Importance of bad blades

I received and awesome PIF from @Cksnffr and have been trying some blades. I've only used astra SP prior to this and only have a couple months of DE shaving experience. I naturally gravitated some of the brands I knew about (feather, personna, etc) but struggled a little trying to determine when I should be swapping out the blade. I tried to detect a fall off in performance didn't really know what to look for. There were some ZAE blades in the PIF and I am so glad that he included these. I tried one last night and I finally know know what a bad blade feels like. I was trying to detect "pulling" or degradation in performance but now that I have used a truly awful blade I have a much better idea of what to look for. I have been changing out my blades too soon.

As a newbie I think I benefited greatly by experiencing a shave with these blades. Much like resetting with a great shaving soap to better assess the performance of a new one you're trying, but in reverse. I can only hope to someday be able to judge differences between blades like many of you guys can on this form. For now I have gained a better appreciation for how good some of these blades are.

If the blade still works for you, don't change it. Some people go >100 shaves on one blade, others 3-4. It really depends you the razor, the blade, and the user. I'm glad the blade PIF was helpful to you. Thanks to [MENTION=87442]Cksnffr[/MENTION] for engaging in the behavior that makes B&B great!

ciderguy said:

If the blade still works for you, don't change it. Some people go >100 shaves on one blade, others 3-4.

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I just stumbled across some of those long term use threads last week. My DE was my grandfathers which got passed along to me when someone was cleaning out some old stuff. It had a couple vintage Gillette platinum plus blades and I used one of those for probably two weeks? Maybe longer. It seemed fine but I was sure I was just missing something and it "needed" to be changed. To be honest with all of the different blades I received I'm very much in a gotta try that blade mode so don't think I'll be pushing the use limits any time soon. Might not be quite as quick to swap out based on my previous - I think I mighta felt something, sorta? maybe...?? mentality. Yes, blade are cheap no need to go nuts but I want to give them thier fair chance to impress me for future reference.

sgemmett said:

I finally know know what a bad blade feels like. I was trying to detect "pulling" or degradation in performance but now that I have used a truly awful blade I have a much better idea of what to look for.

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I think you just stumbled on the secret of why Derby blades are still sold.

frstplce said:

I think you just stumbled on the secret of why Derby blades are still sold.

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+1

IMHO Derby are the blades of the Devil

I still have some Graham Field blades that'll knock your socks off!

They'll make you appreciate still having a face!!!

TobyC said:

I still have some Graham Field blades that'll knock your socks off!

They'll make you appreciate still having a face!!!

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I read about Graham Field too, guess their sales strategy is based on a dare. Its funny, I looked at the ZAE blade under a microscope and there is nothing outwardly wrong with the way it looks. Guess this is re-affirming that looks aren't everything when it comes to honing. I still have the blade in the razor and I've got a morbid curiosity about trying it again. Like when you smell milk that went bad, but then you sniff it again

TobyC said:

I still have some Graham Field blades that'll knock your socks off!

They'll make you appreciate still having a face!!!

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I still have quite a few of the Graham-Field prep blades left as well.
I should frame one to hang in the bathroom with the title "My Nemesis" underneath. Darn things bite more than a rabbid badger covered in fire ants!

TobyC said:

I still have some Graham Field blades that'll knock your socks off!

They'll make you appreciate still having a face!!!

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Are you really sure you don't like those
Graham Fields blades, it's probably your. .
lather , you should try some of that 200 dollar
an once french soap from From France, ,
it's probably your skin.. because I was watching. .
lock-Up on television and those guys in statesVille..
Max, said according to their blade Wars...
Graham Fields is a Great Blade. ..

weekly said:

Are you really sure you don't like those
Graham Fields blades, it's probably your. .
lather , you should try some of that 200 dollar
an once french soap from From France, ,
it's probably your skin.. because I was watching. .
lock-Up on television and those guys in statesVille..
Max, said according to their blade Wars...
Graham Fields is a Great Blade. ..

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You need STP oil treatment and a strong dose of morphine to shave with those chainsaw blades!!!

TobyC said:

I still have some Graham Field blades that'll knock your socks off!

They'll make you appreciate still having a face!!!

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Shame I tossed them, but I had some counterfeit Gillette blades that probably would have made the Graham Field blades seem downright pleasurable. After a single swipe, that side of my face ended up splotchy red and broke out like crazy. I couldn't shave for the better part of a week. I'm pretty sure they just cut an old can lid with a pair of scissors to look like a DE blade, swiped it a few times across a rock from their backyard and printed a Gillette logo on it.

I joke about Derby, and they really are terrible for me, but at least they act like a proper razor blade. Those counterfeits, the best association I could make was like trying to use an epilator on my face.

frstplce said:

Shame I tossed them, but I had some counterfeit Gillette blades that probably would have made the Graham Field blades seem downright pleasurable. After a single swipe, that side of my face ended up splotchy red and broke out like crazy. I couldn't shave for the better part of a week. I'm pretty sure they just cut an old can lid with a pair of scissors to look like a DE blade, swiped it a few times across a rock from their backyard and printed a Gillette logo on it.

