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DE Blades: Can the blade be "Flipped" upside down to prolong use?

I've been wondering about this for quite some time. When you first unwrap a DE blade, there's a "sticky" side, with 4 sticky corners, which I believe are meant to face downward, and the other side ofcourse, which has 2 markings on each sharp length(edge). Marking | on side 1, and || on side 2.
I use both sides | and || of the blade for a total of 10 shaves.

Not to confuse anyone, but has anyone opened up the razor, "Flipped" the blade, meaning, the flat side that was meant to be placed facing down, is now facing UP towards you as you close the razor? Would that make for another good 10 shaves using the other side of the same edges? I hope I have not confused anyone here, so please ask if anything. Thanks :)
 
I would guess no... the razor's edge is so fine that I think any edge wear would effect both sides.

Sticky corners? I think the "glue" is just there to keep the paper wrapper secured around the blade. It's always just remained stuck to the paper for me, not the blade.
 
I had received a few samples blades from razorandbrush.com. I had noticed the blades were numbered 1-4, so wrote Giovanni Abrate, the owner, what this meant. Here is his answer:

"The numbers were used in the early days of the 20th century and, especially, during the depression, when people tried to extend the life of every blade, to save money. Back then people would rotate the blade, using just one side per shave. Some people will tell you that flipping the blade makes no difference, because the edge is what wears off, anyway. They ignore the fact that the edge wears unevenly because the angle used when you shave causes one side (bottom) of the edge to wear more than the other. The numbers are of little use today for two reasons:

1. Blades are cheap and the economy is not like in the 30s (at least in the Western world, it may still be a factor, say, in Bangladesh.)

2. The use of stainless steel and hard coatings has made the uneveness in blade wear much less noticeable."

So, there ya go.
 
I would guess no... the razor's edge is so fine that I think any edge wear would effect both sides.

Sticky corners? I think the "glue" is just there to keep the paper wrapper secured around the blade. It's always just remained stuck to the paper for me, not the blade.

+2

==Tom
 
Garfinkel, so what you are saying is that it is entirely possible to "Flip" the blade so that the cutting edge on the opposite side can be used?

I get 10 decents shaves per blade. I figure if I do 5 with the blade in 1 position, then open the razor, flip the blade, Perhaps the last 5 shaves would be a little smoother?
 
I was only relaying Giovanni's response, but it does sound like there will be a difference, since the edge will wear a little less on the flip side. However, as he suggested, it makes little difference because of the stainless steel and coatings now used. I suppose try it, and see if you notice any difference. I have, and noticed none. But, honestly, I am not trying to get 10 shaves out of a 15 cent blade. :)
 
J

Jarmo P

There was another thread and I think the what I got from there is that one should not even loosen a blade for rinsing after a shave, but instead keep it in a fixed position as long as it is used, before disposing. No idea for the reason, but i bought that idea and never even loosen a blade.
 
It probably has to do with tension placed on the blade to bend it but I have not seen a reason as to why it cannot be done if I'm gonna get a smoother shave out of it. So I've now 'flipped' the blade, meaning, as you look down at the blade, the flat side facing you, is now on the bottom, and the bottom side is up.
This means, the 2 sharp edges that weren't doing the cutting before will now get to do some cutting. So far, I got 8 shaves from the right side up position, and now in the right side down position, I'm hoping to get 8 more. Just an experiment...I'll let you guys know how it worked.

If indeed someone's done this, I'd like to hear how their shave went.
 
I finally did it. After 8 shaves, I opened up the TTO razor, carefully took out the blade, flipped it over, and shaved. Not bad at all! I feel as if I can get 8 more shaves out of it. I've heard DE blades can last longer than cartridge blades, so I'm going to see how long it can last. I think the trick is in lots of slickness, slowing down, and also keeping the fingers of the free hand on your face so you can feel what you need to cut and after it's been cut. A brush can only lather, but not feel the short uncut stubble.
 
Honestly it never occurred to me that the 4 "glue dots" were meant to be the down side of the blade.
thanks for that
something else to worry about...

seriously, it hadn't ever dawned on me that I might "rotate" a blade. I'll try it and we'll see.

thanks,

Einar
 
I was only relaying Giovanni's response, but it does sound like there will be a difference, since the edge will wear a little less on the flip side. However, as he suggested, it makes little difference because of the stainless steel and coatings now used. I suppose try it, and see if you notice any difference. I have, and noticed none. But, honestly, I am not trying to get 10 shaves out of a 15 cent blade. :)

Yeah, but think of all the money would save over a lifetime :confused:

You could buy the wife an icecream :biggrin:
 
The way I look at it is, it's not just about saving money, but maximizing the life of the blade as well. Plus I'm big on the green, and throwing these blades away scares me. They are not only dangerous, but who knows where they end up. Our recycling pickup doesn't take them here! So I've just been saving them in aluminum foil. It would be a HUGE waste to just chuck them after a few shaves. Doesn't matter what the cost is. As long as the shave is comfortable enough (I think it's the skill required that really counts)

So yeah, no cuts, no itching, no nicks, and I'm having a smooth day today :)
 
I'm distinctly "Old School" in much of this-- I have been Flipping blades DAILY each day since I started shaving. I'm 50 years old...so you do the math.

