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Asking for advice - should I continue searching for that one DE blade to replace all the others?

@Quentin_Compson the above seems a good yardstick in terms of optimum times between shaves to figure these things.

I would suggest shaving every couple of days with a few blades of your choice, for in that way you will get the best impression of how individual blades feel and behave.

At a week + the experiment is diminished somewhat, because in my experience the blade is doing what any blade does best, removing significant growth. The distinction becomes blurred.

If a blade is tugging on a first pass on a 1 week growth, just discard it from consideration. A Fatip is a fine OC and will take no prisoners. It will be the blade talking.

If it's a 1 week+ shave the second or certainly third pass will give a more faithful impression of blade feel and edge if said edge is not adverserly affected by the significant beard reduction it's having to do.

I concede. Very good points being made here.
 
@Quentin_Compson the above seems a good yardstick in terms of optimum times between shaves to figure these things.

I would suggest shaving every couple of days with a few blades of your choice, for in that way you will get the best impression of how individual blades feel and behave.

At a week + the experiment is diminished somewhat, because in my experience the blade is doing what any blade does best, removing significant growth. The distinction becomes blurred.

If a blade is tugging on a first pass on a 1 week growth, just discard it from consideration. A Fatip is a fine OC and will take no prisoners. It will be the blade talking.

If it's a 1 week+ shave the second or certainly third pass will give a more faithful impression of blade feel and edge if said edge is not adverserly affected by the significant beard reduction it's having to do.
+1 This exactly!
 
What is your blade that you use as baseline.
What are your thoughts during blade testing?
Is this new blade sharper than ...?
Isbthis new blade smoother than...?
That base blade, that you use in comparion, that is your favourite and best blade.
For me it's Nacet (permasharp is like a twin for me, but I can get tuck of 10 Nacet blades for 0.65€, so Nacet wins)
 
In my opinion, if you do not count the extremes (most and least sharp), blades are the last factor in the outcome of a shave. I believe you have to stop using blades in rotation trying in vain to get a comfortable shave and start learning how to shave by perfecting your technique.
Your prep, lather quality, razor and pressure, all come with a greater impact on the outcome of a shave than a (one or another) middle of the road blade.
...Thank you in advance!
You are welcome.

Oh, if you disagree with me, that is fine. After using 15 blades that cover the entire spectrum of sharpness, you must get the feeling by now that the blades are not the issue here.

Good luck.
 
I would say part of the enjoyment of our hobby is the discovery of new, pleasurable hardware and software.
If you are pleased with your shaves, then there is no need to look any further. If you like trying new things, then by all means try new blades.
The further I go along in the wet shaving world, the more convinced I am there are less "magic bullets" than we would like to think. Sometimes what we believe are the magic bullets are actually something on par with other products, but they just hit some of the buttons that makes us like them better for some reason. Could be something simple as packaging color or logo, or group reinforcement of a popular product. Or maybe something particular about a product triggers nostalgia.
 
@Quentin_Compson, in answer to your basic question, no, you should stop searching.

To solve your problem, switch to a traditional straight razor. Your can then develop your own edge that best suits your saving technique. There are plenty of very capable SRs available in Russia to suit your needs.
Thank you for the suggestion, but i don’t feel it’d be the best solution in my case.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but i was under the impression that owning a straight razor involves a lot work and maintenance: stropping, jumping through a lot hoops , etc… but the thing is, I do yuh n’t really enjoy shaving and look at it more as a chore that a pleasurable activity… something to get over with as quickly as possible ; that’s actually the only reason why i shave so infrequently.

In addition, the main reason that I started wet shaving in the first place was because I was hoping it’d be less onerous and more time efficient than using cartridge razors/disposable razors that kept clogging up when dealing with a week’s long growth, and it was always getting on my nerves…

More importantly, If my experience with a safety razor is anything to go by, then I have no business contemplating switching to a straight razor any time soon- i mean, my technique is still a bit sloppy, and I believe with a straight razor the learning curve will turn out to be even more steep for me…

A shavette might be a better answer, but then again, it all boils down to the subpar technique on my part, which is bound to make shaving a much more time consuming activity than it already is.

So… sticking with safety razors for now.
 
@Quentin_Compson the above seems a good yardstick in terms of optimum times between shaves to figure these things.

I would suggest shaving every couple of days with a few blades of your choice, for in that way you will get the best impression of how individual blades feel and behave.

At a week + the experiment is diminished somewhat, because in my experience the blade is doing what any blade does best, removing significant growth. The distinction becomes blurred.

If a blade is tugging on a first pass on a 1 week growth, just discard it from consideration. A Fatip is a fine OC and will take no prisoners. It will be the blade talking.

If it's a 1 week+ shave the second or certainly third pass will give a more faithful impression of blade feel and edge if said edge is not adverserly affected by the significant beard reduction it's having to do.
I apologize for such a late reply, i, uh, fell asleep… then had some household chores to attend to... sorry!

Thank you for putting so much thought into helping me out with this issue, I truly appreciate it!

I’ll do what i can to follow your advice and see how it pans out! It’s just that i hate shaving and try to do it as little as i can get away with... but if I understood what you were trying to say you meant that as long as i shave only once a week it wouldn’t make much of a difference blade wise in my case, right?

