I agree with DE Steve!
Blade flip?
- Thread starter leonski
- Start date
I agree with DE Steve!
I have tried flipping and not flipping. Do it if it makes you feel good but I saw no difference.
Same^^^^^^
Maybe flipping has the added effect of clearing out junk that's clogged in the crevices above and below the edge? The proper experiment would be to compare flipping the blade to just taking it out and putting it back in with the same orientation. 
i remove the blade each time i shave so that i can clean off soap that collects on the bottom edge of the blade, then i always flip it when i put it back in for the next days shave. i think that if i leave any soap, it will dry and get harder and will make shaving less effective the next day.
not sure it is necessary, but it is a habit now and i do it every day... unless i am using an injector of course.
not sure it is necessary, but it is a habit now and i do it every day... unless i am using an injector of course.
No difference. Does a kitchen knife have 2 edges? No. Neither does your DE blade (on one side).
A DE blade is typically .004" thick with the cutting edge thinner. A DE blade edge will bend before it actually dulls. When you shave, you are putting stress on one side of the blade, bending it in one direction. Depending on your beard type, razor design, technique and prep will determine how fast it happens.
When you flip the blade, you stop the blade edge from bending in either direction maintaining a straight efficient blade edge.
Some razor blades will bend faster than others. When the blade bends enough, it will scrape rather then cut efficiently.
YMMV
When you flip the blade, you stop the blade edge from bending in either direction maintaining a straight efficient blade edge.
Some razor blades will bend faster than others. When the blade bends enough, it will scrape rather then cut efficiently.
YMMV
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I am not an engineer or studied material sciences. But I just show the picture of the two sides of a BIC blade after using it for 7 days.
Side 1 was the downward side and Side 2 was the upward sode.
As you can see there is a big difference, what happened to the blade at both sides on one week use. I suppose this has an impact on the sharpness of the blade.
It looks for me that there should have been a benefit in flipping the blade. But again I am not an expert.
Please share me your thoughts. Highly appreciated.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk
Side 1 was the downward side and Side 2 was the upward sode.
As you can see there is a big difference, what happened to the blade at both sides on one week use. I suppose this has an impact on the sharpness of the blade.
It looks for me that there should have been a benefit in flipping the blade. But again I am not an expert.
Please share me your thoughts. Highly appreciated.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk
Here is another thread on the same topic. Lots of speculation but never a scientific study that I can find. I personally do not flip a blade. I did try to see if it made a difference. For a number of weeks I used the same blade in a razor and did not flip. I then got a fresh blade in the same razor and flipped it after every shave. I did not see any difference in the number or quality of the shave - but that was me.
Good illustration of one set of bevels that have been used and the other bevels have seen no use; the coatings on the bevels on side 2 have not come into play. However, once the edge is worn, no amount of flipping will improve it. The bottom line is if you only use a blade for a very short time, flipping it over makes little difference.
I flip every blade before my next shave with it. I think of knife sharpening, much like honing a straight razor, you need to keep both sides even or a wire edge can form.
How that might translate to DE and SE blades I dont know, but flipping blades makes me feel better if nothing else.
I've never not flipped a blade but if you look closely at the Polsilver below used by @Cal to 120 shaves, the edge looks polished.
120 Shaves and done on the magical Polsilver Super Iridium started on February 1st.
I'm not sure if he flipped that blade or not, but I suspect he did.
Good Lord, this thread has more pseudo-science in it than a UFO forum!! 
Do you really think that blades are not deburred and then sputtered/coated afterwards? A razor blade is not a knife or a sword for Pete's sake. Flipping the blade has about the same effect as placing a knife in your other hand in hopes that it will old an edge longer, i.e., zilch.
It's not only the sharpness of a DE blade that imparts smoothness, but moreso the coatings/sputtering that do. Here's a patent from 2004 that gives a good description:
US7673541B2 - Colored razor blades - Google Patents
Do you really think that blades are not deburred and then sputtered/coated afterwards? A razor blade is not a knife or a sword for Pete's sake. Flipping the blade has about the same effect as placing a knife in your other hand in hopes that it will old an edge longer, i.e., zilch.
