Has anyone else had a 'bad apple' blade?

[JasonJT]

Good evening all.

As per my shaving review earlier on today I used a Silver Star blade in my 39c Sledgehammer. I have used this blade before and thought it was really really good before discovering the Nacet.

I was pretty shocked at how it peformed today. It pulled a lot and was ever so scratchy (See my review for more details). It was like using a Treet blade which I never really liked.

Has this ever happened to anyone else? For instance buying a box of Nacets or Feathers and one of them performs poorly compared to the others? Was it really a dud blade because usually the Silver Stars are very good?

As usual your answers are appreciated.

Jason.

 

[brucered]

Yes, but it's usually not the blades fault, it's the lather....but I still blame the blade and swap it out.

 

[old_school]

Migrating away from St. Petersberg discovered consistency is an issue. In four years of Astra SP (200 blades) 2 duds.

Answer; it depends.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

I’d venture a guess that anyone who has been in this hobby long enough has run across a dud blade or two.

 

[Steelerfan]

So far I had only one dud blade. It was a Wilkinson Sword that came from a sampler pack. I also tried some Ladas blades that felt as if I was shaving with a steak knife!

 

[Al Bundy]

I've had a few bad blades so yes it does happen, thankfully not very often.

First time it happened was a bit of a shock and it was tearing my face up even on the WTG pass. At the time I didn't know any better and pushed on, even attempting a 2nd use the following day.

These days a dud goes straight in the bin

 

[JasonJT]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. As I have mentioned on my today's shave review, I am prepared to give the Silver Star blade another chance just to make sure it was really a dud blade I had. Hopefully this won't happen with the Nacet blade because that is my top blade at the moment. Still yet to find a blade that matches or betters it.

I really don't think its anything to do with the lather as my lathering skills are getting better all the time and I only have two lathing media at the moment, my shaving soap and my Aloe Vera shaving cream.

Anyway I guess this makes part of classic shaving fun! I guess it would be somewhat 'boring' if each and every blade got 10/10 on the reviews!

Jason.

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

Welcome to the DE blade lottery. Round and round the wheel goes and where she stops…nobody knows….

 

[SharpieB]

It happens. Less often lately but a few years back I recall getting a few bad BICs, Astras and another couple brands I forget. Voskhods and Indian Wilkinson Swords maybe.

I haven’t had an “off” blade in a year or two. Bad blades in the sense I hated them (Merkur, Shaverboy…), but not QC issues.

 

[MostaccioMan]

I've had a few wax-heavy blades like the GSB where the wax bleeds into the cutting edge. This happens very rarely, like 1 in 50, but it does lead to the blade tugging significantly at least in the first pass. You quickly learn to handle such issues next time, but I've not faced a blade yet which I'd term a QC failure. I guess the blade manufacture industry has reached 100% efficiency decades ago!

This doesn't mean there aren't fakes, but the entire tuck is bad in those cases.

 

[drb1956]

4 Vokshods out of one tuck, 2 different razors?? VDH razor was fair, but my Parker 91R does not like Vokshod blades. Tried one last nite, scraped my face twice with that blade, pulled it. Vokshod WILL never see my Parker again!! My face was a little warm after that episode. No more Vokshods!!!

 

[JasonJT]

4 Vokshods out of one tuck, 2 different razors?? VDH razor was fair, but my Parker 91R does not like Vokshod blades. Tried one last nite, scraped my face twice with that blade, pulled it. Vokshod WILL never see my Parker again!! My face was a little warm after that episode. No more Vokshods!!!

I had the same issues with Voskhods.

Jason.

 

[Maxima1]

I used new blades infrequently so I'm less likely to encounter one. But if I recall, out of some of the Astra SS I used, I don't think all had the initial scratchiness to them. I'll have to revisit them.

 

[Diesel_24]

I've been getting some duds from my 200ct box of Feather's with the date code 18040322 (April '18).

 

[Dave himself]

Nacets where my favorite blade also before @FarmerTan told me about GSBS now I can't make my mind up which one is better. I've yet to come across a bad one but now I've probably jinxed myself and get my face ripped off my next shave.

 

[awk_m4]

I've only come across one dud and it was a Derby Extra Blade. I cut myself on the very first wtg stroke. Second stroke yielded the same result so I stopped shaving immediately. Replaced the blade and had no further issues. I just chalked that one up to QC.

 

[njpaddy]

I like a fresh blade, so I toss all blades after 2 shaves. Whether it's me, the blade, or the soap, if it feels scratchy or pulls, I'll toss it in the middle of a shave. If I get so much as a tiny weeper by the end of a shave, it also gets tossed. Even the most expensive blades are too cheap for a bad shave.

 

[Rivers23]

Happened to me with Ladas, it literally stopped cutting after 2 passes.
I use Lord blades extensively and I never had a dud happen.

 

[mf6532]

Gillette Sword As well as Tatra and Merkur-yes Merkur made in Czech Republic. All were Duds.

 

[Steelerfan]

Happened to me with Ladas, it literally stopped cutting after 2 passes.
I use Lord blades extensively and I never had a dud happen.

I tried two Ladas blades and both were terrible. I don't know if it was a QC issue at the time but based on those blades, I avoid Ladas!