I’ve actually got no quarrel with the blades that i use (they are not uncomfortable, and provide me with a number of shaves that I’m okay with, so i have no problem with keeping to shave with any of them), but i was trying to find out whether or not I might be missing out on some blade that will prove to be out of this world, last a lot longer and transform the experience from average to exceptional.
 
In my opinion, if you do not count the extremes (most and least sharp), blades are the last factor in the outcome of a shave. I believe you have to stop using blades in rotation trying in vain to get a comfortable shave and start learning how to shave by perfecting your technique.
Your prep, lather quality, razor and pressure, all come with a greater impact on the outcome of a shave than a (one or another) middle of the road blade.

You are welcome.

Oh, if you disagree with me, that is fine. After using 15 blades that cover the entire spectrum of sharpness, you must get the feeling by now that the blades are not the issue here.

Good luck.
Thank you for the comment!

I hope I haven’t unintentionally mislead you with my questions- I’m not really complaining about my shaving experience and not being able to find a passable blade; what I mean to say is that I’ll be content to use as my go to blade almost any of the blades that i mentioned.

So, i’m not feverishly searching for the Holy Grail, so to speak, but at the same time i’ve also heard many people say that some of the blades just feel right and tailor made for their face, and that they give them noticeably better shaves that any others; but that’s never been my experience (most of them are ok, they get the job done, my skin is not irritated or tingling afterwards, but nothing exceptional about them), so i wanted to make sure i’m not missing on anything when it comes to blades .

And it’s just that I formed this belief in my mind that I’m one of those people to whom most of the blades are all the same and that I won’t come across the blade that will prove to be a “life changing experience “.

Seeing as I’ve only tried out only a dozen of blades, i also realize that it might be way too early to form such an assumption.

So i guess i mostly wanted to check with you guys whether there’s a flaw in my reasoning and whether or not there should most definitely be some “game changer” blade for me, and also to find out how many of you feel the same about the “sameness” of blades and how many blades has it taken you to come to that conclusion.

Anyway, if it still makes sense in my situation to try out more blades, I’m not averse to that and will continue to try new blades samples from time to time; if not, i’d much rather get myself a hundred of Voskhods or Rapiras (since they cost about 3 bucks around here) than keep spending money while chasing the wind.

But as some people pointed out, it’ll probably be more reasonable to adjust my shaving routine (frequency, prep) and take it from there - rather they hoping to find some magical blade that’d take everything to the next level by itself.
 
Yes, continue your search. You will find several that provide a closer, smoother shave than others. But it takes time & trying lots of blades. Check out the Great Blade Exchange to get a variety of blades. All it costs is a postage stamp & two of your blades for each two you want in return. And the great part is you are welcome to participate as often & as many times as you like! The link is at the bottom of this post, in my signature.
 
I think fear of missing out is what drives a lot of the acquisition disorders we like to joke about around here. Honestly, I don't notice as much of a difference between blades as I used to, probably because I'm not relying on a blade or razor to make up for deficiencies in my technique. I still prefer blades like GSBs or Nacets, but I can get a decent shave from a Van der Hagen blade if that's what I have on hand.

TL;DR: You've already got a pretty good blade selection, so I wouldn't spend a ton of money on trying different blades.
 

Ron R

I survived a lathey foreman
So, i’m not feverishly searching for the Holy Grail, so to speak, but at the same time i’ve also heard many people say that some of the blades just feel right and tailor made for their face, and that they give them noticeably better shaves that any others; but that’s never been my experience (most of them are ok, they get the job done, my skin is not irritated or tingling afterwards, but nothing exceptional about them), so i wanted to make sure i’m not missing on anything when it comes to blades .

This Thread should help a person looking for a great blade that is enjoyed by mass appeal or suggestions by B&B folks.
Have some great shaves!
 
I read your posts #1 and #54 and if I would try to give you an advice, I would just copy and paste my previous post. Although, I am far from being an expert and only have experience shaving one face, but then, I do shave that face about 365 times in a year.
First thing that comes to my mind is that your expectations are not clear and that is probably because of unclear criteria. As I mentioned here, in my opinion, the result of a shave, as a mechanical means of removing stubble, is impacted by many factors. All of them already listed. For some members here when they finally achieve Nirvana they attribute the success entirely to that particular blade. Just because, you know, the blade is the thing that does the cutting. I believe this is wrong.
A seven-day beard would present several difficulties to shave and the results properly analyzed. But expanding on that would make a very long post here.
To make it short, I believe you should stop focusing on blades and experiment with working on your technique.
In my experience, the quality of the lather is paramount for a great shave. And I mean slickness, residual slickness and cushioning.
Enjoy the journey. And yes, there is nothing wrong with trying new blades, so please buy, buy and buy some more.

Edited to add: blades are not ones responsible for irritation and discomfort. Lousy lather, too much pressure, too many strokes, brush burn, wrong aftershave, would be a few that would cause trouble.
Sharper blades shave closer, in my experience. The BBS lasts longer if I use a sharper blade, that is for sure.
I hope this helps.
 
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you really came onto B&B to ask whether to indulge in the blade version RAD (BAD??) or to be sensible and just buy the cheapest but still good blade you've used and expected people to take the reasonable option? Come on, you should know how we are here. Of course you should buy every blade ever manufactured to see which one can give a 0.01% closer and smoother shave compared to the normal blades you use!!
 
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