A bit embarrassed I have to say.

[mycarver]

I have what I’d consider quite a few Gem, Ever Ready and Star razors . Just went through them, cleaned ( yearly ritual) and Ren-waxed them and felt guilt of never actually using one.
Hundreds of straights, similar with Gillette’s ( use ‘ em regularly too) but never tried the SE’s.
From what I’ve been reading they can be quite good.
Point me in the right direction and blades ( saw Gems ,$20.00 for 10 blades?) are the best?
I guess I’m used to a hundred DE blades for that .
But as I said , ignorant . Can anyone offer some guidance?

 

[Multum in parvo]

GEM PTFE seems to be the standard - Connaught has them for £ 14.40/100
I only shaved a couple of times with 1 blade but 10+ shaves per blade should be possible according to some threads here. Unfortunately I’m still working on a big bunch of DE sampler blades so my SE‘s gather dust.

 

[mycarver]

OK! Thanks. Just found 100 for 24.00 on Amazon but were free with points I had so no biggie.
Now to pick my weapon . Maybe I’ll try them all but according to one individual it seems the slightly rounded head “cap”(?) is the preferred choice?

I think I have one in my cache. Regardless. I’ll have some fun I’m sure. As long as the blades are decent.
Ha, this is a bit exciting. Sorta like shaving with my Rolls. Went well!
Let’s see what happens.

 

[RayClem]

When I was a young shaver, one of my first razors was a Schick Type L injector. Over the years, it got tossed out. About a year ago I was able to purchase another Type L in new condition from a forum member. I did not like the Schick vintage blades that came with the razor, but the new Schick injector blades made in China are wonderful.

I also have a ATT SE1 razor that uses Feather Artist Club blades.

Neither are my favorite razors, but both will give a close shave. The blades last far longer than DE blades.

 

[mycarver]

Thanks Ray.
ive Been living on a steady diet of straight razors. Some good some not so good. I expect the same with these. DE’s pretty straight forward. Jus something new to play with.

 

[Whiterook]

I went 14 shaves on my last blade. If you want to start with a milder razor, see if you have a Feather Weight. They also came nickled.

 

[mycarver]

Thanks. I have a variety for sure

 

[JimmyCB]

I have what I’d consider quite a few Gem, Ever Ready and Star razors . Just went through them, cleaned ( yearly ritual) and Ren-waxed them and felt guilt of never actually using one.
Hundreds of straights, similar with Gillette’s ( use ‘ em regularly too) but never tried the SE’s.
From what I’ve been reading they can be quite good.
Point me in the right direction and blades ( saw Gems ,$20.00 for 10 blades?) are the best?
I guess I’m used to a hundred DE blades for that .
But as I said , ignorant . Can anyone offer some guidance?

Highly recommend SE razors. I have an Ever Ready 1912 and 2 GEM Micromatics (one closed comb, the other open comb) and love them all. Because the SE blade is much stiffer than DE blades, the SE razors have a feel much like a straight razor, but not as aggressive. Very efficient shaves with no nicks after using SE razors for maybe 4 weeks.

 

[Tpach]

Same here! Beautiful razors but no blades! I found some at the supermarket, while they were for shaving.. they weren’t pleasant at all. I haven’t tried anything but those to really know how a good GEM shave is..

I competed them to hardware store SE and the bevel was different and much sharper.. pretty sure they were not just labeled for shaving but are actually honed for it

 

[RayClem]

Same here! Beautiful razors but no blades! I found some at the supermarket, while they were for shaving.. they weren’t pleasant at all. I haven’t tried anything but those to really know how a good GEM shave is..

I competed them to hardware store SE and the bevel was different and much sharper.. pretty sure they were not just labeled for shaving but are actually honed for it

The trouble with GEM style blades is that some are made for shaving, some are made for use in box cutter knives and scrapers. The blades made for industrial use are uncoated and are unsuitable for shaving.

 

[honeycutt]

Do you carve anymore ? When I joined a few years back you would show us here on B&B. Just curious.

 

[mycarver]

Oh yes it’s my livelihood. Just
Completed a big carving that went to Fort Wayne Indiana.

 

[Salty O'Rourke]

OK! Thanks. Just found 100 for 24.00 on Amazon but were free with points I had so no biggie.
Now to pick my weapon . Maybe I’ll try them all but according to one individual it seems the slightly rounded head “cap”(?) is the preferred choice?

I think I have one in my cache. Regardless. I’ll have some fun I’m sure. As long as the blades are decent.
Ha, this is a bit exciting. Sorta like shaving with my Rolls. Went well!
Let’s see what happens.

Make sure the blades you ordered are ground to 3 facets - if not, they're not meant for shaving. Well, none of them are meant for shaving, but the ones ground to 3 facets are meant for laboratory slicing and dicing and are perfect for shaving. It should say in the description if they are ground to 3 facets, or only 2.

 

[mycarver]

Oh yes! Nothing but the best to slice
And dice my face.
Just used a C2 with nearly 90 year old blades.
Gonna have to find some new blades to make a fair assessment. Cool razor though.
Also have the B 1,2 and 3.
Just passing time till my Gems show up.

 

[fathandle]

If you have several days growth of beard there is nothing better than the SE razor to mow it down. I keep mine in the rotation now with the DE razors.

 

[Lord NSIC]

I'm not sure if it's worse having to wait for your GEM PTFEs to arrive, or (after only using carbons) finally buying a 100, getting that first, addictingly smooth shave in with a GEM 1912/PTFE, followed by an okay one with the G Bar (on the fence w/the G Bar). I've since been subsequently "shave-blocked" by the wife (I'd rather not shave than be rushed) anticipating my next great shave. Wednesday it was "go ahead and shave, I'll shower real quick," Thursday was a phone call as I was about to lather ("I'm not making you late for work am I?"), so I set my sights on this morning; deciding to "grow and mow" and see if a MM Clog Pruf/GEM PTFE combo would live up to their names... But again I was met with "I'm skipping the pool, I'll be quick and out of your way"... "Curses! Foiled Again!" I muttered as I began to curl the ends of my handle bar...