Blade giveaway reviews

[AZBronco]

First, thank you to whoever donated the thousands of blades to the GBE and for allowing @dmshaver to give away those that weren't needed in the exchange. I received a selection of blades today and thought I'd share my reviews.

My background--I've been using a DE razor for over 10 years. When I saw the list of blades being given away, I was mostly interested in blades that I generally had success with early in my journey, but for whatever reason never went back to. The blades I requested were Personna, Shark, Dorco Prime Platinum, and Voskhod. They showed up today and I showered and shaved this evening, so no better time than the present to write a review.

When the blades showed up, I was surprised to see the Shark blades said Platinum. I didn't realize they made a platinum blade so I wanted to try it first. After my regular prep in the shower, I loaded the Shark into a Gillette Slim set at 4 and used a badger brush to lather some Tabac (it's still an old tallow puck that I only use once a week or so). I'll be honest--I was excited to try this blade. My experience has been some of the lesser brands (Derby Extra and Dorco ST300) are ok, but the premium/prime/platinum versions have been excellent for me. The Shark Platinum didn't disappoint--it was smooth on two days of stubble and gave me an excellent BBS shave in two passes (WTG and ATG). I honestly hardly felt the blade as it cut so efficiently. I'll see what the blade longevity is--but they are cheap enough that I really wouldn't care if it only gave me 2 or 3 good shaves. Initial impression of the Shark Platinum is a very favorable in sharpness and comfort. It matches favorably with my other daily blades (Gillette 7 o'clock yellow and Derby Premium).

I'll use this blade the next couple of days, but then I'll be out of town for work for a week and probably be using a Harry's cartridge (unless I check a bag). I'll post my next review when I try the next blade.

 

[dmshaver]

Thanks for posting such a thorough review. I agree with you about the Shark Platinum, it's an excellent blade. If you have time (& this time of year that may be a big IF), please post your thoughts on the various blades, I'm interested to read your impressions on the other blades. And it will be helpful to others to see various blades reviewed in one thread. Well done!

 

[PMICR]

First, thank you to whoever donated the thousands of blades to the GBE and for allowing @dmshaver to give away those that weren't needed in the exchange. I received a selection of blades today and thought I'd share my reviews.

My background--I've been using a DE razor for over 10 years. When I saw the list of blades being given away, I was mostly interested in blades that I generally had success with early in my journey, but for whatever reason never went back to. The blades I requested were Personna, Shark, Dorco Prime Platinum, and Voskhod. They showed up today and I showered and shaved this evening, so no better time than the present to write a review.

When the blades showed up, I was surprised to see the Shark blades said Platinum. I didn't realize they made a platinum blade so I wanted to try it first. After my regular prep in the shower, I loaded the Shark into a Gillette Slim set at 4 and used a badger brush to lather some Tabac (it's still an old tallow puck that I only use once a week or so). I'll be honest--I was excited to try this blade. My experience has been some of the lesser brands (Derby Extra and Dorco ST300) are ok, but the premium/prime/platinum versions have been excellent for me. The Shark Platinum didn't disappoint--it was smooth on two days of stubble and gave me an excellent BBS shave in two passes (WTG and ATG). I honestly hardly felt the blade as it cut so efficiently. I'll see what the blade longevity is--but they are cheap enough that I really wouldn't care if it only gave me 2 or 3 good shaves. Initial impression of the Shark Platinum is a very favorable in sharpness and comfort. It matches favorably with my other daily blades (Gillette 7 o'clock yellow and Derby Premium).

I'll use this blade the next couple of days, but then I'll be out of town for work for a week and probably be using a Harry's cartridge (unless I check a bag). I'll post my next review when I try the next blade.

First of all, I wanted to once again thank dmshaver for the blades. I have been using as my goto Super Max Super Platinum for several years, but it looks like they are no longer available. So far I've tried the Astra Platinum, the Shark Platinum, the Dorco Platinum, and I just tried the Rapira Platinum Lux. I agree on the Shark Platinum. It was the second blade I tried, and I really found it smooth and sharp enough. I was expecting to like the Astra Platinum more but did not. I will give them another chance soon enough. The Rapira Platinum Lux was very good as well. So far, I'm sold on the Shark Platinum. I got three good shaves with them. Looking forward to trying others as well.

