Astra SP Quality?

[Babou]

The Astra Green is irritating for my sensitive skin, burns, cuts, and redness.

The Astra Blue is wonderfull, no burns, no cuts, and no redness.

Today I shaved for the third time with this blade in my Baili BT131, a pass WTG gives me a CCS shave.

The Astra Blue is very superior to the Green for me

 

[Invicta]

I've been working my way through a sample pack and so far I compare everything to the Astra SP blade. That one really stands out head and shoulders above the rest.

It is a good benchmark blade and made in the same factory but marketed for different countries hence different language.

 

[GoodShave]

I have learned that when it comes to blades, you have to compare them in context with which razor you use them and how good your face prep, lather and technique are (not to mention how tough your stubble is and how sensitive your skin is). For me the Astra SP has been my go to blade for pretty much every DE razor I have bought but I am finding that they are not my favorite in my Yates 921 with the M or H base plates. Astra SP blades get a lot of love here. I do have both new Astra SP and old Astra SP blades but have not tried out the ones with the newer packaging yet.

 

[Dirty Harry]

My first post says I use Platinum.
Sometime ago, I may have tried both but don't recall my results. I'm starting over with DE shaving. It sounds like everyone has the typical variety of results as far as favorites go. I will pick up some stainless soon and do my own comparison.
It sounds to me like the blades are pretty much the same despite packaging differences.

I just know that I see a lot of talk about country of origin and how that may affect quality. I'm just gathering more info from you folks so I can make an informed decision.
Dirty

 

[GoodShave]

There are definite differences between some blades. Some blades are thicker than others and will work differently than thinner blades in some razors. Some blades are a little larger than others. Some blades are sharper than others. There are definitely a bunch of blades that seem to work similarly to others and really make you wonder if they are the same blade but rebranded.

I usually throw in a tuck of blades to try with each of my orders. I also keep notes on my shaves so I know what blade worked with what razor/brush/soap/prep. That way I know what to reorder when the time comes (and what not to order again).

I would stay away from Amazon and go with dedicated shaving retailers as there are counterfeit blades out there.

 

[JPO]

Allot of razors are built around the Asstra blade. I have read that this is used because of the consistency and dimensions, which seems to be around average.

 

[RayClem]

All are made by PPI in St. Petersburg and packed for different markets but SP is SP. Personally I prefer the blue Astra SS over the green SP.

Gillette/Petersburg Products International produces a lot of different blades, but they are only one of many blade manufacturers around the world. Gillette also manufactures blades in India, China, and Brazil. There is another blade manufacturer in Russia. Mostochlegmash is located in Moscow and makes Voskhod and Rapira blades. Vidyut is another manufacturer in India. There are also manufacturers in Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Korea, and Vietnam. There may be others as well. There is even one remaining manufacturer in the USA, Accutec Blades makes Personna lab blues and med preps as well as GEM and PAL single edge blades.

For many shavers, Astra SP blades are great. They not super sharp, so they are not particularly good for folks like me who have coarse beards, but they work well for those with less coarse beards. They are not particularly smooth, so my sensitive skin does not like them. I much prefer the Astra Superior Stainless blades over the Super Platinum. In fact, the Astra SP blades are one of the few platinum coated blades that do not work for me.

​

 

[RayClem]

All are made by PPI in St. Petersburg and packed for different markets but SP is SP. Personally I prefer the blue Astra SS over the green SP.

Gillette/Petersburg Products International produces a lot of different blades, but they are only one of many blade manufacturers around the world. Gillette also manufactures blades in India, China, and Brazil. There is another blade manufacturer in Russia. Mostochlegmash is located in Moscow and makes Voskhod and Rapira blades. Vidyut is another manufacturer in India. There are also manufacturers in Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Korea, and Vietnam. There may be others I missed. There is even one remaining manufacturer in the USA, Accutec Blades makes Personna Comfort Coated For Hospital Use blade as well as GEM and PAL single edge blades.

For many shavers, Astra SP blades are great. They not super sharp, so they are not particularly good for folks like me who have coarse beards, but they work well for those with less coarse beards. They are not particularly smooth, so my sensitive skin does not like them. I much prefer the Astra Superior Stainless blades over the Super Platinum. In fact, the Astra SP blades are one of the few platinum coated blades that do not work for me.

​

 

[Multum in parvo]

Gillette/Petersburg Products International produces a lot of different blades, but they are only one of many blade manufacturers around the world. Gillette also manufactures blades in India, China, and Brazil. There is another blade manufacturer in Russia. Mostochlegmash is located in Moscow and makes Voskhod and Rapira blades. Vidyut is another manufacturer in India. There are also manufacturers in Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Korea, and Vietnam. There may be others I missed. There is even one remaining manufacturer in the USA, Accutec Blades makes Personna Comfort Coated For Hospital Use blade as well as GEM and PAL single edge blades.

For many shavers, Astra SP blades are great. They not super sharp, so they are not particularly good for folks like me who have coarse beards, but they work well for those with less coarse beards. They are not particularly smooth, so my sensitive skin does not like them. I much prefer the Astra Superior Stainless blades over the Super Platinum. In fact, the Astra SP blades are one of the few platinum coated blades that do not work for me.

​

„All“ refers to the OP’s question in regards to different printed Astra SP packages.

I’m with you, mediocre shaves with SP, good ones with SS

 

[Happy Jack]

Astra SPs are my "go to" blades. I recently bought 150 of them through eBay and I have no reason to think they aren't genuine. They work well in any of my DE razors.

