Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum

[RayClem]

I use the Indian version, great blades works really well with Karve C and Variant. Didn't feel good with GC .84.

Which setting do you use on the Variant? I would suspect that the 7 O'Clock Black might be too sharp for comfort on the higher settings of the Variant.

I have a Karve SB D plate on the way. I will probably try some of the milder blades in it at first before trying some of the more aggressive ones.

 

[sscob1]

Which setting do you use on the Variant? I would suspect that the 7 O'Clock Black might be too sharp for comfort on the higher settings of the Variant.

I have a Karve SB D plate on the way. I will probably try some of the milder blades in it at first before trying some of the more aggressive ones.

Setting 2.

 

[HereticHermit]

I too have somewhat sensitive skin and very coarse salt pepper beard. Karve on C plates doesnt work for me with Blacks, I shave daily and use plate D. I use C plate OC if I am feel my skin needs a rest day. Blacks and Polsilvers are my go to blades and I never could make the Nacets work for me in Variant or Karve. Nacets feel like dragging a serrated knife over skin, sharp but iffy for my liking.
GC.84 surprised me for being such a non performer so I traded it.
@RayClem if you already have a straight bar D plate, the OC is not going to be feeling very radically different from SB. It just chances to give more weepers than I sometime get from D/SB using feathers.

 

[RayClem]

I too have somewhat sensitive skin and very coarse salt pepper beard. Karve on C plates doesnt work for me with Blacks, I shave daily and use plate D. I use C plate OC if I am feel my skin needs a rest day. Blacks and Polsilvers are my go to blades and I never could make the Nacets work for me in Variant or Karve. Nacets feel like dragging a serrated knife over skin, sharp but iffy for my liking.
GC.84 surprised me for being such a non performer so I traded it.
@RayClem if you already have a straight bar D plate, the OC is not going to be feeling very radically different from SB. It just chances to give more weepers than I sometime get from D/SB using feathers.

Thanks for you input. Because I have a heavy beard, I like OC razors, but currently I only have two of them, the Parker 24C and a Muhle R41 (although some folks disagree whether the R41 meets the OC requirements). I have sensitive skin, so the R41 is a little too aggressive for me unless I use a moderate blade like the 7 O'Clock Sharpedge Yellow or Voskhod. I love Nacets in a less aggressive razor. I have a Variant and normally use it on a setting of 3-4 (out of 5+) to get an efficient shave without having to resort to extra passes and buffing. I wanted to try a Karve OC, but they are hard to find these days as Chris is focusing on getting aluminum and stainless razors ready. Chris says the OC heads are about one step higher in aggressiion that the SB plates, but from what you say, that might not be the case. If I find the SB D plate to be satisfactory, I might try a D plate OC when I can get one. Perhaps I will put a stainless head on a brass handle.

 

[fruitjam]

Just bought myself a pack of 10 Gillette 7 o'clock Platinum blades. Made in India, of course. I have been using these alongside Wilkinson blades (also of Gillette, India). While both of them are good, I like the 7 o'clocks more. These work out to be slightly cheaper, and also tend to cut my beard better. And I shave daily. With the Wilkinson blades, I tend to cut myself more often.

 

[RayClem]

As a follow up to my earlier post, I received my Karve solid bar D plate razor. I used it with a Dorco Prime Platinum blade and got a wonderful shave, very close and with zero irritation. For comparison, I used a Muhle R89 grande on the opposite side of my face equipped with the same blade. Both sides were smooth and comfortable, but the Karve was significantly closer. It has now been 19 hours since I shaved and I can still tell the Karve gave a closer shave. The next step will be to try blades like the 7 O'Clock Black, Nacets, BIC chrome Platinum and Feather to see if I can get an even closer shave without irritation.

 

[HereticHermit]

I had couple of dorco platinum st-301 from a trial pack lurking somewhere, I found them to be medium sharp on Karve D plate and done by 3rd shave. Comfortable? not much for my beard type.

 

[Mouser]

I used the dark blue version back in the day and they were very good, the black however.......

 

[RayClem]

I had couple of dorco platinum st-301 from a trial pack lurking somewhere, I found them to be medium sharp on Karve D plate and done by 3rd shave. Comfortable? not much for my beard type.

