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How do you take care of shaving razors?

nemo

Lunatic Fringe
Staff member
I do what my dad and grandfather did ... loosen, rinse, and set back in the cupboard to dry. It's worked OK for my 50 years of shaving.

Sometimes I'll gently wipe the razor when I place it back in the display cabinet and choose another, but only when necessary.
 
TTO - dishwashing liquid and a soft toothbrush for cleaning;
Wipe it with a microfibre cloth;
Out of the bathroom -> leave it open to dry overnight;
Back in the cabinet.

Disassembling razors - well... I disassemble every piece, then I repeat the same routine for each piece.




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When I change the blade I first smear a film of petroleum jelly over the razor head inside and out. A couple of razors I use regularly are homemade in part or in whole from mild steel. After each use I blow through the razor from one end to expel water between the blade and the top cap or baseplate. I do this with my Merkur 23C, too, because I think I did something that chipped the chrome plating on the baseplate and exposed a tiny bit of zamac. I think the petroleum jelly may protect the zamac from contact with water. I do blot rhe razor with a soft towel.
 

Fred D

Member of The Illiterati
I never use oil. After the shave I disassemble the razor and rinse all the parts in warm running water while using my fingers to wipe away soap scum. After, I use a microfiber cloth to dry and polish the parts, shake out any water left in the handle opening and leave the pieces on a suitable cloth on the counter until the next shave.
Same here, just like my grandfather taught me 50 years ago when I was still too young to shave yet. 😁
 
I clean my everyday, and flip the blade. Use a cue tip to get water 💦 out of the internal threads, wipe the whole razor down with lint free cloth , reassemble and put away for next day.
 

Tirvine

ancient grey sweatophile
After shaving I put it on the counter. If it looks scuzzy when I change blades, I towel it off to remove the offending scuzz. I devote about six minutes a day to shaving, seven on blade changing day.
 

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
I live in a pretty dry place. My usual routine after finishing a shave is to disassemble and thoroughly rinse the razor, rinse/wash the blade (I flip them every use), pat dry and put the pieces on a towel beside the sink to finish drying. Every Saturday morning I will go in and clean the Shave Cave, which includes a soap and toothbrush scrub of the razor preparatory to either another week of use or letting it dry and putting it away clean.

With two-piece razors I prefer to take them apart as well. Fasans -- or at least my Fasan -- did not have retainer rings like Merkur so they're easy. With my Merkurs I gently remove the retainer ring and keep it with the razor. I disassemble them completely, rinse and air-dry. Even my Merkur 37 that's about as old as I am still looks pretty good.

I don't generally oil but have no real philosophical objection to it.

O.H.
 
After every shave, I rinse and disassemble the razor. I then place the too plate, baseplate, and blade on a clean towel, which I the fold over and use to pat dry all the parts. I also dry out my the threads in the handle by inserting a twisted bit of toilet paper into the hole and spinning it around a bit.

Before reassembling the razor, I lubricate the threads on the razor head with a drop or two beard oil (it came as part of a set with shaving cream and after balm).

Once a month, I will also clean everything with a little rubbing alcohol before reassembling.
 
I personally rinse it well, blow off excess water then do an alcohol dip with it to chase any water left away.
When it's time to blade change I use an old toothbrush and dish soap to clean all parts, then dry and install new blade.
The alcohol helps for some stainless blades to still not rust. Also works well for carbon steel blades
 
I use a bowl with warm water to get the soap off the blade in between strokes and when the shave is done, I move the razor with the head dipped in that bowl rapidly back and forth, which is very efficient. Slick, great lather always comes off residue-free. Finally I simply rinse it a bit to clean it from that soapy-hairy water and lay it down to dry.

Never do I rinse my razors disassembled, because as long as the handle is tightened to the head the thread is sealed and so protected from dirt and water. I see no need to lubricate clean threads.

The only dedicated maintenance I perform is once or twice a year to clean them disassembled in an ultrasonic bath, which removes any whatsoever dirt and any chalk from hard water completely.
 
