How many shaves from one blade?

The question is how many passes do you usually get out of one razor blade before irritation starts to set in? One shave for me will have roughly three and half to four full passes. So after two shaves my razor blade is feeling pretty rough or more specifically my third shave generally has more irritation than I want to deal with.

Thats with the blades that match up well with my razor and technique, Ive had some that Ive pulled out mid first pass due to rough shaving.

Where does this fall on the common to uncommon curve?

Depends on the blade. I get 2 shaves out of a Bic Platinum, 3 from an IP.
Could probably get more, but I'd rather toss a blade prematurely rather than risk a possibly bad shave.

Go West Young Man said:

Depends on the blade.

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For me...

Derby Extra - 4 shaves (3 passes each)
RP Israeli Personna - 3 shaves (3 passes each)
Wilkinson Sword - 2 shaves (3 passes each)

The razor also has an effect on blade longevity, to a lesser degree.

So far I've used exactly 3 blades.

The first 2 were Personna (USA) from 40 years ago and I got 3 good shaves from the 2nd one. I have no idea how many I got from the first one- it was before I kept records.

The one I'm using now has 6 shaves on it, a Russian 7 O'clock. I think it'll be OK for a 7th, but we'll see in the AM.

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It depends on various factors. Technique, razor, blade, how many passes you do for a shave.

Usually 3-4 shaves (3 passes each shave) YMMV depending on how much whiskers u need to cut.

Ditch them once they start to drag and at the slightest feeling of roughness

Using my 39C........Heavy beard, 3 pass shave.

Astra SS=5

Derby=3

Wilkinson German=2

Crystal=2

Astras and feathers give me a good 5 shaves and my beard is quite coarse.

dalew said:

Using my 39C........Heavy beard, 3 pass shave.

Astra SS=5

Derby=3

Wilkinson German=2

Crystal=2

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I havent tried the Astra's yet, but thats a pretty high number of passes. I'll give them a try.

Optionyout said:

Astras and feathers give me a good 5 shaves and my beard is quite coarse.

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How many passes per shave? I have one feather to play with so we shall see what I get from it.

All in all it dosent appear to be to uncommon to swap a razor blade after the second go around. These little things always nag at me since Im a bit of a conservationist. I like them shark blades and with Egypt going through the revolution I wonder how my little drop in the bucket ripple effects over there. Plus how is a razor manufactured? I think it is cold rolling and all that but I have visions of a Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom type of environment with all the kids in the mine harvesting ore for my nice shave. I dont think its really like that but I wonder where my favorite steel comes from.

Currently up to 12 shaves (*3 passes) in the Second Annual "One Blade in February" Challenge

My only extra step is keeping my face wet while brushing my teeth before the shave. But that's an idea that I think I'll keep up after the challenge.

Prep is king.

Since I have light beard growth and only do 2 passes, with most blades I get 6 shaves per blade.

Christopher

I like doing 3 to 4 passes, sometimes a spot buff after too.

If I am shaving every day, I can get 4 shaves out of most of my
blades. Really I should be tossing them after 3 shaves though.

I use a new blade on Monday & Thursday, 2-3 passes a day. I still shave on the weekend to keep growth low, but usually only 1 pass.

As a general rule of thumb, they get tossed after three shaves.

Freemojo said:

The question is how many passes do you usually get out of one razor blade before irritation starts to set in? One shave for me will have roughly three and half to four full passes. So after two shaves my razor blade is feeling pretty rough or more specifically my third shave generally has more irritation than I want to deal with.

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Same here. That's why I toss all blades after 2 shaves. I invested hundreds in razors, brushes, soaps and creams. Why suffer through a bad shave for the sake of overextending a cheap blade?

Only been doing it a short time, but I can get a week. 3-4 days if i don't want to sacrifice quality. (2-3 passes per shave)

How many shaves from a blade is like asking "How many miles from a set of car tires".

"YMMV" applies in both cases.

drews50 said:

As a general rule of thumb, they get tossed after three shaves.

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+1. Given the cost of razor blades, I can't see using them for more than 3 shaves. Even the most expensive blades, which go for about $34.00 per 100, cost .34 cents apiece, which is about 11 cents per shave. Over the course of a 30 day month. that is $3.40, which is less than you would pay for two Mach 3 carts, which might last for 10 days or so, if you're lucky.

Feathers give me an easy week of shaves. Indeed

Prep is king.

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In the past, I got a three shave max from Feathers, and sometimes a 1 1/2 shave from others. I like to conserve blades also, which is why I choose feathers for me. I don't sacrifice quality of shave, and the blade lasts an easy week.

I use Iridium Supers, I do a 2-pass shave and I get 7 shaves per blade.