Until the 1960s, razor blades were made of carbon steel. These were prone to rusting unless carefully dried and often left users to change blades frequently. In 1965, the British company Wilkinson Sword began to sell blades made of stainless steel, which did not rust and could be used until blunt. Wilkinson quickly captured U.S., British and European markets. As a result, American Safety Razor, Gillette and Schick were driven to produce stainless steel blades to compete. Today, almost all razor blades are stainless steel although carbon steel blades remain in limited production for lower income markets. Because Gillette held a patent on stainless blades but had not acted on it, the company was accused of exploiting customers by forcing them to buy the rust-prone blade.
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