Blade journey

[mgweatherly]

I call them dud's, or Derby's.

~doug~

My next shave in this journey will be with a Dud, I mean, Derby Premium

 

[Rosseforp]

My next shave in this journey will be with a Dud, I mean, Derby Premium

Derby, Voskhod, and Bic Chrome blades don't play well with me. I've got 4 tucks of Astra SP blades that have been collecting dust about 3 years that I'm thinking of trying again.

~doug~

 

[Lane101]

I just received a very generous PIF of 20 different blades from @dmshaver and the blade exchange.

View attachment 1563276

I've decided to try each blade in succession until I've tried all 20 and keep track of my reactions here, journal style. I'm only going to use each blade once for now because an important characteristic of a blade for me is that it feels good on its first use. I'll save them also to give me an option to go back for a second run with each blade.

I'm also going to use the same razor every time to take that out of the equation, my birth year 1961 Tech on my @Rosseforp company time handle. If a blade won't work in a Tech, I'm skeptical .

I'll probably limit the shaving soaps also to only tallow based soaps, which seem to work best for me. Arko will definitely be in the rotation because it is so easy to lather in repeatable fashion, but I'll use others too. I'm also going to let at least 36 hours (and typically 48 hours) pass between shaves unless I run into an "emergency" need for a shave. I want my beard to have a consistent starting condition.

To avoid selection bias, I'm going to use the blades in the order defined by the photo above; left to right and top to bottom. So, first up will be the Gillette Wilkinson Sword blade. When I post reactions, I'll be blunt because I want to record differences. I'll admit to having fairly low expectations for some of these blades (I'm looking at you Shaverboy). This should be fun !

Great journey ahead, enjoy. Note if you only use each blade once and eventually have all 20 in play you may experience blade edge deterioration from corrosion. While stainless blades are highly corrosion resistant they are not corrosion proof. Also many blades shave very differently after the first shave wears through some of the coatings on the blade edge. It may be better to use each blade across multiple shaves tracking how performance evolves over time and noting how many good shaves they provide.

Look forward to seeing your results.

P.S. Not familiar with all the blade brands, if any are carbon steel then you need to use them on multiple days as they will quickly corrode.

 

[mgweatherly]

Great journey ahead, enjoy. Note if you only use each blade once and eventually have all 20 in play you may experience blade edge deterioration from corrosion. While stainless blades are highly corrosion resistant they are not corrosion proof. Also many blades shave very differently after the first shave wears through some of the coatings on the blade edge. It may be better to use each blade across multiple shaves tracking how performance evolves over time and noting how many good shaves they provide.

Look forward to seeing your results.

P.S. Not familiar with all the blade brands, if any are carbon steel then you need to use them on multiple days as they will quickly corrode.

Thanks for your thoughts. To my knowledge, none of the blades that I'll be using in this thread are carbon steel. You make a great point about corrosion; all blades corrode.

I haven't posted anything in this thread about my vintage blade "collection" until now, but I have a fairly deep one with NOS blades from the mid-1920s through the early 2000s. I have not yet tried any blade older than 1950, in part, because many of my vintage blades older than 1950 (all but eight being made of carbon steel) have suffered from some corrosion. BTW, the 1950 blade was not good, but I got a great shave from a 1958 Gillette Thin blade. Many of my vintage blades are not pretty when I put them under a microscope. I do, however, have nine three-holed Gillette blades from 1928 that are in as pristine a condition as could possibly be expected. These blades came in a very tightly sealed, gold-plated blade case in a mint condition Algonquin case. Oddly, that case had no razor in it when I bought it . Nevertheless, it is a prized part of my collection. I have resolved to try one of these "Algonquin" three-holed carbon steel blades at some point. I look forward to that experience. I also have about 50 three-holed blades from 1929 in their paperboard, 10-blade tucks. Some of the tucks are still sealed in waxed paper wrapping. If any of my other three-holed blades are shave ready, it would be some of those.

I also have one partial tuck of Gillette's very first stainless steel blades, the DeLuxe blades introduced around 1929. These blades were expensive in their day, $0.20 per blade, and they were a huge flop because they were brittle. They are among the first slotted blades that Gillette made also. I've got eight of them, but I've only looked at a couple, and they don't look great even though they are stainless steel. It's on my list to see whether I can find one of these stainless blades to try.