I joke about Derby, and they really are terrible for me, but at least they act like a proper razor blade. Those counterfeits, the best association I could make was like trying to use an epilator on my face.

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Should have pif'd a few, "The blade that beat the Graham Field!!!"

You would have been famous!

DCRIII said:

I still have quite a few of the Graham-Field prep blades left as well.
I should frame one to hang in the bathroom with the title "My Nemesis" underneath. Darn things bite more than a rabbid badger covered in fire ants!

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It's by far the worst blade I've ever tried. It felt like plucking the whiskers from my face yet still having massive stubble left afterwards. Crystal is next in line, everything that makes the GRAFCO a bad blade just not as intense. With all the love it gets I was surprised at how bad it was for me.

Currently have three blades in active rotation:
My D1 Flare Tip Super Speed has a GSB with 10 shaves on it. Wasn't a great shave this morning, but am thinking it was me. Because it really caught me off guard. Which means I didn't do something right.
My I2 Slim has an Astra SP that has been good for 21 shaves so far.
My M1 Black Handle Super Speed also has a GSB in it. Currently at 20 shaves.

One of the big numbered blades will likely get changed out in the next few days.

Have tried some other blades, but the only other one I still have some of are some Dorco's (ST300 I think), as of the blades I have tried I like the GSB and the Astra SP the best. And not just because I can get 20-30 shaves out of one blade.

CigarSmoka said:

Crystal is next in line, everything that makes the GRAFCO a bad blade just not as intense. With all the love it gets I was surprised at how bad it was for me.

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Have you tried that one in multiple razors? I tried a couple in one razor before relegating them to the junk pile. But randomly decided to use another in a different razor and actually found it quite nice.

frstplce said:

Have you tried that one in multiple razors? I tried a couple in one razor before relegating them to the junk pile. But randomly decided to use another in a different razor and actually found it quite nice.

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I only had an EJ at the time. I've added a V3 and Slim (M3) but now that I've found a few blades I really like I doubt I'll buy any Crystals to try again. I've experienced the same with Voskhod, excellent in my EJ but not as nice in the V3.

Everyone has different experiences with DE blades and in the 10 months since I started this endeavor it is easier to tell when a blade is bad if it feels like it tugs from the start. For me to know when the blade has lived a useful life it is tugging or if no tugging but it takes more touching up than normal then is done.

Now, to me the Voskhod and the Personna blades are the worst. The Voskhod I only made a half pass on 2 different blades each from a different tuck and I just couldn't get past doing the cheeks and that is my easy part and when I hit the neck where the tough whiskers are I had to grab a different razor. The Personna Red actually felt like it had claws from a cat embedded into the blade. I managed a full 2 pass plus touch up but my face hurt for 2 days afterwards. I am still working through some samples but really like Wilkinson Sword Classics and Gillette 7 o'clock Permasharp blades each of those I can go up to 7 shaves before tossing and have gone to 11 shaves and also have only gone to 3 with a couple of them. I had good and bad luck with Merkur 11 or 13, can't remember now, on the first one but have only been getting 3 on the last couple blades.

I am currently working on using up a pack of Topaz Platinum and I tried a second shave on one last night and had a little pulling and took some work to finish. These will be one use and gone. Derby's and Shark blades were a one and done. I have a pack of Gillette Wilkinson Sword from India that I don't even know if I can do one and done but will try.

So it all comes down to does it work for you. If you can't feel it tugging you should be able to tell when it takes more work to get a clean shave from them.

How bad could those Graham Field blades be that everyone talks about? I survived those Personna Reds and even that 10 pack of Personna blades from the grocery store and they felt like Edward Sissorhands went to town on my face, those Graham Fields should feel like a trip to shave nirvana.

skibik said:

How bad could those Graham Field blades be that everyone talks about? I survived those Personna Reds and even that 10 pack of Personna blades from the grocery store and they felt like Edward Sissorhands went to town on my face, those Graham Fields should feel like a trip to shave nirvana.

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Dull the Personna on a brick, then leave it out to rust. Scrape the rust off with a rasp then shave with it. The GRAFCO is worse....an absolutely horrible blade. Then again, YMMV.

It always amazes me how blades can be such a YMMV thing. Crystal, Personna sure not a problem and in certain razors for me they are my preferred blade. Voskhod blades work well for me in most razors, but in my Single Ring... Let's just say if The dreaded Graham Field is much worse *shivers*.

My own method for testing if a blade is sharp enough for me to get a comfortable shave is simply shaving my mustache area. Like most people it's a more sensitive are than my face so if I can't get through a "mustache pass" without wincing I know that the blade is either dull (and needs to be thrown away) or doesn't work well with the razor I have it loaded in.