I used to toss at 4 shaves but my current test has me going until I get a bad shave (worse than a close comfortable shave) or a panful/excessively bloody one. So far, I have tested 42 blades and average 4.2 shaves per blade.
Blades Seem to Dull Quickly
- Thread starter shavepunx
- Start date
Sounds like you have been keeping a spreadsheet. Care to share?
I use a blade 3 times only then change - regardless. I therefore never have this issue of dullness to mull over. Blades are cheap. Life is short. 
Seems to be a long time experiment, I guess you are a daily shaver.
Regarding Feathers and more related to the OP, Feather start out sharp, but dull quickly. There are blades that are thickly coated so their best shave is rather the ~3rd run, after wearing that a bit down. The Gillette 7 o'clock Super Platinum comes to my mind in this regard.
The coating (stainless labeled blade have one, too) when labeled Platinum usually lasts a bit longer and that conforms with my observation that stainless starts out sharper (i.e. Feather) while highly coated blades last longer and might even gain sharpness after a few shaves (i.e. Gillette 7 o'clock Super Platinum, the black one).
Once you go SLANT, you CAN'T go back...lol
No I think that is a great option to try...if I did not suggestion...
Great starter slant is the Parker Semi.
Remember, you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a great shave.
Plus it more you than the tool(s & blade) ...but the right tool pairing to you...can be an adventure. make it fun...
No I think that is a great option to try...if I did not suggestion...
Great starter slant is the Parker Semi.
Remember, you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a great shave.
Plus it more you than the tool(s & blade) ...but the right tool pairing to you...can be an adventure. make it fun...
Blades last some people long time, other short time.
It’s all about you, your beard, how beard grows, and beard thickness.
Ax need to be sharpened more chopping Desert Iron Wood, V/s Balsa Wood.
It’s all about you, your beard, how beard grows, and beard thickness.
Ax need to be sharpened more chopping Desert Iron Wood, V/s Balsa Wood.
I am assuming you are talking about the Bic Chrome Platinum which was a bloody 2 and out affair for me. Now, the Bic Astor Stainless was a decent blade, one of the "common herd" that are blades I find to be servicable/adequate but generally unmemorable.
BICs are amazing to me. I hope you didn’t get a counterfeit one because they are out there.
I’ve never tried the astor.
Go look for all posts that that a title starting with 132 Blades. I've done ~40 so far.
There is pretty much a consensus that Feather blades are among the very sharpest but also dull quickly.
Somebody recently posted some research that found Feather blades have a very acute angle at the edge (very thin) as compared to some of the other popular blades. Of course, it makes sense that a thinner edge will chip and wear more quickly.
I don use Feather blades. With my average beard and skin I can easily get 5-6 shaves from most common blades, including Astra SP and SS.
Maybe try some blades that have a reputation for being sharp and durable: Bic and Wizamet come to mind, but there are others...
...or just use a new blade for every shave. At 10 cents (or less) per blade it's still a bargain.
Somebody recently posted some research that found Feather blades have a very acute angle at the edge (very thin) as compared to some of the other popular blades. Of course, it makes sense that a thinner edge will chip and wear more quickly.
I don use Feather blades. With my average beard and skin I can easily get 5-6 shaves from most common blades, including Astra SP and SS.
Maybe try some blades that have a reputation for being sharp and durable: Bic and Wizamet come to mind, but there are others...
...or just use a new blade for every shave. At 10 cents (or less) per blade it's still a bargain.
You might find this page interesting, but warning: Check on a desktop, on Smartphone/mobile this site is unusable.
Razor Blade Sharpness Summary with Comparison Chart
This post is to serve as a quick reference as a Razor Blade Sharpness Summary which includes a Razor Blade Sharpness Comparison Chart. To see more in depth how the testing works, check out Razor Bl…
www.refinedshave.com
Even on a desktop monitor it is weird to use.
First, under "Razor Blade Sharpness Summary" ramp up the number to 100 and then SORT by "Sharpness New Blade".
You will get blank entries before FEATHER comes with "32", lower being better. Then NACET and BIC.
Nacet stays relatively even over several shaves, Feather goes dull quickly, BIC even gets a bit sharper.
The Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum (Black) is fairly low in the list, but check 2nd shave, it is getting sharper and into BIC/Nacet territory. <- this is also quite interesting. Voshkod stays very, very even over the course of its lifetime.
Now results are fairly individual, but this one is very much aligning with my personal experience!
@Kent Kimmons used a rating partly influenced "by weepers caused" approach, where Big Ben scored high in this related thread 132 Blades - Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/132-blades-gillette-7-oclock-super-platinum.644010/ there.
