Next blades to try and which of the Gillette's?

Save yourself money, trouble & shoe leather and get the Gillette Platinum and the Gillette Rubie. The best out of St. Pete. (y)
Blades are a very YMMV, those particular blades are excellent but right now the Permsharp & Nacet work the best with my growth and my Techs, but tomorrow I might suggest a completely different thing!

Thank you all for the suggestions, the next blades to trial have arrived :)

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An Excellent selection of blades.

I'd rank them in terms of sharpness

Top group - 7 Days, 7 Yellow, Bic, Permasharp,
Mid - Astra, Gillette Plat, Rubie, Treet Plat
Mild - Vosk

I've not used Supermax Platinum, I've used other Supermax blades and liked them.
 
Sooner or later you'll find that it doesn't matter which blade you use as long as it isn't damaged or dull. I had a bunch of loose blades of many different brands that I put in a container, I just grab whatever the next one is and use it. The only real difference is that some stay sharp much longer than others.
 
I'm envious of someone who can just about use any blade.
Feathers, Kai, Personna, Polsilver & Gillette Super Platinums are all great for me.
Most others are a nightmare, including many people's favourites like Astra SP, Voskhod, Nacet & German Wilkinson's. All these really tug and most cause irritation to my skin. Anyone who can last more than 10 seconds using a Derby lives on another planet as far as I'm concerned!

I don't think my technique is lacking at all, but to say that everyone should be able to get on with any DE blade is, in my opinion, nonsense.
 
Skin and hair is different for everyone.

I have always had some small degree of difficulty with either shaving rash or irritation. I think my shaving prep / technique has improved over the years and moving to DE shaving has certainly helped, but am still amazed that some days it is an effortless smooth BBS and other days i get a few nicks or irritation for no apparent reason.

I would actually agree with the statement that anyone could actually use any blade, and that most of the result you get is down to preparation, taking your time, going lightly and concentrating on finding and keeping the correct angle for that razor.

I know absolutely, for instance, that i could muster a reasonable shave with a Straight if i chose to, even tho i have never used one, but I am confident if i took my time and went very carefully, i could manage an acceptable shave with one, even if it took several hours....

However, it is equally true that everyone will find a combo of razor and blade that will suit them particularly well.

For me it seems to be Merkur 20c + Astra SP, it just works well every time - but is it because that particular combo is outstanding ? or does it just suit the way i go about it and naturally mask the deficiencies in how i go about shaving ? Who knows ?

The only thing i disagree with (in many areas of life) is the sentiment "tried it once and it was garbage"

I would accept "tried it several times and it doesn't seem to work well for me"

Shaving is definitely a micro-science and the difference between ok shave and great shave is tiny details + concentration i think
 
I'm envious of someone who can just about use any blade.
Feathers, Kai, Personna, Polsilver & Gillette Super Platinums are all great for me.
Most others are a nightmare, including many people's favourites like Astra SP, Voskhod, Nacet & German Wilkinson's. All these really tug and most cause irritation to my skin. Anyone who can last more than 10 seconds using a Derby lives on another planet as far as I'm concerned!

I don't think my technique is lacking at all, but to say that everyone should be able to get on with any DE blade is, in my opinion, nonsense.
I guess I'm extraterrestrial. (lives on another planet) :alien:
 
Skin and hair is different for everyone.

I have always had some small degree of difficulty with either shaving rash or irritation. I think my shaving prep / technique has improved over the years and moving to DE shaving has certainly helped, but am still amazed that some days it is an effortless smooth BBS and other days i get a few nicks or irritation for no apparent reason.

I would actually agree with the statement that anyone could actually use any blade, and that most of the result you get is down to preparation, taking your time, going lightly and concentrating on finding and keeping the correct angle for that razor.

I know absolutely, for instance, that i could muster a reasonable shave with a Straight if i chose to, even tho i have never used one, but I am confident if i took my time and went very carefully, i could manage an acceptable shave with one, even if it took several hours....

However, it is equally true that everyone will find a combo of razor and blade that will suit them particularly well.

For me it seems to be Merkur 20c + Astra SP, it just works well every time - but is it because that particular combo is outstanding ? or does it just suit the way i go about it and naturally mask the deficiencies in how i go about shaving ? Who knows ?

The only thing i disagree with (in many areas of life) is the sentiment "tried it once and it was garbage"

I would accept "tried it several times and it doesn't seem to work well for me"

Shaving is definitely a micro-science and the difference between ok shave and great shave is tiny details + concentration i think
Anything that you tried awhile ago and didn't like you should definitely try again.
 