 

[AZBronco]

Hi all! Back from my work trip where I shaved with a Harry's razor for a week (didn't check a bag and I did what I had to do). But back home and used another blade for a couple of days, so here's my review of that second blade--the Personna. I've bought the 100 packs of Personna blue before, but it's been several years since I had any so I'll refrain from comparing my experience to a memory. This is one of those "I remember liking those blades but can't recall why I never bought them again." I'm kind of like a dog getting distracted by every squirrel when it comes to blades, so sometimes I move on to the next thing rather than just enjoying something that worked well.

I don't know if this is the same as the lab blue. The box I had in the past was a blue box with 100 loose blades wrapped in plain white paper. The blades I just received have "Personna" printed diagonally across the wrapper but are still loose. The blade itself is quite sharp--maybe ever so slightly sharper than the Shark Platinum. I'm not an expert, but if the Feather is a 10, the Personna might be a 9 and the Shark Platinum an 8? There are probably threads somewhere on here where someone has scientifically measured the sharpness of each blade, but I'm just going on my personal experience/opinion.

I loaded the blade into my EJ DE89. It seemed like the right choice since that was my first razor and probably the only razor I owned 10 years ago when I bought the 100 pack of Personnas. I've now got 2 shaves with the gifted blade and used Prorasso green and Cella for the shaves. The first shave was lovely--the blade was sharp, cut cleanly, and I hardly felt it. The second shave, the blade was noticeably less sharp, which surprised me and might be why I didn't buy them again. The other blade that I've noticed this with is Feather, which are amazing, but by shave three the edge has definitely degraded.

So if I were to rank what I've tried so far, I'd give Personna an extra point for sharpness, but the Shark gets an extra point for longevity. In my world, if blades are otherwise equal, I next look to value. Blades are cheap generally, but I just looked at prices and the Shark Platinum is ~$7/100 while the Personna is ~$17/100. Shark Platinum definitely gets extra points for value so I rank them ahead of the Personna. One of my go-to blades has been the Gillette Yellow, which is about the same price as the Personna for 100 blades but I normally get 4 or 5 shades from the Gillette Yellow.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Hi all! Back from my work trip where I shaved with a Harry's razor for a week (didn't check a bag and I did what I had to do). But back home and used another blade for a couple of days, so here's my review of that second blade--the Personna. I've bought the 100 packs of Personna blue before, but it's been several years since I had any so I'll refrain from comparing my experience to a memory. This is one of those "I remember liking those blades but can't recall why I never bought them again." I'm kind of like a dog getting distracted by every squirrel when it comes to blades, so sometimes I move on to the next thing rather than just enjoying something that worked well.

I don't know if this is the same as the lab blue. The box I had in the past was a blue box with 100 loose blades wrapped in plain white paper. The blades I just received have "Personna" printed diagonally across the wrapper but are still loose. The blade itself is quite sharp--maybe ever so slightly sharper than the Shark Platinum. I'm not an expert, but if the Feather is a 10, the Personna might be a 9 and the Shark Platinum an 8? There are probably threads somewhere on here where someone has scientifically measured the sharpness of each blade, but I'm just going on my personal experience/opinion.

I loaded the blade into my EJ DE89. It seemed like the right choice since that was my first razor and probably the only razor I owned 10 years ago when I bought the 100 pack of Personnas. I've now got 2 shaves with the gifted blade and used Prorasso green and Cella for the shaves. The first shave was lovely--the blade was sharp, cut cleanly, and I hardly felt it. The second shave, the blade was noticeably less sharp, which surprised me and might be why I didn't buy them again. The other blade that I've noticed this with is Feather, which are amazing, but by shave three the edge has definitely degraded.

So if I were to rank what I've tried so far, I'd give Personna an extra point for sharpness, but the Shark gets an extra point for longevity. In my world, if blades are otherwise equal, I next look to value. Blades are cheap generally, but I just looked at prices and the Shark Platinum is ~$7/100 while the Personna is ~$17/100. Shark Platinum definitely gets extra points for value so I rank them ahead of the Personna. One of my go-to blades has been the Gillette Yellow, which is about the same price as the Personna for 100 blades but I normally get 4 or 5 shades from the Gillette Yellow.

The Personna X is $17.50 for 200 blades on Amazon, not 100, which is quite economical. I have some from the blade giveaway but haven used one yet.