I have tried, at various times NOT flipping, and have noticed no difference, other than a sticky soap residue on the bottom of the blade, and less comfortable shaves. I was taught this by my father (obviously a depression-era thing) but here's what I do.

Completing shaving, EACH TIME...I open the razor, rinse it (sans blade) rinse the blade, and flip it. Not so concerned with "1-4-3-2" as I am just one side over the other, since I naturally rotate the "East and West" sides while shaving to minimize wear.

I just leave the water running at this step, hold the blade carefully between thumb and forefinger, run the empty razor under the tap, then run the backside (with all the soap and hair attached) under the stream, pop what was the bottom/dirty-now-clean side into the razor so it faces up, close the thing, give it a shake, and put it away.

This is nothing eye-opening-- it's just what I do, and what everyone in my family always has done. The wear seems to be simply on the edge, and it does seem to wear more evenly this way...but the effect is minimal.

Contrary to popular opinion, I do NOT flip underwear, however.

I'll take my flipped Gillette Silver Blue or Derby blade, on the 4th-5th day, a 99 cent puck of Williams, my beloved 59 Fatboy, and as long as you let me do a decent prep, I'll go head to head with anyone's BBS shave, with your "fancy-pants" cremes/rubs/gels/vibrating heads...just be aware that when your 10-minute shave-fest is over, I'll just be starting my first pass. When I'm done, 30 minutes later, I'll have forgotten you were there, and the "competition" will cease to be an issue in my mind.

Anyway-- I was frankly very surprised that no one opens the razor between shaves. It seems silly. I sliced some roast beef last night for a snack. Would I put the knife away dirty? Do I care that I cut it right handed and that SWMBO might use the same knife lefthanded? No. Do I care that she used that same knife to cut carrots at lunchtime? No. All I care is that it does the job efficiently. When it stops doing that, I sharpen it. In the case of a DE blade, when it stops performing, I replace it.

Flippin' blades!
 
I clean out my razor with a brush and some dishwashing antibacterial soap everytime I change a blade. Between that, I rinse with pressurized hot water. The shaving cream never sticks to my razor because of the way I prepare my cream and also I rinse every one or two passes I make. So my razor stays clean. I also place it in a dry environment so it dries quickly. I flipped the blade, got a great shave, but didn't notice much of a difference, so what I'll do is flip it once more the day after tomorrow. Anyways, just an experiment. Is there any scientific explanation to how Flipping a blade over would cut?
 
I have tried, at various times NOT flipping, and have noticed no difference, other than a sticky soap residue on the bottom of the blade, and less comfortable shaves.

How is it "no difference" if it's a less comfortable shave? To me, that will be a HUGE difference and reason enough to do something about it. :)
 
I'm a "new guy" to these forums, and still waiting for my new shaver to come in the mail, but I have $0.02 to toss in on this conversation. I'd skip to the last paragraph if you are short on time, or read through if you care about my overstated opinions :tongue_sm

Having spent many long winters sitting around on the weekends sharpening hunting knives, chainsaw chains, fillet knives and run of the mill pocket knives, I have studied metals and cutting edges to an extreme degree. There are two basic principles that you need to understand regarding the edge of a blade, and why it gets dull; rollover and simple wear. I can only speak to my experience with knives, but I expect it would help with this discussion.

Rollover is common with all stainless steel edges, due to the metal being rather soft. Most people think that stainless simply doesn't hold an edge, so it's not popular as a knife metal among true blade aficionados. This is true, but not typically because the blade dulls - the metal actually folds over! Thus, if you sharpen the metal to an extreme angle, it 'dulls' immediately because the metal folds over (note: you can't see this with the naked eye in most cases). If you sharpen to a moderate angle, it simply isn't all that sharp, and dulls faster than a non-stainless blade anyway.

Simple wear is the act of the metal itself being worn down by friction and corrosion. A high carbon metal blade is far and above the best at keeping an amazing razor sharp edge, but it can (and does) corrode quickly if not properly maintained and protected.

