I know it's been discussed before. What I'm interested in discussing are the actual results achieved by testing, not speculation.
I apologize in advance if my testing methods are not scientific enough to convince you. It's great if you disagree, please share your experiences.
I will be explaining my experiences, so obviously YMMV applies here. I am intentionally omitting "IMO" and "IME" because I find those annoying to repeat with every statement.
I can achieve a fantastic shave with any of my 3 favorite DE razors: Blackland Dart machined, Henson TI +++, Karve CB OC-E. Assuming the same software and technique, and the lather is good consistency, sometimes I get unexplainable micro nicks.
I don't know why it took me this long to figure this out, but here is the scenarios which i am using to prove my theory:
Shaving with a Blackland Dart and Gillette Nacet I have negative irritation. Meaning the look and feel of the skin after the shave is better than it was before the shave.
Everything the same except use a Gillette Rubie, and I get random micro nicks.
The blade was not defective, because I used the same blade through a rotation of all my razors, and the results were consistent/repeatable.
Let's use that as a baseline.
Looking at that above chart, you might conclude that the problem is the Dart, and somehow it's just not as good as the other razors. I would disagree. The best shaves I can achieve are using the Dart + Nacet. The Dart + Nacet results in a better shave than what is achievable with any other combination I've tried so far.
The geometry of the Dart is a little unusual. I initially bought it because I though it had a rigid design. It doesn't, it's an optical illusion. The baseplate does not clamp the blade near the cutting edge.
The Karve and the Henson have a very rigid design. The Henson even more than the Karve because it bends the blade to an extreme somewhat close to the cutting edge. I think the bend is what gives it an advantage.
So I am convinced that Nacet blades are great in all razors, especially in razors that do not have a rigid design.
And Rubie are great in razors that do have a rigid design, but bad in razors that no not have a rigid design.
My conclusion is that the problem isn't the razor or the blade, but the pairing of the two together. It's either a good combination or it isn't.
I suspect everyone will have different results with the blades, but my unproven speculation is that for every shaver there is a combination that will work better than others. The only way to find what works best is by experimenting, in a somewhat scientific manner, and avoid stubbornness and snobbery.
I know some members have experimented with pairing razors and blades. I'm curious... have you come to any specific conclusions you can share? Any specific razor + blade combination that stands out from the rest, either good or bad? What's that one pairing that is noteworthy better or worse than all the rest?
I apologize in advance if my testing methods are not scientific enough to convince you. It's great if you disagree, please share your experiences.
I will be explaining my experiences, so obviously YMMV applies here. I am intentionally omitting "IMO" and "IME" because I find those annoying to repeat with every statement.
I can achieve a fantastic shave with any of my 3 favorite DE razors: Blackland Dart machined, Henson TI +++, Karve CB OC-E. Assuming the same software and technique, and the lather is good consistency, sometimes I get unexplainable micro nicks.
I don't know why it took me this long to figure this out, but here is the scenarios which i am using to prove my theory:
Shaving with a Blackland Dart and Gillette Nacet I have negative irritation. Meaning the look and feel of the skin after the shave is better than it was before the shave.
Everything the same except use a Gillette Rubie, and I get random micro nicks.
The blade was not defective, because I used the same blade through a rotation of all my razors, and the results were consistent/repeatable.
Let's use that as a baseline.
Nacet | Rubie | ||
Dart | great | bad | |
Henson | good | good | |
Karve | good | good |
Looking at that above chart, you might conclude that the problem is the Dart, and somehow it's just not as good as the other razors. I would disagree. The best shaves I can achieve are using the Dart + Nacet. The Dart + Nacet results in a better shave than what is achievable with any other combination I've tried so far.
The geometry of the Dart is a little unusual. I initially bought it because I though it had a rigid design. It doesn't, it's an optical illusion. The baseplate does not clamp the blade near the cutting edge.
The Karve and the Henson have a very rigid design. The Henson even more than the Karve because it bends the blade to an extreme somewhat close to the cutting edge. I think the bend is what gives it an advantage.
So I am convinced that Nacet blades are great in all razors, especially in razors that do not have a rigid design.
And Rubie are great in razors that do have a rigid design, but bad in razors that no not have a rigid design.
My conclusion is that the problem isn't the razor or the blade, but the pairing of the two together. It's either a good combination or it isn't.
I suspect everyone will have different results with the blades, but my unproven speculation is that for every shaver there is a combination that will work better than others. The only way to find what works best is by experimenting, in a somewhat scientific manner, and avoid stubbornness and snobbery.
I know some members have experimented with pairing razors and blades. I'm curious... have you come to any specific conclusions you can share? Any specific razor + blade combination that stands out from the rest, either good or bad? What's that one pairing that is noteworthy better or worse than all the rest?
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