Newbie question about blades

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Mikes1992

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42
I recently got a DE razor for Christmas, the Wilkinson's sword premium edition. I just wondered why I'm seem to be having such big differences in results from different blades. For instance, the included Wilkinson's sword blades seem to cut me allot, I heard blades could make a difference so I got some personna blades from Asda, they was miles better so I bought a sample pack of blades to see if I could find ones I liked as the personna blades I'm currently using only seem to be available in Asda for £1.90 for 10. The first ones I tried was Astra superior platinum and almost every one of my hair follicles bled that I run it over, I just threw the blade away and finished off with a new personna blade without a single nick.

Am I doing something wrong? I tried a derby extra today and it did a good job but I still think I prefer personna but I don't understand why some of the blades seem to be impossible for me to use no matter what angle or how little pressure I apply.

I do have sensitive skin and could never use my Gillette Fusion without having a face covered in ingrowing hairs and extremely irritated skin afterwards. Which doesn't seem to be a problem using a DE for the past couple weeks
 
Mikes1992 said:
I recently got a DE razor for Christmas, the Wilkinson's sword premium edition. I just wondered why I'm seem to be having such big differences in results from different blades. For instance, the included Wilkinson's sword blades seem to cut me allot, I heard blades could make a difference so I got some personna blades from Asda, they was miles better so I bought a sample pack of blades to see if I could find ones I liked as the personna blades I'm currently using only seem to be available in Asda for £1.90 for 10. The first ones I tried was Astra superior platinum and almost every one of my hair follicles bled that I run it over, I just threw the blade away and finished off with a new personna blade without a single nick.

Am I doing something wrong? I tried a derby extra today and it did a good job but I still think I prefer personna but I don't understand why some of the blades seem to be impossible for me to use no matter what angle or how little pressure I apply.

I do have sensitive skin and could never use my Gillette Fusion without having a face covered in ingrowing hairs and extremely irritated skin afterwards. Which doesn't seem to be a problem using a DE for the past couple weeks
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I had a lot of problems with the Wilkinson premium! Imho the classic (plastic) was much easier (or less agressive) than the premium one specially for beginners like us!
 
Mikes1992 said:
I recently got a DE razor for Christmas, the Wilkinson's sword premium edition. I just wondered why I'm seem to be having such big differences in results from different blades. For instance, the included Wilkinson's sword blades seem to cut me allot, I heard blades could make a difference so I got some personna blades from Asda, they was miles better so I bought a sample pack of blades to see if I could find ones I liked as the personna blades I'm currently using only seem to be available in Asda for £1.90 for 10. The first ones I tried was Astra superior platinum and almost every one of my hair follicles bled that I run it over, I just threw the blade away and finished off with a new personna blade without a single nick.

Am I doing something wrong? I tried a derby extra today and it did a good job but I still think I prefer personna but I don't understand why some of the blades seem to be impossible for me to use no matter what angle or how little pressure I apply.

I do have sensitive skin and could never use my Gillette Fusion without having a face covered in ingrowing hairs and extremely irritated skin afterwards. Which doesn't seem to be a problem using a DE for the past couple weeks
Click to expand...
Blades are very personal and vary a lot brand to brand. What you are experiencing is really common, the best advice is to get a blade sample pack and go through them until you find some that suit your face. Since you already have a sample pack it's just a case of working through them. It sounds like the Personna suit you so far but if you are new then some of it will no doubt be down to your technique. If you are happy with Personna's then stay with them for a while.
Are you using the Blue bowl soap that came with the razor? If I remember correctly it was awful and could be contributing to the cuts.
Have a read through our guide, there are a few cheap options for soaps available on the high street which will work better than the Wilkinson.
That is a great little razor for the money though.
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Boab said:
Blades are very personal and vary a lot brand to brand. What you are experiencing is really common, the best advice is to get a blade sample pack and go through them until you find some that suit your face. Since you already have a sample pack it's just a case of working through them. It sounds like the Personna suit you so far but if you are new then some of it will no doubt be down to your technique. If you are happy with Personna's then stay with them for a while.
Are you using the Blue bowl soap that came with the razor? If I remember correctly it was awful and could be contributing to the cuts.
Have a read through our guide, there are a few cheap options for soaps available on the high street which will work better than the Wilkinson.
That is a great little razor for the money though.
shavehelp.com

What To Buy To Get Started DE Shaving | The Shaving Room

‘What do I need to get started?’ A question that many newcomers will ask themselves. There is a huge amount of information available and it…
shavehelp.com shavehelp.com
Click to expand...