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on 2 instanced already, the threads on the head have corroded and snapped off. I rinse after each use, and clean every 2-3 months. Still happens. Markur Slant & DE89
 
Mostly rinse in warm water
For a tto or a pivot maybe some lube
A loaner or used one a night in some mouthwash or just detergent.
Shake them dry hang them on the wallhanger
If they are not lucky I forget the. In the sauna still no issues
 
Once a week I disassemble the razor I've been using and run through the dishwasher. I used to use an old toothbrush and Scrubbing Bubbles to clean it, but the dishwasher does a superior job with no work on my part. I've switched to stainless steel razors. Zamac razors have been a problem.
 
I used to just rinse the razor off, but my OCD took over requiring the razor to be completely cleaned of any film leftover from the lather (which always happens, how bad depends on the soap). So now I take it all apart, rinse the blade clean and place on a dry towel, then proceed to clean the razor parts with an old toothbrush and Ivory soap (which is a great cleaner btw). Once all the pieces have been dried off, I reassemble and place it on the shelf waiting for the next shave, looking like brand new. :D
 
For me it's just a few shakes and then hang it up to dry. Every once in a while if I notice a bit of soap scum or other build up i use a toothbrush and dish soap to clean that off. My razors handle that just fine. But I have and use mostly stainless and vintage brass razors. Zamak razors would probably do better with being taken apart and dried off after each use. That's a large part of the reason I don't care for zamak. I have a couple but very rarely use them.
 
I rinse well, shake, lightly towel dry, and blow as much water out from between the plates as possible with the 3 piece razors, without disassembly. (They'll get the brush treatment when changing blades). On my Gillette TTOs, I open, pull the blade, run an old brush over them, dry, and put the blade back in.

Every now and then, I toss them in the ultrasonic for a good cleaning, with the doors open, or the head/cap separated....I like them nice and shiny.
 
Through 3-piece razor cleaning

1. Disassemble your razor, and give the parts a bath in a plastic container, with a gentle dish soap, and water.

2. Take a soft tooth brush, and lightly scrub the parts down over the container. Removing each part after done cleaning it, and rinse it off under the tap with warm water. Place the part on a buffering cloth, or microfiber towel, while you continue until each part is done.

3. Use a buffering cloth to remove any left over water, and lightly buff each part down, to make it shine. Make sure you get any remaining water out of the handle, where the threads are. Giving it a good shake, or tap it on your hand, thigh, or forearm - just don't drop it!

4. Leave the parts out on a cloth (but not in your bathroom) for 1-6 hours, and reassemble. You can add a small drop or two of mineral oil USP, to the threads of the top plate. Note: This is more for piece of mind, it's not nessesary, but I do it to minimize thread wear.


Assemble the razor and put it in back it's dedicated leather pouch. If you don't want to mark up your top and bottom plate, when tightening it down with no blade in it. Then take any blade you don't care about (like a Derby), and dull the edge on both sides with a metal paper clip, running the edge over it multiple times until satisfied, then on piece of hard wood. If you do this, it won't cut into your pouch when you close it up. Do a cut test on some paper, it shouldn't be capable of cutting it!
 

never-stop-learning

Demoted To Moderator
Staff member
I disassemble my razor after each use (taking care to note blade orientation), rinse everything thoroughly, dry with my terry-cloth shaving towel, spray with Isopropynol (every 3 - 4 shaves), flip the blade and reassemble. 😎
 
After a shave I'll rinse it off and give it a quick dry. When I change out a blade I'll do a thorough clean with a toothbrush and some mild soap and give it a thorough dry, and keep it out to air dry.
 
After shaving how do you take care of shaving razor? Do you dry and use oil on the razor? I mean could it rust? I have a Merkur 34c. i am new to this kind of shaving so asking.
I always take my Rockwell 6s apart and clean it with a toothbrush every time I use it. I use a light soap to scrub it sometimes. It doesn't really take much extra time and I never have to worry about it because it's always clean.
 
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