Naked Armor

Published by Naked Armor

Rust in your straight razor can make it dull rapidly and cause you a lot of discomfort

It is always best to prepare before the storm comes, than to be hassled by fixing all its ruins. So, as much as possible, do all the means there are to protect your razor from rust. The most effective method is cleaning it properly. There are two simple ways to prevent yours from rusting.

First is to clean it after every use. Cleaning could involve simply rinsing the blade to remove all the hair, shaving cream, dead skin, and all the other materials that could have attached to it while shaving. Also, it is important that after rinsing, the razor should be dried with a clean rag and make sure to remove all the moisture before keeping it.

Second is to keep the razor away from major sources of moisture such as the bathroom. However, it is not always a guarantee that if you do not put it in the bathroom, it would not rust; especially if the place you chose is high in humidity.

After rinsing your straight razor, make sure to wipe it with a clean rag in order to remove all moisture

Despite having a razor made from high-quality materials and maintained properly through stropping and honing, wet shaving still makes it inevitable to rust. That is why proper caring should also be applied to make it last for life.

Aside from the two suggested measures above-mentioned, applying oil on the blade after using and leaving it there until your next usage is also a way. You just have to make sure that before you apply the oil, you have removed all the moisture because if you apply it when the blade is still wet, you are merely locking the moisture in the blade and thus may still trigger the metal to oxidize.

Another great protector of your blades from rust is balm. Balms, like oil, when applied after the razor is thoroughly dry, may preserve the blade until your next usage. This is true especially if the balm that you are using is pure and is free from any chemicals which may be harmful to your razors and, in turn, to your face.

Naked Armor's Beard to Blade Balm can protect not just your blade, but your face and beard as well

Lemon. It has been considered to be one of the best natural cleaners because of its natural acid contents. The acidity of the lemon is able to break down iron oxide or rust.

• First, the blade has to be submerged in half of a lemon extract or juice for 30 seconds to one minute. If you have a razor with wood as its handle, it would be better not to include the handle;
• After that, the other half of the lemon will be sprinkled with sea salt and that will be used to scrub off the rust spots in the blade; and
• When all the rust spots are gone, rinse thoroughly in running water and dry it off completely before keeping.

Lemon is considered one of the best
natural cleaners

White vinegar. Vinegar has also been widely known to be a good cleaning agent. It is more effective when salt is added because the latter increases the potency of the vinegar’s acidity making it capable of removing rust.

• First, the blade has to be submerged in vinegar for 30 seconds to one minute. If you have a razor with wood as its handle, it would be better not to include the handle;
• Create a vinegar and salt mixture and rub it on the blade using a toothbrush. Scrub the blade until all the rust spots are gone;
• Finally, rinse thoroughly in running water and dry it off completely before keeping.

White vinegar is also known to be a good cleaning agent

Baking soda.Also known as sodium bicarbonate, this has also been widely considered to be very versatile since it is a baking ingredient, but also a good cleaner for different surfaces. Baking soda is a salt that is why it is a neutral compound. But what makes it a good cleaning tool is despite its being neutral, it has a higher pH making it slightly basic.

• Like the second step when using vinegar, we are going to make a paste using water and baking soda. The paste will have to be thick enough that it could stay when we apply it on the blade;
• Apply the paste to the blade and let it stay for about 30 minutes. Make sure that all the rusty spots are covered;
• Rinse it in running water. At this point, you will be able to see that the rust will also be washed away;
• In case there are stubborn spots that stayed, use a toothbrush to scrub it off;
• Rinse again in running water and dry it before keeping.

Baking soda is widely considered a good cleaner for different surfaces

Sandpaper. The blade is delicate and you may think that sandpaper is too much; however, if you do it properly and carefully, you will have your rust-free razor back.

Hand sanding could be done dry or wet. Often, users would recommend using wet-sanding - where you would use the sandpaper under running water since they believe that this creates a smoother finish than when it’s done dry.

Sandpaper is usually classified according to its grit. The lower the grit, the lesser its impact when used against a surface. It is recommended that you start with sandpaper with a 220 grit; and for the rust spots that won’t easily come off, you would go up to the ones with more grit. Going up should be done gradually. It might damage your blade if from 220, you go directly up to 1000 grit.

It will also help if you cut the sandpaper into bits - you could cut them into a quarter of its original size up to as small as 1”x1” - for you to control where to place it on your blade. Working with a bigger piece would probably let you hit areas which you do not intend to hit; especially if you are only dealing with minimal rust spots. Another hack available is for you to get a cork and wrap your sandpaper on the body of the cork. This gives you a shape that could fit well to the angle or curve of the blade.

Hand sanding is one way of removing rust spots from your straight razor

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