I got a bargain, I was looking at the plastic Wilkinson's sword razor for £5 then stubbled upon the premium set with a squashed box for £4. I have been using the soap and brush included in the set. I'll maybe have to have a look into getting another soap.
 
As already mentioned. Blades vary from blade to blade, face to face and brand to brand.
It has been known for some poor soul to get a pack of blades that they are normally happy with only to find it to be a duff pack and all the blades are terrible (not so common mind)
For instance many on the forum like some of the PolSilver blades in fact they say its the best blade for them, however for me most PolSilver blades feel like I dragging a rusty rake across my chin. I've found Astra green, Gillette silver-blue and Wilkinson Sword Classic are currently the best. However I have only tried maybe a fraction of the blades that are available.

Enjoy the experience. Take your time, try using a pre shave cream or oil before you lather up. You can get a cheap oil called nuage pre shave for about £1 at most supermarkets or toiletry stores.

Search around the forum for some ideas.
If you have sensitive skin you could try the Bodyshop Shaving cream (it does put the cat amongst the pigeons on this forum, a bit of a 'marmite' type cream)
They sometimes do an offer this end of the sales for a brush and cream for about £8-10.
Edit.... Just checked Body shop have the deal at the moment fir £8.... Cream brush and a little pocket square. Bargain!!!
 
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It sounds like your razor is just a little too aggressive for you at this stage. A short term fix for this , use an easy going medium sharp blade - the Personna Platinum Chrome blades would be good - £10 a hundred from Connaught online. Whilst you are at it, buy some some decent shaving cream, Taylor Of Old Bond St won't break the bank and will protect your face whilst shaving. My advice then would be to consolidate, watch lots of You Tube to improve your skills, don't buy anything else until you want to spend some serious money - then see below

( Ultimate fix = Rockwell 6S Adjustable Razor, Executive Shaving Natural Cream, Personna Lab Blues ,bowl & brush)
 
I tried the Dorco HQ stainless blades yesterday and they did an amazing job, extremely smooth, no tugging or nicking and a very close comfortable shave.

I have noticed a bit of a trend with the blades I've tried upto now, all the ones that are just stainless steel seem to work better for me while most of the ones that claim to be platinum coated or have some kind of coating don't seem to work that great or are unusable for me (they pull and nick my hair/skin). I do have some personna platinum blades in my sample pack, I was originally looking forward to trying them as the personna stainless blades worked well but now I'm just nervous. xD

I'm not sure if it is the fault of the soap. I've tried my spray foam and the results are pretty much identical. I did have a look in Wilko while I was there yesterday and they only had the Wilkinson's sword soap I have but in a black tub instead of a blue tub so wasn't actually sure if it was any better or different.
 
Bogeyman said:
No blade is platinum coated. The cutting edge is sputtered with platinum and perhaps chromium and other secret elements/alloys. Blades are coated with PTFE, or a similar derivative.

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Yes, they're sputter coated. As opposed to dip coated, spray coated, brush coated or any other type of coated.
 
Thanks guys, I still haven't managed to find the soaps recommended, I've seen a Nivea body shaving stick in a few shops. Although I feel like I've got the hang of the razor more as I haven't had any more issues. I've tried a few more blades and seem to be having good results now. I liked the Dorco titans, the Dorco blue ST300 was a bit rough and pulled a little which is what allot of people said about that blade but it did a decent job but I don't think I'd choose them. The shark super stainless was amazingly smooth and did a good job but felt blunt on the second shave (which would mean if I got them they'd be single use). The personna platinums was great, sharp and relatively smooth. I've just loaded an astra superior stainless for my next shave.

I've got a few more to try. Astra superior stainless, Gillette perma sharp, euromax, derby premium, lord platinum, Dorco Prime and Blue Bird (which I think may be identical to Derby extra as the blades inside are labeled as derby extra).
 
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