 

[BigJ]

First, thank you to whoever donated the thousands of blades to the GBE and for allowing @dmshaver to give away those that weren't needed in the exchange. I received a selection of blades today and thought I'd share my reviews.

My background--I've been using a DE razor for over 10 years. When I saw the list of blades being given away, I was mostly interested in blades that I generally had success with early in my journey, but for whatever reason never went back to. The blades I requested were Personna, Shark, Dorco Prime Platinum, and Voskhod. They showed up today and I showered and shaved this evening, so no better time than the present to write a review.

When the blades showed up, I was surprised to see the Shark blades said Platinum. I didn't realize they made a platinum blade so I wanted to try it first. After my regular prep in the shower, I loaded the Shark into a Gillette Slim set at 4 and used a badger brush to lather some Tabac (it's still an old tallow puck that I only use once a week or so). I'll be honest--I was excited to try this blade. My experience has been some of the lesser brands (Derby Extra and Dorco ST300) are ok, but the premium/prime/platinum versions have been excellent for me. The Shark Platinum didn't disappoint--it was smooth on two days of stubble and gave me an excellent BBS shave in two passes (WTG and ATG). I honestly hardly felt the blade as it cut so efficiently. I'll see what the blade longevity is--but they are cheap enough that I really wouldn't care if it only gave me 2 or 3 good shaves. Initial impression of the Shark Platinum is a very favorable in sharpness and comfort. It matches favorably with my other daily blades (Gillette 7 o'clock yellow and Derby Premium).

I'll use this blade the next couple of days, but then I'll be out of town for work for a week and probably be using a Harry's cartridge (unless I check a bag). I'll post my next review when I try the next blade.

Great review!!

Lord makes three Shark options. And B&B Shark Week is a great time to explore all three!!

 

[Cafebarian]

Might want to stop by Shavers of Sharks SoS in the club section. We would appreciate you sharing your Shark blade shaves with us.

 

[AZBronco]

The Personna X is $17.50 for 200 blades on Amazon, not 100, which is quite economical. I have some from the blade giveaway but haven used one yet.

Amazon is a crazy place. So many vendors selling the same things for different prices. When I searched Personna DE blades, it listed the box I bought in 2014 first and it was $17/100. I didn’t dig but am not surprised cheaper options can be found.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Amazon is a crazy place. So many vendors selling the same things for different prices. When I searched Personna DE blades, it listed the box I bought in 2014 first and it was $17/100. I didn’t dig but am not surprised cheaper options can be found.

The Personna X series is a different blade from the Comfort Coated. The X serious don't seem to last as long. Maybe they are intended for barber shops & hair salons one-time-use.

 

[AZBronco]

The Personna X series is a different blade from the Comfort Coated. The X serious don't seem to last as long. Maybe they are intended for barber shops & hair salons one-time-use.

Thanks. I checked the blade and it is indeed stamped Personna X and is cheaper. I found a thread and read opinions—some people said they were almost as sharp as Med Prep while others said they were a 5 on a scale of 1-10. Could be manufacturing variances? I’m curious if I’ll experience a variation in the 25 I was gifted.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Thanks. I checked the blade and it is indeed stamped Personna X and is cheaper. I found a thread and read opinions—some people said they were almost as sharp as Med Prep while others said they were a 5 on a scale of 1-10. Could be manufacturing variances? I’m curious if I’ll experience a variation in the 25 I was gifted.

They seem pretty consistent. Seems to be a smooth and comfortable daily driver type of blade in medium-aggressive razors. They're not as sharp as Med Prep/Lab Blue and will only last for a few shaves before giving up.

 

[AZBronco]

Hi all--back from vacation and finally have a few minutes for a review. The third blade I used was the Dorco Prime/ST301. The Dorco 300 never agreed with my face, but I remember the 301 being a significant improvement. I found my couple of shaves with the Dorco to be very sharp and very comfortable. Surprisingly, this was the first of these sample blades that gave me some small weepers on the neck--which is really unusual with whatever I put in my Mamba 70. I'll chalk that up to user error unless it happens next go round. Anyway, I'm not sure what to say about the 301--it's a good, sharp, blade that does what it's supposed to do.

My daughter gave me a Leaf Twig for Christmas, so for round two I may snap some of these and try them out in the Twig.

