Chinese Gilette Blue blades?

I am working in Beijing for a month, and although I brought enough blades, thought I would see what was available locally. While almost every kiosk here sells electric razors, none of the shops or department stores I went to over the weekend had blades. This morning I went for a walk and found a brand new Walmart superstore (in Changping district out in the boonies!) and so took a look.

Unlike the US, Chinese Walmarts have associates in every aisle and are really into customer service, so when I couldn't find anything in the toiletries section I asked a young woman in Chinese whether they carried razor blades. She answered: "razor BLADES? What brand is your razor, Gillette (Jilie)?" I said yes, the old type (didn't want to complicate things) and she told me that they keep the blades in the back and she would see what they had. A few minutes later she came out with a selection of cartridges. I explained that i meant even older, and drew her a picture of a double edged blade. She promptly brought me back a box of "Gillette Blue" blades -- 5 for a US dollar.

They come in a cardboard box in a bubble card labeled "Gillette Blue" in English and "Gillette disposable stainless steel razor blades" in Chinese, along with the contact information for Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan and the patent information. The blades themselves are double wrapped (an inner wax paper wrapper and an outer one printed "Gillette disposable stainless steel razor blade" in Chinese, and on one side of the blade is printed "Gillette Super Stainless, Shanghai China" in English and something similar in Chinese (I put the blade I opened in my razor without reading it carefully).

The Gillettes I am familiar with are the Russian yellows and greens, the Indian blacks, and the Polish "Swedes" (of which I used my last one this morning). Anyone have more information on these "blues?" I'll report back in a week when I have tried one or two of them.

A quick follow up as promised. They seem very similar to the Gillette Swedes and a bit better than the Gillette Indian Blacks. They are quire sharp and I get 4 shaves from a blade: the same as a Swede or a Feather. The Merkurs, which I usually use, are not as sharp, but do not dull as fast (I average 7 shaves from them). I also found them cheaper at a Chinese Century Mart department store: Walmart is not the cost leader here.

In short, a good 2nd tier choice if I don't use a Merkur, or if I want something which is sharper and will shave a bit faster at the cost of not lasting as long. YMMV of course.

Blade palm stroping..ask bout it..your bladeswil last 1 month or more!

I just got a pack today ..... Before I saw this thread. I'll be trying them soon and will post my thoughts.
only things I can compare to are, legend has it, the sharpest blade in the world, the Feather, and my 'other' blades, Astra SP. Control razor, my ONLY razor, the Edwin Jagger DE89.
Wish me luck - styptic and Alum block at the ready !!

Thanks for the info.! I am kinda shocked that they charged 20 cents a blade though & in China no less.

that's what I paid - 7rmb pack of 5 - China ain't as cheap as some might think!

The bonafide, i.e., non-counterfeit, ones are a great blade as least as good as an Astra SP.

I tried then a number of years ago but was not impressed.

maybe mine were made on machinery that needed to be serviced

Can you still get these Chinese blades?

Mick said:

I tried then a number of years ago but was not impressed.

maybe mine were made on machinery that needed to be serviced

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I've seen the same blades in Thailand and as expected were overpriced.

I'm still trying to find out where to get 100 feathers for $10 in Thailand...

fast shaver said:

Thanks for the info.! I am kinda shocked that they charged 20 cents a blade though & in China no less.

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20¢ is bad, super Nacets are worse here... 25¢

There are some sellers in Aliexpress.
Price isn't really tempting, cheapest is 3.2€ for 10 blades and over 20€ for 100 which puts it above a lot of highly regarded blades.

Interesting product description:
"Single-layer blade design, suitable for traditional old double-sided turret."

ajkel64 said:

Can you still get these Chinese blades?

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I got my card a number of years ago from a B&B member who bought them back directly from China.

Well, today was my first attempt with one of these blades ......
Two days growth, 'control' kit consisting of Omega boar to get the whiskers fully lifted and hopefully easier to cut, Proraso 'red' cream and face lather. Razor, the trusty (one and only razor I own) EJ DE89 ........
Slightly nervous at first, I'd heard that these blades were low quality and prone to 'carving' people up .. But was very pleasantly surprised !!!
Three passes, and not so much as a weeper! Not BBS but good enough that the missus couldn't tell much of a difference (I could tell of course). No irritation, and after the cold water rinse applied Proraso red aftershave, sting was the same as after using a feather blade, but went in seconds. Didn't need alum block or styptic at all and it feels very nice. Maybe the second use will feel better, like the feathers do, only time will tell.
Obviously these blades are not as sharp as a feather blade, nor as sharp as an Astra SP, but not what I could call uncomfortable or difficult to use. I'd go so far as to call these blades 'gentle' (is that a term we use here?). I could definitely feel more resistance getting through my beard and so took it quite slow and gentle, but hey, it's not a feather!
So while I won't recommend these blades as great, they are for me, quite acceptable, and will be in my rotation though not too often, I much prefer my Feather and Astra SP blades.

Hope this is useful.

China shaver said:

Well, today was my first attempt with one of these blades ......
Two days growth, 'control' kit consisting of Omega boar to get the whiskers fully lifted and hopefully easier to cut, Proraso 'red' cream and face lather. Razor, the trusty (one and only razor I own) EJ DE89 ........
Slightly nervous at first, I'd heard that these blades were low quality and prone to 'carving' people up .. But was very pleasantly surprised !!!
Three passes, and not so much as a weeper! Not BBS but good enough that the missus couldn't tell much of a difference (I could tell of course). No irritation, and after the cold water rinse applied Proraso red aftershave, sting was the same as after using a feather blade, but went in seconds. Didn't need alum block or styptic at all and it feels very nice. Maybe the second use will feel better, like the feathers do, only time will tell.
Obviously these blades are not as sharp as a feather blade, nor as sharp as an Astra SP, but not what I could call uncomfortable or difficult to use. I'd go so far as to call these blades 'gentle' (is that a term we use here?). I could definitely feel more resistance getting through my beard and so took it quite slow and gentle, but hey, it's not a feather!
So while I won't recommend these blades as great, they are for me, quite acceptable, and will be in my rotation though not too often, I much prefer my Feather and Astra SP blades.

Hope this is useful.

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Sorta like a Shark then?

Juanmosey said:

Sorta like a Shark then?

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Unfortunately I have no idea what a shark blade is like ...
As I say, I’ve only used two other blades prior to this particular one.