(Just for Kent, as I don't see it listed, I would bet you would like VOSHKOD blades, they keep their edge and stay even over multiple shaves, while not being the sharpest per se).
My first #1 blade was the Polsilver Super Iridium, when I used exclusively the R41. Before I read B&B and bought... a few... more razors. But they became rare, I am not sure if the now sold for a lot of money Wizamet blades are truly exactly the same. This said, I rather decided with BICs from Greece and Gillette "Blacks" from India, as they are several times cheaper but also perform. Nacet is extremely good, but fell from my favor as I had several times issues with the glue it comes with getting attaced to the cap of my Wunderbar and similar slants, making the separation of cap and baseplate a job for zippo fuel, no joke!
I still have over 100+ BICs and some 60+ Gillette Blacks, and several hundred other blades of all kind, several 100 Voshkods probably as well, my current approach is to use them all, no matter the type.
Blades I didn't get along with include most famously Astra Platinum. Most Lord blades (Sharp, Big Ben, all same company) fall into the middle of the pack for me.
Interesting. Drawing from different sources, your top three blades (Feather, 7 O'Clock Blacks and Bics all seem to use Japanese steel. If you get a chance, try the Gillette Super Thin (Vientam) which have the Japanese Flag on them. Also Japanese steel. Very nice blade!You might find this page interesting, but warning: Check on a desktop, on Smartphone/mobile this site is unusable.
Razor Blade Sharpness Summary with Comparison Chart
This post is to serve as a quick reference as a Razor Blade Sharpness Summary which includes a Razor Blade Sharpness Comparison Chart. To see more in depth how the testing works, check out Razor Bl…
Even on a desktop monitor it is weird to use.
First, under "Razor Blade Sharpness Summary" ramp up the number to 100 and then SORT by "Sharpness New Blade".
You will get blank entries before FEATHER comes with "32", lower being better. Then NACET and BIC.
Nacet stays relatively even over several shaves, Feather goes dull quickly, BIC even gets a bit sharper.
The Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum (Black) is fairly low in the list, but check 2nd shave, it is getting sharper and into BIC/Nacet territory. <- this is also quite interesting. Voshkod stays very, very even over the course of its lifetime.
Now results are fairly individual, but this one is very much aligning with my personal experience!
@Kent Kimmons used a rating partly influenced "by weepers caused" approach, where Big Ben scored high in this related thread 132 Blades - Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/132-blades-gillette-7-oclock-super-platinum.644010/ there.
(Just for Kent, as I don't see it listed, I would bet you would like VOSHKOD blades, they keep their edge and stay even over multiple shaves, while not being the sharpest per se).
My first #1 blade was the Polsilver Super Iridium, when I used exclusively the R41. Before I read B&B and bought... a few... more razors. But they became rare, I am not sure if the now sold for a lot of money Wizamet blades are truly exactly the same. This said, I rather decided with BICs from Greece and Gillette "Blacks" from India, as they are several times cheaper but also perform. Nacet is extremely good, but fell from my favor as I had several times issues with the glue it comes with getting attaced to the cap of my Wunderbar and similar slants, making the separation of cap and baseplate a job for zippo fuel, no joke!
I still have over 100+ BICs and some 60+ Gillette Blacks, and several hundred other blades of all kind, several 100 Voshkods probably as well, my current approach is to use them all, no matter the type.
Blades I didn't get along with include most famously Astra Platinum. Most Lord blades (Sharp, Big Ben, all same company) fall into the middle of the pack for me.
You might find this page interesting, but warning: Check on a desktop, on Smartphone/mobile this site is unusable.
Razor Blade Sharpness Summary with Comparison Chart
This post is to serve as a quick reference as a Razor Blade Sharpness Summary which includes a Razor Blade Sharpness Comparison Chart. To see more in depth how the testing works, check out Razor Bl…
Even on a desktop monitor it is weird to use.
First, under "Razor Blade Sharpness Summary" ramp up the number to 100 and then SORT by "Sharpness New Blade".
You will get blank entries before FEATHER comes with "32", lower being better. Then NACET and BIC.
Nacet stays relatively even over several shaves, Feather goes dull quickly, BIC even gets a bit sharper.
The Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum (Black) is fairly low in the list, but check 2nd shave, it is getting sharper and into BIC/Nacet territory. <- this is also quite interesting. Voshkod stays very, very even over the course of its lifetime.
Now results are fairly individual, but this one is very much aligning with my personal experience!
@Kent Kimmons used a rating partly influenced "by weepers caused" approach, where Big Ben scored high in this related thread 132 Blades - Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/132-blades-gillette-7-oclock-super-platinum.644010/ there.
