Potentially daft question about injector blades

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Potentially daft question, but I always say no question is daft if you don't know the answer and all questions raised present the opportunity for self-deprecation and so others to pipe in with "I always wondered that" ...

Anyway, do injector blades have to be inserted one way ... as in is it possible if you've been given a generous slip of single blades cellotaped to a postcard is it possible to put them in upside down?

I've repacked a Personna magazine with blades and just wanted to check I've not potentially packed them in upside down. I've also dropped a vintage Schick Krona Edge into my Golden 500 and it's rough as a Durham dog dresser. I was especially careful not to dull it when slipping it into the magazine for inserting into the razor and especially careful not to dull it on the blade stops when inserting into the razor.

Thoughts?
 
Not daft at all and one to which I do not know the answer. It boils down to whether there is asymmetry at the blade edge - is there a top and bottom?

I have repacked blade magazines many times and have never noticed any difference in shaving, so I'm inclined to believe the blade is symmetrical.

Twin blades, however, are not symmetrical.

...... Unless you know different!
 
Not a daft question at all, Paul. A very good question indeed. I have always made sure to transfer injector blades from one clip to another in exactly the same orientation, but I wasn't sure why. Now I am. I just had a look at a Personna blade and couldn't see a difference between the two sides of the edge. So I got out my highly sophisticated microscope (a clip on thing for my phone) and tried to take a side view picture of the blade. Fiddly stuff. But I managed. Here is the resulting crappy and grainy image:
InjectorBladeSideView.jpg

To me it looks as if the blades are not symmetrical and it would therefore make a difference if you insert them the wrong way round. Then again it could be that I didn't get the blade exactly side on.

Edit: The more I look at the photo, the less I can see a difference. :rolleyes:
 
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Greetings
I tend to agree with Paul's view above , having broken a couple of Personna plastic blade magazines I have repacked them into old metal ones and freely admit I never even considered if there was a top or bottom so I suspect they just went in either way up and it seemed to make no difference.

The big problem repacking injector blades is scraping the cutting edge on the new magazine, it's very easy to do and only a gentle scrape will bugger the blade.

Regards
Dick.
 
Right, sharp bit forwards and omote upwards ...

Interesting, Andreas. I can actually see something there, but not quite sure what but it does look asymmetrical. I think we are erring on the side of that there is a top and a bottom to these blades. I wonder if I should try to release that vintage Schick Krona Edge and try it the other way up. Damn thing won't shave me.
 
Greetings

Another thought has occurred to me I do believe that the old Schick Krona Edge injector blades were carbon blades, I certainly have had a magazine of them in the past that came with a razor and I found them rough as hell exactly as you have.

One of the problems of the earlier NOS blades were that they were not all Stainless blades with coated edges, there were at the time several different processes used to coat carbon blades to prevent rust. The main problem seems to be to me that if NOS blades are great now then you can be sure they were always great; but if they are crap now it does not necessarily mean they were crap when they were manufactured, in many cases half a century ago, possibly the passage of time has simply degraded the edges especially so if they are carbon.

I have found this old add on e-bay for Schick Krona Edge Blades and ther is no mention that they are made of stainless steel

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-196...460050?hash=item1ea5401852:g:nqMAAOSwuWVWFEJ3

Here are some old Schick Injector blades that came with my Golden 500, they are carbon and pull like a train, they have some kind of yellowish/gold coating on them, again perhaps they were once good and now have just deteriorated. I scraped the surface off one with some emery paper and left it overnight in the bathroom it was rusty by the morning so I am quite happy they are carbon.

If you recall I think it was Brian Krampert on TOST Forum who discussed a few years ago about micro rust and the way it invisibly to the naked eye attacks steels even stainless ones especially those with fine edges ie razor blades, you would need someone a lot brighter than me to explain it but it all seems to make sense and perhaps explains why some of the carbon blades from that transition period between carbon and stainless are now either poor or useless.

Regards
Dick.

DSC03877.JPG
 
Thank you for your thoughts, Dick.

I've been passed a postcard of various new and vintage blades. The Krona Edge seemed right for the 500. Yeah, it might well be kippered. It feels sharp running my thumb across it and does shave if I apply some pressure but in-shave, it's like it's at the end of its life on the first run.

Damn!

Meanwhile, I'm a born again Schicker so long as it's a Chinese blade in the razor. Gosh! They're good! Smooth and long lasting. I have an E2 and a G500 in my collection and both are lovely razors.

Right! My eyes are a little more open for testing out the rest of this strip of blades. I think I'll ditch the vintage Krona Edge in question or perhaps try it in one of my Keen Kutter razors.
 
Right, sharp bit forwards and omote upwards ...

Interesting, Andreas. I can actually see something there, but not quite sure what but it does look asymmetrical. I think we are erring on the side of that there is a top and a bottom to these blades. I wonder if I should try to release that vintage Schick Krona Edge and try it the other way up. Damn thing won't shave me.
I'll have another look at the blade tomorrow with a better microscope, but I won't be able to take pictures. I'll let you know my findings. The more I look at the picture, the more I think its symmetrical and just not photographed straight on.
 
With other vintage blades, I've often stropped them and they've played well ...

How do you strop an injector blade? I've injected it and hand stropped with some alcohol on my hand. I've pushed it out, flipped it over, re-injected it and done the same. Fingers crossed ... I'll try again tomorrow.
 
Potentially daft question, but I always say no question is daft if you don't know the answer and all questions raised present the opportunity for self-deprecation and so others to pipe in with "I always wondered that" ...

Anyway, do injector blades have to be inserted one way ... as in is it possible if you've been given a generous slip of single blades cellotaped to a postcard is it possible to put them in upside down?

I've repacked a Personna magazine with blades and just wanted to check I've not potentially packed them in upside down. I've also dropped a vintage Schick Krona Edge into my Golden 500 and it's rough as a Durham dog dresser. I was especially careful not to dull it when slipping it into the magazine for inserting into the razor and especially careful not to dull it on the blade stops when inserting into the razor.

Thoughts?
Injector blades only GO in ONE CORRECT WAY..If you put it in upside down you are SNOOKERED..No Bones about that..Moreover..Those Dutch Krona Blades are NOT Carbon..:eek:

Billy
 
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