The ones I used were the STP301 Prime Platinum. The naming convention is quite confusing. I have not used the ST301 blades, but my understanding it aht the STP301 Prime blades are a lot sharper and smoother. I have a heavy, coarse beard and sensitive skin and I find the Prime blades work quite well. Thus, just because the ST301 blades don't work for you do not rule out the Prime blades.

 

[SirPaulGerman]

Make sure you get the one from Vietnam Dorco Prime, you can get it from Dorco usa

 

[mawashi]

I've heard both sides of the good and bad of these blades.
I get smooth comfortable shaves with 7 O'Clock Green SS blades but I would imagine the Super Platinums are much sharper.

I think I saw them a while back but they seem to have stopped production.

I too have somewhat sensitive skin and very coarse salt pepper beard. Karve on C plates doesnt work for me with Blacks, I shave daily and use plate D. I use C plate OC if I am feel my skin needs a rest day. Blacks and Polsilvers are my go to blades and I never could make the Nacets work for me in Variant or Karve. Nacets feel like dragging a serrated knife over skin, sharp but iffy for my liking.
GC.84 surprised me for being such a non performer so I traded it.
@RayClem if you already have a straight bar D plate, the OC is not going to be feeling very radically different from SB. It just chances to give more weepers than I sometime get from D/SB using feathers.

HereticHermit,

I missed your earlier message but yes I got a feather to last 30 shaves... My first feather that I shallow shaved till it got blunt.

I'm surprised that the GC84 didn't do it for you since, you prefer more aggressive razors. The Karve although, milder gets the job done quite well but have you tried a Fatip piccolo yet?

Happy shaves,

Mawashi

 

[HereticHermit]

The Karve although, milder gets the job done quite well but have you tried a Fatip piccolo yet?

I have R41 and Fatip is almost in similar league. But Fatip are known to have quality issues and blade jiggling, uneven exposure on both edges. R41 was epic failure for me because I just don't have any respect for razors that do not clamp and support the blade and make a rigid contact point. So I didn't buy Fatip.

I got Karve and GC.84 just because of rigid blade support.
Karve is saving grace but it isn't my holy grail either. Part of problem is not razor but my habit of shaving before shower and my dense indian
beard just don't get hydrated enough.
I am yet to try MMOC razor. They use thicker blade and razor head angle might work for me. I can shave BBS with shavette but straights are not for me.

 

[mawashi]

I have R41 and Fatip is almost in similar league. But Fatip are known to have quality issues and blade jiggling, uneven exposure on both edges. R41 was epic failure for me because I just don't have any respect for razors that do not clamp and support the blade and make a rigid contact point. So I didn't buy Fatip.

I got Karve and GC.84 just because of rigid blade support.
Karve is saving grace but it isn't my holy grail either. Part of problem is not razor but my habit of shaving before shower and my dense indian
beard just don't get hydrated enough.
I am yet to try MMOC razor. They use thicker blade and razor head angle might work for me. I can shave BBS with shavette but straights are not for me.

Hey HereticHermit,

I used to scoff at those who face lather as I only used to bowl lather.

Every since I started to face lather I've see a marked improvement in my shaves, a reduction in lathering time and more importantly the quality of lather has improved too as I can better feel the consistency of the lather while scrubbing my face.

Perhaps you can try it out too.

I've got quite a few Indian friends n relatives and a couple head shave too. So far lathering that way seems to help out a lot.

As for the MMOC gem razors I think they are really worth a good look as my buddy Twelvefret and even Chan Eil Whiskers prefer them to DEs.

I'm not that hairy so my current razors n BIC blades take care of all my needs fine.

Happy shaves,

Mawashi

 

[HereticHermit]

I am exclusively face lather and never even tried bowl lather in 30 odd years of wet shaving.
I see no point soap material spending time inside bowl whereas it should be on face and softening the beard. Also bowl lathering folks just seem to make a YouTube porn lather often which is very peaky and lot of dense foam full of air. Not a good example of usable lather IMHO.