I also have about 50 NOS Gillette "NEW" blades from 1930 (the first "mainstream" slotted blade made by Gillette). Some are fully sealed in their five-blade, cellophane wrapped paperboard boxes. I have not removed any of the cellophane because I want to preserve these blades as much as possible. Some of my tucks have no cellophane, and the blades in them that I've examined look to have suffered from corrosion to the point that I don't want to try them. See the photo below for an example. At some point though, I will open one of the "virgin" tucks and try one of these 1930 blades.

Now, my experiences with "modern" vintage stainless steel blades (made from 1960 onward) has been very positive; I've had only good to great shaves with them. In face, the vintage English Wilkinsons and English NACETs are among my favorite blades of any type. Based on these experiences, I'm actually not worried at all about corrosion affecting the performance of any of the 20 blades I'm trying on this journey. Stainless steel simply corrodes too slowly to create a problem, and I carefully air dry the blade before I rewrap them.

I agree 100% with your point about how coating wear (especially teflon) affects blade performance. Most of my experiences with that phenomenon are based on using German Wilkinson blades (one of my favorite "new" blades) but I've also seen it with vintage Gillette "Spoiler" blades and vintage Schick Krona blades. They definitely change character as they are used, and I generally like them for about 4-7 shaves. I haven't gone past about 7 shaves with any blade frankly because I have so many to try .

@Lane101, I'd love to know what your current favorite blades are and why. I must confess that I don't have a huge wealth of experience with current DE blades because I've fallen so far into the vintage everything hole. One main reason for this journey is to give me some of the experience I've missed.

 

[mgweatherly]

The shave feels close right now, but not stand out close. It will be interesting to revisit the closeness tonight after 12 hours.

The shave was indeed quite close. After 12 hours, my face was still very smooth, perhaps right between BBS and DFS. I confess that I am beginning to wonder whether using a different blade makes that much difference on the closeness that one can achieve. Getting close without irritation is, of course, the holy grail that we all chase. Only 17 more blades to try !

FYI, here is a LINK to my summary table.

 

[Lane101]

Thanks for your thoughts. To my knowledge, none of the blades that I'll be using in this thread are carbon steel. You make a great point about corrosion; all blades corrode.

I haven't posted anything in this thread about my vintage blade "collection" until now, but I have a fairly deep one with NOS blades from the mid-1920s through the early 2000s. I have not yet tried any blade older than 1950, in part, because many of my vintage blades older than 1950 (all but eight being made of carbon steel) have suffered from some corrosion. BTW, the 1950 blade was not good, but I got a great shave from a 1958 Gillette Thin blade. Many of my vintage blades are not pretty when I put them under a microscope. I do, however, have nine three-holed Gillette blades from 1928 that are in as pristine a condition as could possibly be expected. These blades came in a very tightly sealed, gold-plated blade case in a mint condition Algonquin case. Oddly, that case had no razor in it when I bought it . Nevertheless, it is a prized part of my collection. I have resolved to try one of these "Algonquin" three-holed carbon steel blades at some point. I look forward to that experience. I also have about 50 three-holed blades from 1929 in their paperboard, 10-blade tucks. Some of the tucks are still sealed in waxed paper wrapping. If any of my other three-holed blades are shave ready, it would be some of those.

I also have one partial tuck of Gillette's very first stainless steel blades, the DeLuxe blades introduced around 1929. These blades were expensive in their day, $0.20 per blade, and they were a huge flop because they were brittle. They are among the first slotted blades that Gillette made also. I've got eight of them, but I've only looked at a couple, and they don't look great even though they are stainless steel. It's on my list to see whether I can find one of these stainless blades to try.

I also have about 50 NOS Gillette "NEW" blades from 1930 (the first "mainstream" slotted blade made by Gillette). Some are fully sealed in their five-blade, cellophane wrapped paperboard boxes. I have not removed any of the cellophane because I want to preserve these blades as much as possible. Some of my tucks have no cellophane, and the blades in them that I've examined look to have suffered from corrosion to the point that I don't want to try them. See the photo below for an example. At some point though, I will open one of the "virgin" tucks and try one of these 1930 blades.