Friction is the most the most prevalent aspect of razor blade wear, with a small amount of corrosion wear. When you shave, you are sliding one side of the metal edge over your skin. That causes it to wear down, and creates small pits in the edge as it wears. The opposite side of the blade 'ramp' stays smooth, not being subject to the friction of your beard and skin. So does it make sense to flip the edge? I think no, and here's why:

If you keep using just one side, it leaves the un-worn ramp to the edge to maintain a more uniform blade edge over time. If you flip every shave, it can cause a greater difference in blade edge irregularities because you are attacking 'through' the blade edge in both directions, giving you a much higher chance of 'meeting' irregularities in the wear surface on the other side and causing a large 'groove' of sorts to appear in the sharp edge. Keep in mind this large 'groove' may be barely visible to the human eye, but still technically less than ideal!

So my vote on this matter is no, don't flip. Technically it doesn't help, at least in my opinion. Don't flip those blades over! On the other hand, the difference is so incredibly small, I highly doubt anyone would ever notice the slightest difference in their quality of shave. So my vote is equally "it doesn't really matter" on this one, since you shouldn't be able to tell either way.

Cheerfully,
Matt

edited for spelling, woah
 
I'm a "new guy" to these forums, and still waiting for my new shaver to come in the mail, but I have $0.02 to toss in on this conversation. I'd skip to the last paragraph if you are short on time, or read through if you care about my overstated opinions :tongue_sm

Having spent many long winters sitting around on the weekends sharpening hunting knives, chainsaw chains, fillet knives and run of the mill pocket knives, I have studied metals and cutting edges to an extreme degree. There are two basic principles that you need to understand regarding the edge of a blade, and why it gets dull; rollover and simple wear. I can only speak to my experience with knives, but I expect it would help with this discussion.

Rollover is common with all stainless steel edges, due to the metal being rather soft. Most people think that stainless simply doesn't hold an edge, so it's not popular as a knife metal among true blade aficionados. This is true, but not typically because the blade dulls - the metal actually folds over! Thus, if you sharpen the metal to an extreme angle, it 'dulls' immediately because the metal folds over (note: you can't see this with the naked eye in most cases). If you sharpen to a moderate angle, it simply isn't all that sharp, and dulls faster than a non-stainless blade anyway.

Simple wear is the act of the metal itself being worn down by friction and corrosion. A high carbon metal blade is far and above the best at keeping an amazing razor sharp edge, but it can (and does) corrode quickly if not properly maintained and protected.

Friction is the most the most prevalent aspect of razor blade wear, with a small amount of corrosion wear. When you shave, you are sliding one side of the metal edge over your skin. That causes it to wear down, and creates small pits in the edge as it wears. The opposite side of the blade 'ramp' stays smooth, not being subject to the friction of your beard and skin. So does it make sense to flip the edge? I think no, and here's why:

If you keep using just one side, it leaves the un-worn ramp to the edge to maintain a more uniform blade edge over time. If you flip every shave, it can cause a greater difference in blade edge irregularities because you are attacking 'through' the blade edge in both directions, giving you a much higher chance of 'meeting' irregularities in the wear surface on the other side and causing a large 'groove' of sorts to appear in the sharp edge. Keep in mind this large 'groove' may be barely visible to the human eye, but still technically less than ideal!

So my vote on this matter is no, don't flip. Technically it doesn't help, at least in my opinion. Don't flip those blades over! On the other hand, the difference is so incredibly small, I highly doubt anyone would ever notice the slightest difference in their quality of shave. So my vote is equally "it doesn't really matter" on this one, since you shouldn't be able to tell either way.

Cheerfully,
Matt

edited for spelling, woah

Good points-- thanks! I would worry about this if I used a blade for 32 times, but the fact is, I don't. I typically get 4-5 shaves out of a blade, which is 1-(flip) 2-(flip) 3-(flip) 4 or 2 shaves per surface. I think the difference in wear would be infinitesimal at best...

...we didn't look at DE side one/side 2 issues, left/right, etc. Very few of us monitor this closely, but I know there are some who do a stroke, rinse, turn/stroke,rinse, turn manuever each time. This is fine, in theory, but doesn't take into account toughness of beard/skin in different areas of the face. My cheeks are like a razor strop, but my neck is like a turkey's...conversely, the hair on my cheeks is like fine down, and the hair on my neck is like #14 baling wire.

I take comfort in knowing that each severed little hair is out of my happy razor each day, even in the hidden crevices. Cleanliness trumps sharpness, because if the thing "don't cut it" I can always put a new blade in.
 
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