...The only thing i disagree with (in many areas of life) is the sentiment "tried it once and it was garbage"

I would accept "tried it several times and it doesn't seem to work well for me" ...


Excellent point. (y) I would say that it seems as if the Bic Chrome Platinum DE blade seems to be the most divisive blade with a 50/50 love/hate ratio. It seems most despise it early on in their shaving "career" and later on they come to love it once their technique is better. On the other end of the spectrum, the Astra SP garners almost universal love no matter the shaver's experience. Of course, those are just my observations and opinions.
 
To put this in perspective, i like my Merkur 20c because it is very forgiving and very rarely nips me. So i can be a bit more sloppy and cavalier with it.

I also have an Edwin Jagger DE89 which has given me many great shaves, but in my hands it is a little less forgiving than the Merkur and will bite more readily if the angle is slightly wrong. The upside is that it definitely gives me a shave which is a fraction closer.

The difference between good close shave and rough shave is probably a difference of 5 degrees of tilt.

If you hold the two razors side by side, there is no discernible difference in blade angle or exposure that the eye can really see and the heads look of similar proportions.

So it is, as far as i can tell, about micro-differences in the blades and in the razor head and i think that's what i failed to properly grasp when i started out, being used to tilt-head cartridges and electric razors.

You load up a blade and you think you are going carefully, but in fact you are not going anywhere near carefully enough and you arnt concentrating anywhere near carefully enough.

I would say to anyone starting out, just set aside 30mins for each shave, then go slowly and gently and try to find a way of consistently reproducing and maintaining that exact correct shaving angle.

By all means try different razors and blades, that is half the fun, but work on consistency of angle when shaving and it will bring regular smooth consistent shaves

Its all well worth the effort, because there is no better feeling than completing a super smooth, super close shave that doesn't leave any marks or pain.
 
Sooner or later you'll find that it doesn't matter which blade you use as long as it isn't damaged or dull. I had a bunch of loose blades of many different brands that I put in a container, I just grab whatever the next one is and use it. The only real difference is that some stay sharp much longer than others.

Thanks for your post - I have definitely found over the past few months without the need to dash out at sunrise each morning to commute to work and using those precious saved minutes shaving my technique has really improved. Previously I just wet shaved at weekends but this more sustained practice has really helped so I think your right that with this patience and practice you can tweak technique to the blade.

Saying that I really didn't get on with the Gilette Green - but perhaps I just need to try again in 6 months!

Really though I enjoy trying the different blades and comparing their performance seeking this shaving perfection that I will likely never attain. Still it's a cheap hobby relatively(!) and fun :) and In lockdown trying a blade from the other side of the world was the closest thing to a holiday !
 
I like to look at where the blades are produced and try different countries. So far you've tried a lot of Russian (the Gillettes, Rapira, Voshkod), Egypt (Shark) and I think Tatra is Czech.

Maybe try BIC Chrome Platinum (Greece), Super-Max Platinum (India), Treet Platinum (Pakistan) and of course Feather (Japan).

Thanks for your post - I've taken your advice and added some blades from around the world the try :)
 
Saying that I really didn't get on with the Gilette Green - but perhaps I just need to try again in 6 months!

I used the Russian 7 Green for the first time in years and I found the first few shaves with the blade weren't the best but it did smooth out eventually, but it's not my favourite Russian Gillette blade.

Blades can be quite a YMMV issue.
 
Skin and hair is different for everyone.

I have always had some small degree of difficulty with either shaving rash or irritation. I think my shaving prep / technique has improved over the years and moving to DE shaving has certainly helped, but am still amazed that some days it is an effortless smooth BBS and other days i get a few nicks or irritation for no apparent reason.

I would actually agree with the statement that anyone could actually use any blade, and that most of the result you get is down to preparation, taking your time, going lightly and concentrating on finding and keeping the correct angle for that razor.

I know absolutely, for instance, that i could muster a reasonable shave with a Straight if i chose to, even tho i have never used one, but I am confident if i took my time and went very carefully, i could manage an acceptable shave with one, even if it took several hours....

However, it is equally true that everyone will find a combo of razor and blade that will suit them particularly well.

For me it seems to be Merkur 20c + Astra SP, it just works well every time - but is it because that particular combo is outstanding ? or does it just suit the way i go about it and naturally mask the deficiencies in how i go about shaving ? Who knows ?

The only thing i disagree with (in many areas of life) is the sentiment "tried it once and it was garbage"

I would accept "tried it several times and it doesn't seem to work well for me"

Shaving is definitely a micro-science and the difference between ok shave and great shave is tiny details + concentration i think
Straight shaving is easy, maintenance is a pain.
 
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