Questions of cleaning a gold razor

So you have a silver razor that you want to clean up, The steps I go through are:

Put the Razor in a coffee cup with hot tap water with two effordent tabs soak over night

Boil razor on the stove top untill the "gunk" stops floating off of razor

Hit it with scrubbing bubbles


If I do this with say a gold Gillette will it ruin the finish of the razor??

 

I have read elsewhere on this forum and on the others out there too that boiling a gold razor will definitely ruin the finish.

I use scrubbing bubbles, toothpaste, polish and elbow grease to clean it up and then sanitize it with a bath in barbicide. Oh, when you polish be very careful that you do not use too much elbow grease.

 

+1 I have a gold platted Gillette that I recently cleaned up.
And this si the exact way I cleaned it up. Just don't get
to ruff with them IMO.

 

Be aware that if you see some dullness on a gold razor after it has been cleaned with Scrubbing Bubbles, that dullness is probably the lacquer that was applied to protect the gold from wearing off. This lacquer may be a little discolored and dull after these many decades.

Gold itself does not tarnish like most other metals so, assuming that all of the surface of the razor is still covered in gold plating, there is no reason to use a metal polish on gold. If you do use polish, which is abrasive, you will likely wear through the lacquer and then the very thin gold plating won't be far behind.

As has been said, boiling will also remove the lacquer, so the best thing to do with a gold plated razor is simply to clean it with something like Scrubbing bubbles and a very soft old toothbrush to get rid of the soap scum and grime and then rinse it well and dry it.

Regards,
Tom

 

Can you use like a jewelry cleaner on
the gold to make is shine again? Don't
Figure it would hurt since its OK for jewelry,
but wasn't sure.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by a "jewelry cleaner". If you mean any kind of abrasive polish, even jewelers rouge, I would say don't use it on a gold plated razor.

Remember, good jewelry is not just plated with a thin plating of gold and a coat of lacquer like a razor is. Fine jewelry is generally solid gold, or in some cases, gold filled, which is a much heavier layer of gold than gold plating. The use of jewelers rouge to polish out fine scratches is sometimes effective on fine gold jewelry.

Jewelers rouge also can be used effectively on silver jewelry. Silver plating, even on razors, is generally a much heavier layer than gold plating. Unlike gold, silver does oxidize or tarnish and will benefit from the use of a mild abrasive polish to restore its original shine. Even here though, use no more polishing than needed to restore that original luster because every time you polish your silver plated razor, some of that plating is removed and, eventually, the plating will begin to wear off.

Cheap costume jewelry is often gold plated, similar to a gold plated razor. That's why inexpensive gold jewelry will usually start turning your skin green in pretty short order . . . the gold is wearing off and the base metal is reacting with your body chemistry and leaving it's tell tale signs of some cuprous content.

Cheap gold plated jewelry, like a gold plated razor, should not be polished with any abrasive at all.

Regards,
Tom

 

I used a generic metal polish and Dremel with a nylon polishing head. Works wonders, but be careful with gold razors as the finish will rub off. I found that using a firm toothbrush and polish will get the job done on gold.

 

I wouldn't suggest any polish nor a firm toothbrush on a gold razor. Either one will likely remove the lacquer and, very possibly, some of the plating but, it's your razor.

Regards,
Tom