Feather Blade Works Great - Should I Stop Experimenting

**cfender** · 03-20-2011, 07:38 AM

I've only tried a Merkur, Derby and Feather blade.

I have been getting 3 BBS shaves from a Feather but I decided to use up some of my Derby supply yesterday. My shave with the Derby was inferior and required way to many passes and toom much buffing and I got several nicks in the process.

Since the Feather is working AND it's so frequently sited as "the best", is there ANYTHING that has a chance of performing better than the Feather or should I just stop screwing around with different blades?

I get a near perfect shave with the Feather. Is there anyone that gets a GREAT shave with a Feather but an EVEN BETTER shave with something else?

I understand that Feather just doesn't work for some users but I'm interested to hear from those that it DOES work for but still prefers another blade.

**IridiumMourner** · 03-20-2011, 08:45 AM

Feathers work great for me (for the first shave), but I prefer others. I prefer the Iridium, NOS Gillette Bleue Extra and Schick Plus Platinum. Unfortunately, none of those blades are current production blades.

I also like the Gillette 7 O'Clock Sharp Edge blades, which are readily available and are a smoother blade for me.

**gtoface** · 03-20-2011, 08:55 AM

yes stop Experimenting... i finally found my blade after tons of diffrent sample packs. either personna med prep blades. or personna red packs. but much prefer the red packs... there wayyy more easy on the face. i use med preps if i havent shaved in a wile. there sharper.. so i traded all my blades of all the samples and all the sale stuff i baught on here, and i stick to the personna. and rose shaving cream.. i have such a sensitive face, i cant use much else.

**Marcus_C** · 03-20-2011, 09:11 AM

As far as i'm concerned it's more a question of, do you want to stop experimenting? For my part i've found Gillette Yellows work better than any other blades i've tried and i'm very happy with them, that doesn't mean i'll stop looking up random blades on ebay and buying them though. I'm looking through indian made blades at the moment, not like i'm short or anything...

**Optometrist** · 03-20-2011, 09:25 AM

I used Merkurs for a week then switched to Feathers. Been using ever since as, for me, I found the perfect blade pretty much from the outset. I do also use Bolzano and Shark Super Chrome simply because I like variety. Are either as good as a Feather? Not quite, but they come close enough to make me want to keep using them. Every so often I might try another brand just for curiosity, but returning to the Feather just reminds me what a great blade this is.

**insomniac** · 03-20-2011, 09:28 AM

If you are happy with your blade, sure, why not?

**Moe** · 03-20-2011, 10:52 AM

How a blade shaves depends on the razor it's used in and the technique of the user. I think you should try the blades from the St. Petersburg, Russia plant. These are the Gillette 7 o'clock yellow and the Astra Super Platinum. I personally wasn't able to tell the difference between them and the now-unobtainium Iridiums. These, especially the Astras, are less expensive and gave me more 3-pass comfortable shaves per blade than the Feathers in my Merkur 34C HD. At least you'll have a point of reference. For what it's worth, my experience with the Derbys wasn't that great either.

**cfender** · 03-20-2011, 10:55 AM

That's it. I'm buying a 100 pack of Feathers.

**SO758** · 03-20-2011, 12:17 PM

I did. Only after trying several other blades. Feathers work for me so I stopped the hunt.

**spindlecone** · 03-20-2011, 12:25 PM

When you find the blade,the type of razor,the brush,the soap and you get repeatable,comfortable BBS shaves over and over,your done.

**texaninkc** · 03-20-2011, 02:49 PM

yea. if you've found a great blade, stop. if youre getting BBS with one blade in multiple razors that's even better. I found that my face liked the feathers when paired with one razor but didn't with another. My iridiums can pretty much go into any razor and I love it, but with them being out of production I can't get used to them. I'm hoping the med prep personnas that I just got will take their place. 1st shave with them today gave me a great shave in the fatboy, so we'll see.

**RJKflyer** · 03-20-2011, 03:22 PM

I think I'm in a similar place - been at this for a month and am getting SUCH excellent shaves with a Feather that I'm tempted to stop buying blades!!

Just about to try my very last purchase - the Bolanzo.

Unless that shows great promise, I'll be putting the rest on here for someone to take off me!

**StylinLA** · 03-20-2011, 04:30 PM

If the Feathers are working, I see no reason to keep messing around. They are in my experience the sharpest. I can use them, but get a skosh more of post shave sensitivity when I do. That might go away if I used them all the time.

Next sharpest I've run into are the Astras, which is my usual blade. You might want to try those if the Feathers give you any trouble.

I recall the Derbys being a "safe" blade to learn on, but they couldn't match the Astras.

**Waistcoat** · 03-20-2011, 11:27 PM

Ditto what the others have said. Astras are great, but if the Feather is working well for you, get that 100 pack. Besides, it's more fun to experiment with creams, soaps, AS and such than with blades :)

**cfender** · 03-21-2011, 05:27 AM

Yeah I'm done. I'm just sticking with Feathers.

It's so tempting though to try others.

I find the retro packaging, the brand names from another era and the sometimes exotic countries of origin part of the shaving mystique. Like we,re in on something exclusive with our quirky little blade packages from a land far, far, away.

**WilliamIam** · 03-21-2011, 09:07 AM

Originally Posted by cfender

I get a near perfect shave with the Feather. Is there anyone that gets a GREAT shave with a Feather but an EVEN BETTER shave with something else?

Yes. Feathers gave me excellent shaves and the blades lasted forever, but they were harsh and chewed up my face a little.
Wilkinsons and Dorco Platinum ST-301's are better for my face and give me a better shave than feathers. I have a heavy beard and they both do just as good a job as Feathers.

You sound like you've found a good blade, but there's room for improvement. If you think it can get better, try some other blades. If not, be happy you found a good one.

**Absolute Mustard** · 03-21-2011, 09:09 AM

Yes

Feather made me stop searching too

If you can do Feather, then you are golden

**Deltaboy** · 03-21-2011, 09:45 AM

If it works great for you STOP and enjoy those feathers. I settled in with Red IP and have not looked anymore. I do tinker with some other blades just for fun that I got with Shaving stuff off the Bay.