It's not only the sharpness of a DE blade that imparts smoothness, but moreso the coatings/sputtering that do. Here's a patent from 2004 that gives a good description:
US7673541B2 - Colored razor blades - Google Patents
AimlessWanderer
Remember to forget me!
Good Lord, this thread has more pseudo-science in it than a UFO forum!!
I do flip the blade periodically, as my technique tends to favour one side (left hand side) of each edge, more than the other. So after a few shaves one half of the edge has more wear on it that the other. Flipping the blade puts the sharper right hand side over on the left, and it's like flipping round the blade on a Stanley knife, bringing the sharp side into play.
The only benefit that I see to more regular flipping, is preventing the soap scum build up which can happen on the lower bevel, but that potentially comes at a cost of increased thread wear, by constantly having to open and close the razor 5-10x more than is needed, so I avoid doing that.
Good Lord, this thread has more pseudo-science in it than a UFO forum!!
Coatings wear. How quickly they wear depends on many things, but the theory is sound.
I loosen my handle after every shave and rinse it thoroughly under hot water to clean it out. Thread wear isnt a concern to me but it would be if my razors were plated Zamak.
Ron R
I survived a lathey foreman
My two cents take on flipping a blade is it can not hurt the blade because the worse thing to dull a blade is water & air even if it's stainless because it will create new oxides to coat the bare metal worn off from previous shave and oxides rob from the metal it self to protect from oxidation from the surrounding air.(that's how stainless steel does not rust I learned from trade school)
So most folks who remove their wet blade tap dry their blade on a towel and place it back in their dried razor or on a fridge magnet are in practice theory are improving the blade. Not sure how much improvement it does or how to even measure this but what I do know when I wash my stainless Victorinox knifes in the sink with soapy water & rinse and let air dry wet they do not seem as sharp as before even where the knife was not in use on that part of the blade . Flipping is method of stropping curled areas of the blade and that is why I do this procedure with my face instead of leather or denim! Good for you guys who flip blades like myself. The only negative on flipping a blade is you are handling a very sharp object and exposing it to others who might not be aware!
So most folks who remove their wet blade tap dry their blade on a towel and place it back in their dried razor or on a fridge magnet are in practice theory are improving the blade. Not sure how much improvement it does or how to even measure this but what I do know when I wash my stainless Victorinox knifes in the sink with soapy water & rinse and let air dry wet they do not seem as sharp as before even where the knife was not in use on that part of the blade . Flipping is method of stropping curled areas of the blade and that is why I do this procedure with my face instead of leather or denim! Good for you guys who flip blades like myself. The only negative on flipping a blade is you are handling a very sharp object and exposing it to others who might not be aware!
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Great picture from the UWO Nanofabrication Facility! Maybe I should go talk to them lol.
Dont ever try to catch one if you fumble it!
There is only one huge problem with your theory as I pointed out earlier: by the time your blade edge has exposed steel the blade is worn out from the coatings being worn down. These blades are coated/sputtered so as NOT to expose the leading edge unprotected. That is where the smoothness comes from. If not, they would be "one & toss" blades like the old Gillette Blue Blades were back before Gillette began using their first (and now considered prehistoric) silicone coating decades ago.
Science makes these blades smooth and not sharpness. You are viewing this totally wrong. If you have hard water and are worried about soap scum adhering then simply swish the loaded razor head in rubbing alcohol and let dry.
AimlessWanderer
Remember to forget me!
Which would breach manufacturer's usage guidelines in some cases (Edwin Jagger specifically recommendeds NOT to do that).
Blades are sharpened before coatings are applied, so if coatings were worn evenly, the blade would merely reveal it's original sharpness. However, coatings flake, edges chip and distort, deposits build up, and everyone's hair, skin, water, and technique exact a different toll on the blade.
There's a multitude of different theories, each of which has greater or lesser potential validity based on the individual in question. I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm just saying that others might not be wrong either. I do not believe there are many universal truths in shaving, as there are too many variables..
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