I have been shaving with a DE exclusively for about three months now. I use a Merkur HD normally and a cheap Wilkinson Sword when travelling. So far I have tried four brands of blade and this is my opinion so far. I have a rough fast growing beard and need to shave twice a day if I am going out on an evening. I use a variety of soaps including Taylor's sandlewood, Erasmic and Palmolive soap stick.
Wilkinson Sword
Bought in the UK but made in Germany. I can't find any of the English ones. Got a pack of these with my Wilkinson. Can't really complain about these. OK shave with not much nicking. Would be happy to sue them long term if I hadn't tried anything else. Available everywhere in the UK at a reasonable price. Can get about four shaves out of them. If you run out of blades these are a safe stopgap whilst you order up some more of your favourites.
7/10
Merkur
I had high hopes for these after reading the reviews but I hate them. Scratchy and always end up with loads of nicks and cuts. At best I can get two shaves before they start slicing me to pieces. Pricey too.
5/10
Derby Extra
Took a punt and bought 100 of eBay for about £8.00. I wasn't expecting much after the Merkur experience but at that price it was worth a go. What a revelation. Smooth shave with no nicks. Consistent too, I use these most and haven't had a bad one yet. I tend to swap them out after 4 days since they are so cheap but could get 5 days out of a blade I am sure if I wanted to. I would pay more for this blade if I had to. The one I use every day.
8/10
Tesco
These are an own brand UK supermarket blade. Cheap compared to Wilkinson Sword or Merkur but not as cheap as Derby. A very plane blade with no markings on the blade itself or even on the packaging to indicate where it is manufactured. This is even better than the Derby blades. Very sharp and very very smooth. A great shaving experience. The problem here as I think someone else has mentioned is that Tesco are a huge company and will probably shift manufacturer as soon as they find a cheaper one to make blades for them so if you buy some next moth they may be completely different and the packaging gives no indication. I am very tempted to buy in supply of these now whilst they are so good and keep them for special occasions.
9/10 (I would give them 10 but then what would I do if I ran across something better).
Wilkinson Sword
Bought in the UK but made in Germany. I can't find any of the English ones. Got a pack of these with my Wilkinson. Can't really complain about these. OK shave with not much nicking. Would be happy to sue them long term if I hadn't tried anything else. Available everywhere in the UK at a reasonable price. Can get about four shaves out of them. If you run out of blades these are a safe stopgap whilst you order up some more of your favourites.
7/10
Merkur
I had high hopes for these after reading the reviews but I hate them. Scratchy and always end up with loads of nicks and cuts. At best I can get two shaves before they start slicing me to pieces. Pricey too.
5/10
Derby Extra
Took a punt and bought 100 of eBay for about £8.00. I wasn't expecting much after the Merkur experience but at that price it was worth a go. What a revelation. Smooth shave with no nicks. Consistent too, I use these most and haven't had a bad one yet. I tend to swap them out after 4 days since they are so cheap but could get 5 days out of a blade I am sure if I wanted to. I would pay more for this blade if I had to. The one I use every day.
8/10
Tesco
These are an own brand UK supermarket blade. Cheap compared to Wilkinson Sword or Merkur but not as cheap as Derby. A very plane blade with no markings on the blade itself or even on the packaging to indicate where it is manufactured. This is even better than the Derby blades. Very sharp and very very smooth. A great shaving experience. The problem here as I think someone else has mentioned is that Tesco are a huge company and will probably shift manufacturer as soon as they find a cheaper one to make blades for them so if you buy some next moth they may be completely different and the packaging gives no indication. I am very tempted to buy in supply of these now whilst they are so good and keep them for special occasions.
9/10 (I would give them 10 but then what would I do if I ran across something better).