So today I was able to pick up my first wet shave razor, a Lady Gillette razor in pink starburst. I don't really care if it's a women's razor, as long as it works. Function over form and all that jazz. Anyhow, soon as I got it home, I scrubbed the thing down twice with some Ajax bathroom powder with bleach--first time over with an old manual toothbrush, second time over with an electric toothbrush with an old brush head. I got as deep into the nooks and crannies as I could, but there's still a fair bit of soap scum spread out around. After rinsing it, I decided to try practicing my technique a bit for how I was gonna shave with it, running it down my sideburns and down my neck. Then, as I was in mid-stroke, I realized that there might still be a chance of infection, even with the inclusion of bleach in the powder cleanser, and soon afterwards blasted the entire razor with Lysol disinfectant spray, waited for the razor to air dry, then blasted the razor again. It's fully air-dried now, but the soap scum and a small bit rust still remain. Don't know if I got infected from those initial strokes, though, but I know I'm up-to-date on my Hepatitis A/B vaccinations. I was wondering whether the community could suggest a few things to use to clean up the metal of this razor and sanitize it to boot. I was thinking maybe some diluted bleach or vinegar solution, or maybe some dish soap.
Soak it in Scrubbing Bubbles. That'll easily kill anything modern, however old razors like that - things are long dead on it and it's just a matter of cleaning it up to look pretty and function well.
Bleach or vinegar can damage (remove) the plating on the razor so I wouldn't use anything containing those. I've only cleaned up a couple old razors but there are some good threads on it if you search for them. Here's what I've done and it seems to work well. - Soak in soapy water for a couple hours. Dish soap is fine for this and you can find antibacterial dish soap if it makes you feel better. - Scrub with a toothbrush to get all the old soap scum off. You may have to let the razor soak longer if it's really stubborn. - If you've got some stubborn, hard to get at areas, a toothpick works well and won't damage the finish. - If you've got some gunk in the texture of the handle that the toothbrush won't get out, a brass bristled brush works and won't damage nickel plate as long as you take it easy. It may damage an aluminum handle though and I'm not sure if your razor has one. It might. - Hit it with scrubbing bubbles and the toothbrush again - If you want to shine the razor up a little, Blue Magic Chrome Polish seems to work well. You can probably find it at an auto parts store. I just get a little on a q-tip and rub it around, then buff with a towel. Clean it off with more soapy water and the toothbrush to make sure you get it all off before using the razor. Hope that helps.
That about says it all. It's how I clean all my vintage razors. Just take your time and they will clean up very nicely,some like new. Using hot water is ok but, "NEVER" boil your razors!! That "Pink Lady Gillette" is a good score!!! I have a blue but, I'm still missing a pink and a gold for my collection. [Edit] I use "mothers mag polish" it shines up well also... to TSD HumanBean I hope you like it here as much as I do......
Flitz is another good metal polish. It will shine it up & remove minor rusting, without damaging the plating.
Are you seeing a theme with the Scrubbing Bubbles? It's all I use. It eats soap scum (use a soft toothbrush to help it along) It disinfects It leaves the razor nice and shiny
I have had a fair bit of experience with this lately having cleaned up some seven vintage razors now in the last three weeks or so (I just cleaned up a blue tip SS just this evening that I got for my stepson to get him on the right shaving track) and I can attest that everything said above is pretty much right. I have done mine pretty much as feeltheburn suggests above. I have used really hot but to boiling water with soap at the beginning. I have a keurig and I use it for hot water with about a tbs of dish soap. Let it set for a few hours to overnight and hit it with a toothbrush. Scrubbing bubbles are a must as noted above. I am sure the Lysol baths are killing whatever might be left on the razor but the scrubbing bubbles kill all the baddies and get rid of the soapy scum too. Toothbrush and rinse. Then back to the hot water and dish soap. Then toothbrush and rinse. Then metal polish, I use Maas and it seems to work well.if it's not getting clean enough, just keep repeating the soapy bath and the scrubbing bubbles until you are satisfied. This has worked very well for me including two razors I thought, upon initial inspection, would never come clean. I now buy freely from the bay without fear.(although I have no answer for plate loss)
Not sure that's soap scum after all that. Try the Scrubbing Bubbles as advised. Hopefully the Ajax didn't damage the plating.
Just lift the lid and dunk it a couple of times in the toilet. You can even flush the toilet first, if you want. ....Or, you could use Scubbing Bubbles on your razor, like I do.
Wow, you will be lucky if that didn't trash the finish. Scrubbing a razor with scouring powder is a really bad idea IMHO, even more so if an electric toothbrush was used. Scrubbing Bubbles will do a good job of getting rid of soap scum and disinfecting the razor. If it can disinfect your toilet, then it should also be able to disinfect your razor. Flitz metal polish might help if the razor is looking a little dull afterwards. People have reported using Barbicide with good results, but also that it damages the plating if the razor is left to soak in it too long.
I'm looking at the Scrubbing Bubbles website. Which one do you guys recommend and can I get this at Walmart?
I use the one with the green top on this page or one of the store brand equivalents. Since the foam is not abrasive, a toothbrush can be used with it to get out any stubborn gunk.