Sure, the Astra SS is also good, but I personally find the SP marginally smoother. There are other great blades, and I still experiment, but for me the SP provides a good combination of value, longevity and performance.

 

[Big_T]

I've used hundreds of Astra SP blades and have hundreds in my inventory. I've tried Astra SS and they were ok but I prefer the SP.

 

[Multum in parvo]

The great divide

 

[ivan_101]

The great divide

Why "divide"? I like both equally.

 

[Multum in parvo]

Why "divide"? I like both equally.

Heresy

 

[Slanterino]

Astra SP is gold standard, man.

GOLD STANDARD.

 

[VerbaVolant]

This is my gold standard:

You can find them inside this sleeve:

 

[WVShaver]

I am fairly new to DE shaving but will share my experience so far. About 4-6 months ago I started testing different razors and blades out to get away from the irritation cartridge razors were causing me. I started out with the Astra SP blades and must say they still remain my favorite blade.

I have tried out about a dozen razors so far and at least 10-20 different types of blades.

I am always surprised to hear people say the Astras aren't as sharp or smooth as other blades because with all the ones I have tested the only blades that come close to feeling as sharp or smooth as the Astras are the GSB's and Feathers. The Feathers aren't as smooth for me, and the GSB's are hit and miss with some blades feeling as good or better then the Astras and others worse but with a price point 3 times higher.

Now here is the thing that gets me.... each batch of blades feels different to me. While all the Astra SPs are great blades, some batches are better than others. I have tried at least 3-4 different dates/batches and all but one of them feel super sharp and smooth while the least favorite batch is still above most other blades I've tried. My latest batch is the sharpest yet but they don't seem to last quite as long. I have tried older (2017ish) and newer (2021-2022) batches and so far my favorite batch was a 2022 one, and least favorite a 2021 batch so I don't think the year of production has anything to do with it.

I had the same situation with GSB blades and find it strange I don't hear of this more often when reading these forums. Perhaps it's because people don't tend to buy more then 1 batch of blades at a time?

 

[WVShaver]

Also since the Astra SS blades were brought up, I figured I would mention those as well. I have tested 2 different tucks so far from different dates with one of them feeling very sharp (perhaps moreso then the SP) but not quite as smooth. Nonetheless it was a great blade and up there with the SP. But the other batch I tested was mediocre at best.

I still have tons of blades to test out and look forward to finding a blade I like even better then the Astra SP, but so far I have been unsuccessful. Many of the blades people recommend just feel utterly dull or not smooth at all which surprises me. I know some razors/blade combos can make things feel different but for me the Astra SP has been superb in every single razor I tested, and the GSB's being very close.

I just tried a Perma Sharp yesterday based on lots of positive reviews and while it gave me a nice close shave it didn't feel anywhere near as smooth as the Astra and had noticeable tugging a couple times.
I tried a Bic Platinum once and thought it was fairly decent but not close to the Astra for me.
The Rapira & Voskhod blades were also mediocre and didn't feel very sharp to me.
The Gillette dark platinum also didn't do it for me.
The Personna Israeli Reds were also a disappointment in the sharpness category.
7 O'clock Russian Yellow Sharpedge were also not as sharp nor smooth for me.

I have tried others but can't remember them at the moment. Ones I plan to test out soon that are still possibilities include Nacet, Kai, Personna Lab Blues & Med Preps, Gillette light Platinum, Gillette KCG, German Wilkinson Swords, and a few others.

 

[Dirty Harry]

That is all very helpful info WV.

I am only a few months into my DE journey as well.

My beard is quite light so I get a few shaves out of each blade provided I like it.

I realize the effectiveness of a blade for one individual depends on a lot of variables outside of the blade itself.
I like the fact that, at some level, I need to figure this out myself.

My original question was about the difference if any between the two Astra SP labels and if it affects quality. The discussion rapidly evolved(devolved) into a discussion that included a lot of other info.

Personally, I think that having to much info is better than not enough.

Thanks all!

Dirty

 

[WVShaver]

That is all very helpful info WV.

I am only a few months into my DE journey as well.

My beard is quite light so I get a few shaves out of each blade provided I like it.

I realize the effectiveness of a blade for one individual depends on a lot of variables outside of the blade itself.
I like the fact that, at some level, I need to figure this out myself.

My original question was about the difference if any between the two Astra SP labels and if it affects quality. The discussion rapidly evolved(devolved) into a discussion that included a lot of other info.

Personally, I think that having to much info is better than not enough.

Thanks all!

Dirty

Going through my boxes of Astra SP blades I believe all of them but one are the Žiletka ones. And the only Jilet one I have is from an older batch.

Reading another member say the Jilet ones were noticeably better made me check to make sure I didn't get them mixed up but for me out of about 5 different ones my older Jilet batch is about 3/5 position with my favorite 2 batches coming from Žiletka boxed ones. Of course everyone's results will vary and I only have one batch of the Jilet labeled ones to compare with but I wouldn't worry too much about getting either one.

All of this said, my worst batch of these came from an Ebay seller that had very reputable feedback and the blades look legitimate and still cut better then most other blades but aren't as good as my other 4 batches. My latest ones came from RazorBladesClub and are superb 2022 dated ones with Žiletka markings. My second favorite batch came from GrownMenShave and is Žiletka and are 2021 dated and last longer then the ones from RazorBladesClub but aren't quite as sharp but still sharper then the other blades tested and was my favorite blades until I got the new batch.

So I'd say it's very hit and miss on the batch you get. But I don't have a single bad batch out of 5+ dates just one mediocre batch that is still better then the other blades I listed not counting the GSB blades.