 

[AZBronco]

They seem pretty consistent. Seems to be a smooth and comfortable daily driver type of blade in medium-aggressive razors. They're not as sharp as Med Prep/Lab Blue and will only last for a few shaves before giving up.

Question since you seem to understand and like Personna. There's a rumor going around that the Personna USA made blades are now being sold as AccuThrive, while the Israeli Personna line was moved to Germany and those are now made by Edgewell? Will the Personna X be gone once current stocks are sold through?

 

[Grundi]

Hi all--back from vacation and finally have a few minutes for a review. The third blade I used was the Dorco Prime/ST301. The Dorco 300 never agreed with my face, but I remember the 301 being a significant improvement. I found my couple of shaves with the Dorco to be very sharp and very comfortable. Surprisingly, this was the first of these sample blades that gave me some small weepers on the neck--which is really unusual with whatever I put in my Mamba 70. I'll chalk that up to user error unless it happens next go round. Anyway, I'm not sure what to say about the 301--it's a good, sharp, blade that does what it's supposed to do.

My daughter gave me a Leaf Twig for Christmas, so for round two I may snap some of these and try them out in the Twig.

My experience is very similar. Of the Dorco line up, the Primes are my favorites (plus they have a great mustache graphic along with a holographic effect).

 

[NorthernSoul]

Question since you seem to understand and like Personna. There's a rumor going around that the Personna USA made blades are now being sold as AccuThrive, while the Israeli Personna line was moved to Germany and those are now made by Edgewell? Will the Personna X be gone once current stocks are sold through?

I've not used the Personna X series, so I can only share what I've heard.

The blades come in a package marked as Made in Israel and platinum coated. They have both Edgewell and AccuTec listed on the box (maybe because both companies have rights to the Personna name). These appear to be aimed mostly at barber shops and salons. Users report they are not as sharp as Med Preps or Lab Blues, but they're smooth, comfortable blades that only last a few shaves.

I don't know if the X-series will continue being made, but some websites imply they are being discontinued.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Come to think of it, I believe I've used the X Series a few times. IIRC, they were smooth, mid-sharp blades that only lasted a few shaves. Sharper than an Astra SP, I think.

 

[Quaznoid]

The Personna mystery continues

 

[AZBronco]

This will be my last review post on this thread since I've used all four of the blades now and formed my initial reactions.

The last blade was the Voskhod. This blade was quite smooth and comfortable for me--I loaded it into my Mamba 70 and used it over a handful of days. I only have 4 soaps in my rotation (Tabac, PdP63, Prorasso green cream, and Cella original)--so I may have used each soap once. Anyway, this blade performed like a champ being close and comfortable. I won't be surprised if I can get a full week's worth of shaves out of it before I have to toss it. For me, this one scores very high in longevity and comfort. Value might be a bit harder--right now these are $23 on Amazon and not currently available at Italian Barber or Maggard's. I get a couple more shaves from the Voskhod than I do the Shark Platinum, but it looks like I can get 300 Shark Platinums for the price of 100 Voskhod's. I did some digging into price history and the Voskhod was under $10 not that long ago. My assumption is that supply is down and shipping costs are up due to the war. I would say if this is someone's favorite blade, considering that 100 blades may last 2 years, they'll probably be fine paying the higher price. But for someone looking for a new blade, I'd suggest there are plenty that are more readily available at under $20/100.

So my completely subjective and unscientific ranking of the four blades I've gotten to try is:
1. Shark Platinum
2. Dorco Prime
3. Personna X

Due to the limited availability of the Voskhod, I'm leaving it out of my ranking but I'd put it either 1 or 2. I might play around doing a side by side with the Shark. The Dorco was fine, but I prefer the Derby Premium. The Personna X was just odd to me--it was a sharp blade, but the edge dulls rather quickly so it's only good for 1 or 2 shaves. It may also be discontinued--but hard to say anything definitive with Personna anymore. I'm looking to trying more of the Shark Platinum and comparing it to my 7 o'clock yellows and Derby Premiums--I may end up adding 100 of these Shark blades to my stash.

Thanks again to @dmshaver and the mystery donor of all those blades that were given away!

 

[dmshaver]

Great reviews, thanks for sharing your thoughts! I agree with you, the Shark Platinum is a really good blade.

 

[PapySnake]

This blade is very soft but not sharp enough for me. I have to insist on areas of my neck that are difficult to shave. I come out with PDS and irritations.