What a difference a blade can make!

Well, after using a generic blade from CVS for my first three shaves and using a Merkur from my letterk sampler pack for the next three (irritation on my lips later that day), I tried an Israeli blade yesterday.

Wow! What a difference!

Here I am about 31 hours after that shave, and I'm still nearly BBS (only the slightest hint of roughness) on my lips! The rest of my face is a little rougher, granted, but it's still very good as far as that goes.

I've got to say that that is right up there with my top shaves, ranking-wise.

So much to try! It's really tough to try to stick to changing only one variable at a time.

I was also really impressed by the difference. I doubted that it would be noticeable, but it's more than that. Israeli doesn't work good at all for me. Derby are so-so, but Gillette beats them both for me. I've yet to try a Feather.

osks said:

I was also really impressed by the difference. I doubted that it would be noticeable, but it's more than that. Israeli doesn't work good at all for me. Derby are so-so, but Gillette beats them both for me. I've yet to try a Feather.

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Same here. I get an average as best shave with Derby's, but the Gillette's are great.

osks said:

I was also really impressed by the difference. I doubted that it would be noticeable, but it's more than that. Israeli doesn't work good at all for me. Derby are so-so, but Gillette beats them both for me. I've yet to try a Feather.

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Same experience for me. I started with the Derbys, didn't get much result. Switched to a Gillette, had the best shave so far today. Will stick with this one for one or two more blades before trying swords and then feathers.

The big surprise for me was German Wilkinsons. I had read that they were not so good as those made in England, but for me they turned out to be much better and (so far) my best blade of all. I got them in one of these sampler packs. (This is not to say that they will be the best blade for you---you just have to try blades to see which ones work for you.)

I first saw you mention that other sampler pack in your blog. I intend to try them out in a few weeks. It looks like there's very little overlap between the two, especially since, as you say, the Wilkinsons are different.

So much to try!

I bought the German Wilkinsons at a local bargain store 5 for $2. I must say I like them and I will be returning to clear the store out. I'm shocked by all the bad reviews myself.

The thing is, no matter how much we know in our heads that people respond differently to the same brand of blade, we still somehow believe that someone else's experience with a blade will match our own. Very hard to shake.

Leisureguy said:

The thing is, no matter how much we know in our heads that people respond differently to the same brand of blade, we still somehow believe that someone else's experience with a blade will match our own. Very hard to shake.

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Michael, do you get the "white label" Wilkinsons in the pack?

I have both white label and black label Wilkinsons. I'm not sure of the difference, so I mainly go by country of manufacture.

I just experiened the same thing with switching from a pack of Merkur blades over to a Derby Extra that I just got today. The difference was very noticeable! I actually was satisfied with the Merkurs, even though they tended to drag and pull after the third and sometimes only second shave with that particular blade.

The Derby was a totally different experience. The shave was VERY comfortable, with end results of the same high quality in general. It is actually a pretty dang sharp blade, but shaving with it was hassle-free and totally in comfort.

I went ahead and ordered enough Derbys to last me a while, along with a pack of Feathers to give them a very cautious go. That and, I couldn't resist, Colonel Conk soaps in Bay Rum and Almond. Used the Bay Rum today and it was awesome! Can't wait to try the Almond. Too bad I couldn't deal with John though due to some minor constraints. I hate PayPal and didn't want to snail mail . I'll be ordering a sampler pack soon enough though. I'm particularly interested in trying out the Swedish Gillettes.

-Allen

Don't overlook the Wilkinsons, both those made in England and those made in Germany...

I'm waiting for my sample pack to run out. I will then buy 100 pack of feathers. they seemed to be very good.

I gave the Derby's a go after two disapointing Merkur shaves. Night and day diffrence. I haven't tried the Crystal's, Gillette's or the Feathers yet.

osks said:

I've yet to try a Feather.

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I've tried a Feather blade now. I manage to peel a bit of my nose(!) away (I wasn't careful when positioning the razor to shave the upper lip), but that wasn't really Feathers fault. Other than that I've gotten two really good shaves. It's probably true that it's not as forgiving as other blades, because I've gotten a few (small) bleeding cuts, which I usually doesn't get, but it moves much easier to cut through the beard than my Gillette blade.

Feathers are the most amazing thing that has ever happened to my beard. It's pretty thick and wiry, and I was so frustrated with the Merkurs and Israelis that I jumped straight to the Feathers. With a decent pre-shave routine, the feathers just plow right through it with no tugs or irritation. No BBS yet, but better than ever.

Soon I will have some more cash in my pocket, then I'm going for a Slant or Vision as was recommended to me. What a great hobby.

Serves me right for jumping the gun yesterday morning when I knew my beard probably wasn't ready to shave again. I got some irritation around my lips and neck, same blade.

It was probably a combination of needing to grow just a little bit more along with shaving rather aggressively. Well, I'm taking it easy for a couple of days this time.

I'm starting to think that out of the blades I got in the sampler pack, the Feathers will be just the ticket. We'll see.