(Just for Kent, as I don't see it listed, I would bet you would like VOSHKOD blades, they keep their edge and stay even over multiple shaves, while not being the sharpest per se).
My first #1 blade was the Polsilver Super Iridium, when I used exclusively the R41. Before I read B&B and bought... a few... more razors. But they became rare, I am not sure if the now sold for a lot of money Wizamet blades are truly exactly the same. This said, I rather decided with BICs from Greece and Gillette "Blacks" from India, as they are several times cheaper but also perform. Nacet is extremely good, but fell from my favor as I had several times issues with the glue it comes with getting attaced to the cap of my Wunderbar and similar slants, making the separation of cap and baseplate a job for zippo fuel, no joke!
I still have over 100+ BICs and some 60+ Gillette Blacks, and several hundred other blades of all kind, several 100 Voshkods probably as well, my current approach is to use them all, no matter the type.
Blades I didn't get along with include most famously Astra Platinum. Most Lord blades (Sharp, Big Ben, all same company) fall into the middle of the pack for me.
I've seen that before, thank you.
The post I was referring to is here:
Blade bevel angle
A question that I has arisen in my mind over some time is the question of the Razor Blade Bevel Angle, not referring to shaving angle or anything like that, but just the angle at which the blade is sharpened. I have seen very little discussion regarding this on B&B and I really only found one...
www.badgerandblade.com
In the first response, member @Dundee measured blade thickness and calculated the bevel angle of some popular blades, including Feather.
His findings do bear out much of what we already believe to be true regarding blade sharpness and longevity. He found that Feather blades have the most acute bevel angle of the blades measured, which (logically) would explain why the blades have a sharper and more fragile (thinner) edge.
I thought it was interesting.
The BICs seem to be made in Greece, so I doubt they use Japanese steel or machinery. But then, apparently they also use Japanese razor blade steel in Vietnam. Hmm! I will have to check that out, thanks for the recommendation.
Got one, but it's in the V's so it'll be a while. I'm on Gillette's now. Looking forward to the blade.
When I first started wet shaving about a year ago, I could only get 2 or 3 uses per blade, but now I am pushing 8 to 10 each. Not motivated by cost considerations, I hate the idea of throwing away something perfectly usable. I attribute my blade longevity improvements to:
Enjoy the journey being sure to experiment with the infinite combinations of gear.
- Better whisker prep making sure they are hydrated enough. Post shower shaves are the best.
- Better angle control so I am using the blade edge bevel more effectively
- Less pressure. During the early learning phase there was a tendency to press down
- Switched to slant razors that slice rather than chop
- Less need/desire to buff and go over the same areas of face multiple times
- Only 1.5 passes typically. Not chasing a a shiny tofu face, I like a 5 o'clock manly shadow
Enjoy the journey being sure to experiment with the infinite combinations of gear.
Same for me. I see that many members really seem to like the Lord blades, I haven't noticed anything at all impressive about them.
I have a hundred pack of Sharks, White Star and Big Ben blades. Maybe the White Star is the best of the three?
Still, there are many other similar priced blades I have bought in quantity (and less expensive blades) that give me better shaves.
Certainly no where near the blades in my top tiers.
- Thread starter
- #39
i thought it would be a good idea to revive this thread now that ive got a bit more experience under my belt.
it turns out that once i really dialed my technique in, as suggested by many of you itt and elsewhere, my blades started lasting a lot longer.
something i notice is a lot of guys on youtube who appear to be far more experienced than i use long strokes like a cartridge user would do. i find this perplexing because most of the written info out there from experienced users states that short successive strokes is the correct technique. once i started becoming more conscious of doing this, my shaves improved immensely.
so, in short, using proper angle combined with short strokes seems to be a far more effective technique.
it turns out that once i really dialed my technique in, as suggested by many of you itt and elsewhere, my blades started lasting a lot longer.
something i notice is a lot of guys on youtube who appear to be far more experienced than i use long strokes like a cartridge user would do. i find this perplexing because most of the written info out there from experienced users states that short successive strokes is the correct technique. once i started becoming more conscious of doing this, my shaves improved immensely.
so, in short, using proper angle combined with short strokes seems to be a far more effective technique.
I'm not sure the length of the stroke matters that much?
I have traditionally done multiple short strokes, for no particular reason, just seems like the normal way to do things.
Lately, rather than concentrate on that extra close shave (that nobody really needs anyway), I had been doing some longer strokes to speed things up a bit.
Doesn't seem to effect shave quality or blade longevity. Maybe my facial hair is a tiny bit longer the following morning but no big deal. Either way is fine.
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