So a mineral oil? I have a container of "3-in-one" which is petroleum based but when I wiped it onto the blade, it sat up into beads. Like water does on a waxed surface. What oil do you use @Mark ?

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To be honest I use whatever is laying around as long as it's non toxic and non harmful to steels. Lately camelia oil, clipper oil or a big can of INOX seems to do a great job.
 
I tried some baby oil today. It beaded up too. Must be the polishing compound @Mark has used I guess.
 
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