 

[RayClem]

I am exclusively face lather and never even tried bowl lather in 30 odd years of wet shaving.
I see no point soap material spending time inside bowl whereas it should be on face and softening the beard. Also bowl lathering folks just seem to make a YouTube porn lather often which is very peaky and lot of dense foam full of air. Not a good example of usable lather IMHO.

I bowl lather because my skin is so easily irritated that I get brush burn if I try to face lather, even with the softest of brushes. I build the lather in a bowl and paint it on.

In your comment, I am not sure what you mean by "dense foam full of air". If a foam has too much air, it ceases to be dense. Large air bubbles are not useful. My goal is to get a lather that is dense, with the consistency of Greek Yogurt, full of tiny bubbles. Achieving that type of lather is easy with some soaps, but quite difficult with others.

 

[BigJ]

If the blue box SuperPlatinum blades are the same as the Silver Blue blades from Russia, they are good blades, but they are neither the sharpest nor the smoothest. I find them to be similar to the 7 O'Clock Green blades. They should work for most people, but whether they work for you will depend on your beard, your skin type, and the razor in which you use them.

The 7 O'Clock Super Platinum blades made in India and packaged in the Black box are excellent blades if you like very sharp/smooth blades. I find the Blacks are similar in quality to the Gillette Nacets with the Nacets being just a tad sharper and the Blacks being just a tad smoother. Both the Blacks and Nacets tend to be more expensive than the 7 O'Clock Green and Silver Blue blades (when purchased in 100 packs). So weather they are worth the price depends on your needs and preferences.

If you have not already done so, I highly recommend purchasing a sampler pack containing blades that range from rather dull (Shark Super Stainless and Derby Extra) up through the sharpest blades (Feather, BIC Chrome Platinum, Nacets and 7 O'Clock Black) with some mid-range blades included as well. After trying a variety of blades, you should determine what type of blade works best for you.

I have a rather tough beard and rather sensitive skin, so I want a sharp/smooth blade. In mild razors, I like the very sharpest blades. In more aggressive razors with significant blade exposure on the skin, I use mid-sharp blades as the sharpest blades are too rough. I cannot even use the blades that are at the dull end of the range, but those with beard that are not so coarse temd to like the Derby Extra blades due to their smoothness. I do not recommend Shark Super Stainless blades as I find they are neither sharp nor smooth, but others may disagree.

Great description!! I second the recommendation that you try a blade sampler pack or two.

 

[HereticHermit]

@RayClem I totally get the point about brush burn and bowl lather. I have somewhat sensitive but normally ok skin that needs rest on Sunday since I shave everyday.
By dense foamy lather I meant a lather that stands stiff with very tiny bubbles and do not feel very slick if one is rub the lather between fingertips. My Tabac and MWF can make kind of lather if I use a synthetic brush and spend overtime making lather. This lather is somewhat drier to me.

 

[RayClem]

@RayClem ....
By dense foamy lather I meant a lather that stands stiff with very tiny bubbles and do not feel very slick if one is rub the lather between fingertips. My Tabac and MWF can make kind of lather if I use a synthetic brush and spend overtime making lather. This lather is somewhat drier to me.

Tabac and MFW are not my favorite soaps. I can get a good lather from them if I work at it. Once properly hydrated, they both are plenty slick, but I have far better soaps in my den.

 

[mawashi]

I am exclusively face lather and never even tried bowl lather in 30 odd years of wet shaving.
I see no point soap material spending time inside bowl whereas it should be on face and softening the beard. Also bowl lathering folks just seem to make a YouTube porn lather often which is very peaky and lot of dense foam full of air. Not a good example of usable lather IMHO.

Ah I see, all the signs seem to be pointing you to MMOC razors.

Fatips can be a pain with their alignment issues so I really hope you get a razor that fits all your needs.

Happy shaves,

Mawashi

 

[HereticHermit]

Thanks @mawashi
Before I joined the forum here my shaving was one of the things a man do without thinking much.
I didn't hated mach3 razor nor I paid much attention if I get 5 o'clock shadow too soon with mach3.
But did use a shave brush all through and DE use was more of norm rather than exception while using mach3. For 11 years now I am exclusive DE user and want improvement over usual routine in terms of a smoother shave.
That's all I am after now. It wasn't bad but there is room for improvement is something I realised after I came here.