Safety razors--what do I need to know about their care and cleaning?

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

At last, a question for male dopers--much older than I, even.

My wife just gave me a beautiful German-made safety razor, brush, and soap dish. The razor takes the old fashioned, double-edged single thickness blades, whose last stand in the popular culture appears to have been during the late 1970s, when cokeheads used the single-edged version of these blades to prepare powdered cocaine for snorting. As a result, I really haven't seen anyone use this type of blade in many years, and I never owned one myself. I used the soap and razor for the first time today, and it really felt very nice.

But what are the basics of caring for this equipment? What are the dos and don'ts of using and keeping safety razors? How many shaves should I expect to get from a single edge? IIRC I can use a single-edge Bic disposable for at least several days, but I haven't really pushed one to its endurance limit recently. Would a safety razor blade be similar to that?

[Attack from the 3rd dimension]

My father commented that he would get a month out of a blade.

I don't know how painful day 30 was though.

[Edward The Head]

I've been using one for about 1.5 years now. I don't shave everyday so my results are probably going to be different. I use them for a couple of weeks. I would get the same usage out of the old double razors I used to use. You can tell when they start to go dull when they nick more and more. The nice thing is they are so cheap I don't mind throwing them out. Also you don't need as much force as you think you might. Just light enough to glide across the skin, the weight of the razor will do the work.

[Mops]

I use one and change the blade about once a week - doesn't seem to have become noticeably dull or rusty until then. Good thing about today's safety razor refill packs is that they have a compartment to push the used blades into, so no worry about sharps in the trash.

One thing about their care: rinsing under warm water does not seem to be enough for degunking after use (dirt and sebum residues), so I use an additional toothbrush (with stiff bristles) to clean out the razor after use. Of course it is useful for the first few weeks for that special toothbrush to be of another colour - afterwards it is easily told apart by its gap-toothed appearance. These cleaning-toothbrushes last more than a year for me.

When I go by air and take no checked luggage I take disposables along instead of the safety razor - I don't know about the rules but if I were airport security I'd not allow safety razor blades into hand luggge.

[sailor]

You can still find those double-edged blades? I have not seen them in ages. They probably cost a fortune now.

[Scumpup]

A couple different brands of the double edge razor blades are sold in Walmart. I generally buy the Gillettes. They're only a couple dollars a pack.

[Attack from the 3rd dimension]

Does anyone know the relative environmental impact of safety razors vs. a lifetime of disposables?