I think I saw a video where razors were being revamped, and they just put a couple of drops of mineral oil down the TTO hatch. If a razor needs a severe cleaning episode, I usually soak in Dawn, use my Ultra sonic machine, the whitening toothpaste, as you mentioned, and finally a polishing cloth.Olive Oil work as good as anything, plus it is food additive, so it is not going to hurt you. Polishing is simple as a little whitening toothpaste on toothbrush to make shiny, and remove soap scum.