A major pet peeve about blades-glue spots

[viking4976]

Two of the best blades in my blade stash-Rapira Swedish Supersteel and USA made Personna. Not only because they shave awesome, but also because they don't have glue spots, unlike the Feathers and Gillettes. Glue spots make the wrapping hard to open and also hard to put the blade in. Down with glue spots!!

 

[matwho]

My last order of Polsilver SIs are so bad that the paper rips and sticks to the blades.

 

[viking4976]

My last order of Polsilver SIs are so bad that the paper rips and sticks to the blades.

That's exactly how my Feather Hi-Stainless blades are. Freaking hard to open because of the glue. Amazing I haven't cut myself yet.

 

[Hawkeyeted]

I just got an order of Feathers in and don't have this issue. I wonder if it's just an issue with a given lot of blades, or did I just luck out?

 

[ShavingByTheNumbers]

The spots that hold a blade inside its wrapper are not glue, but wax. The vast majority of blades have wax spots, and I don't like them, either. Astra SP blades have some of the easiest wax to wipe off, so I don't mind that, but yeah, some blades have really hard wax to wipe off and that is really annoying.

 

[Zipslack]

Since it's wax, does it make a difference if you heat them first or put them in the freezer? Asking from curiosity since I don't have any blade with wax sealed paper (yet).

 

[ShavingByTheNumbers]

Since it's wax, does it make a difference if you heat them first or put them in the freezer? Asking from curiosity since I don't have any blade with wax sealed paper (yet).

I've found that the hottest water from my faucet didn't really help, but just-boiled water is hot enough to soften or melt the wax. Still, I wipe off the wax.

 

[frstplce]

I've stopped being concerned about the wax once I get the blade loaded in the razor. Hasn't caused and issues yet with shaving or cleaning. I do agree though about getting it out of the paper, as I've almost cut myself a few times separating blade from paper.

I think I've found the solution though. Just put them in storage for 30-40 years. All of the vintage blades that used some form of wax/glue to hold them in paper wrappers is generally so dried out it snaps right out of the paper.

 

[doofus]

I may or may not have that long.

I've stopped being concerned about the wax once I get the blade loaded in the razor. Hasn't caused and issues yet with shaving or cleaning. I do agree though about getting it out of the paper, as I've almost cut myself a few times separating blade from paper.

I think I've found the solution though. Just put them in storage for 30-40 years. All of the vintage blades that used some form of wax/glue to hold them in paper wrappers is generally so dried out it snaps right out of the paper.

 

[Highspeedlane]

I always load the blade so its wax dots face down and never give it any additional thought.

 

[TobyC]

Doesn't bother me, and I don't wipe it off.

 

[ShavingByTheNumbers]

I always load the blade so its wax dots face down and never give it any additional thought.

Of the blades that I've measured so far, 8 of them have wax spots on one side, but 6 of them have wax spots on both sides. This information is making its way in the Comprehensive DE Razor Blade Data Table. Do you only buy blades with no wax spots or wax spots on one side only?

 

[nova]

I think I've found the solution though. Just put them in storage for 30-40 years. All of the vintage blades that used some form of wax/glue to hold them in paper wrappers is generally so dried out it snaps right out of the paper.

and how often do you shave 🙃

 

[Highspeedlane]

Of the blades that I've measured so far, 8 of them have wax spots on one side, but 6 of them have wax spots on both sides. This information is making its way in the Comprehensive DE Razor Blade Data Table. Do you only buy blades with no wax spots or wax spots on one side only?

The most recent batch of Gillette Silver Blue's I've been using have very prominent wax dots on one side to the point it appears some of it creeps to the opposite side through the center cuts on the blade. It's highly variable but there is always one side on which the wax is generally very heavy and that's the side I'll face down when loading.

 

[MichaelRB88]

The most recent batch of Gillette Silver Blue's I've been using have very prominent wax dots on one side to the point it appears some of it creeps to the opposite side through the center cuts on the blade. It's highly variable but there is always one side on which the wax is generally very heavy and that's the side I'll face down when loading.

The batch I have has so much wax that it protrudes onto the actual cutting edge. I kept feeling a tug, and I think this was the culprit. The blade also says, "do not wipe", so I have just tossed 2 packs. The rest are under the sink somewhere, and probably will never see use. Maybe I got a bad batch, but I'll never buy any more.

 

[ShavingByTheNumbers]

The most recent batch of Gillette Silver Blue's I've been using have very prominent wax dots on one side to the point it appears some of it creeps to the opposite side through the center cuts on the blade. It's highly variable but there is always one side on which the wax is generally very heavy and that's the side I'll face down when loading.

I get that. I think that every one of those six blades with wax on both sides has wax like that around the two diamond cutout shapes. Those blades are recorded as having 2 sides with wax and 2 wax spots per side. It does seem that the wax is heavier on one side in most or all of those cases, but I don't estimate and record wax surface area. That would be a little too much data, even for me.

 

[Highspeedlane]

The batch I have has so much wax that it protrudes onto the actual cutting edge. I kept feeling a tug, and I think this was the culprit. The blade also says, "do not wipe", so I have just tossed 2 packs. The rest are under the sink somewhere, and probably will never see use. Maybe I got a bad batch, but I'll never buy any more.

I've seen them like that before too. It seems like a one-off in the batch I own because the latest pack I've opened has very uniform, circular dots that stop well short of the cutting edge.

 

[Highspeedlane]

I get that. I think that every one of those six blades with wax on both sides has wax like that around the two diamond cutout shapes. Those blades are recorded as having 2 sides with wax and 2 wax spots per side. It does seem that the wax is heavier on one side in most or all of those cases, but I don't estimate and record wax surface area. That would be a little too much data, even for me.

Yes, that would be maddening!

 

[riverstyxxx]

Am I the only one around here who thinks people just need something to complain about, when their shaving experience has otherwise been a utopian paradise? If you don't like the wax, use a different blade.

 

[KeenDogg]

Doesn't bother me, and I don't wipe it off.

Same here.