View attachment 1565785

Now, my experiences with "modern" vintage stainless steel blades (made from 1960 onward) has been very positive; I've had only good to great shaves with them. In face, the vintage English Wilkinsons and English NACETs are among my favorite blades of any type. Based on these experiences, I'm actually not worried at all about corrosion affecting the performance of any of the 20 blades I'm trying on this journey. Stainless steel simply corrodes too slowly to create a problem, and I carefully air dry the blade before I rewrap them.

I agree 100% with your point about how coating wear (especially teflon) affects blade performance. Most of my experiences with that phenomenon are based on using German Wilkinson blades (one of my favorite "new" blades) but I've also seen it with vintage Gillette "Spoiler" blades and vintage Schick Krona blades. They definitely change character as they are used, and I generally like them for about 4-7 shaves. I haven't gone past about 7 shaves with any blade frankly because I have so many to try .

@Lane101, I'd love to know what your current favorite blades are and why. I must confess that I don't have a huge wealth of experience with current DE blades because I've fallen so far into the vintage everything hole. One main reason for this journey is to give me some of the experience I've missed.

Wonderful experience and collection of vintage blades. What led you in the vintage direction? Do you also collect vintage razors? Since returning to DE shaving 3+ years ago I've been using Dorco, Derby Extra (post 2016 production) and Astra SP blades. All of these work well for me with the primary difference in the area of longevity.

The Dorcos are my favorite. I've purchased both the Stainless (ST300 and ST301, same blade paper vs. plastic tuck) and Prime (STP300 and STP301 again paper vs plastic) and found all to be excellent. Primes are a bit rougher on the first shave as the extra coating wears through. With my current technique Dorcos typically deliver 10-15 shaves per blade. Note that all the above Dorco is newer Vietnam production. Older made in Korea blades had issues per other B&Bers and many are still floating around in vendor inventories.

I've written a lot about the Dorco blades in the thread linked below if you would like more information.

Dorco Double Edge Blade SKU Changes & Clarifications

Hi everyone. Just received a new shipment of 100 STP300 Dorco Prime double edge blades and discovered a stock keeping unit (SKU) change confirmed via a review of their latest product catalog. The ST301 stainless Dorco blade package is no longer listed in the catalog, only the ST300, Primes and...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[Guido75]

+1 @Lane101. Dorco’s are among my favourite blades. I like the ST300HQ and the Titan even more. Solid blades, dependable, smooth (especially after the first shave) and comfortable with a fair amount of longevity too. What’s there not to love!

Guido

 

[mgweatherly]

Wonderful experience and collection of vintage blades. What led you in the vintage direction? Do you also collect vintage razors? Since returning to DE shaving 3+ years ago I've been using Dorco, Derby Extra (post 2016 production) and Astra SP blades. All of these work well for me with the primary difference in the area of longevity.

The Dorcos are my favorite. I've purchased both the Stainless (ST300 and ST301, same blade paper vs. plastic tuck) and Prime (STP300 and STP301 again paper vs plastic) and found all to be excellent. Primes are a bit rougher on the first shave as the extra coating wears through. With my current technique Dorcos typically deliver 10-15 shaves per blade. Note that all the above Dorco is newer Vietnam production. Older made in Korea blades had issues per other B&Bers and many are still floating around in vendor inventories.

I've written a lot about the Dorco blades in the thread linked below if you would like more information.

Dorco Double Edge Blade SKU Changes & Clarifications

Hi everyone. Just received a new shipment of 100 STP300 Dorco Prime double edge blades and discovered a stock keeping unit (SKU) change confirmed via a review of their latest product catalog. The ST301 stainless Dorco blade package is no longer listed in the catalog, only the ST300, Primes and...

www.badgerandblade.com

Very cool! The Dorco ST300 and ST301 are both part of my Blade Journey, and the Derby Premium is up next! I happen to have about 85 of those blades, but I've never used one! I got the 85 Derby Premiums in a blade lot that I bought for the 45 vintage Gillette Spoiler blades in the lot. That lot also included 50 DORCO Primes (Vietnamese). I've used one of them and enjoyed it. My fascination with vintage blades is an offshoot of my obsession (I admit it) with vintage razors.

Yes, I do have quite a few vintage razors, over 200 (obsess much?) that span 1906 to 1986. I've never collected anything until I ran into the wetshaving community. I bought ONE Fatboy and became so enamored by the beautiful functionality of these vintage razors, that I went wild collecting them. I probably own (and have used) one of almost every type of Gillette razor, and I own multiples (sometimes dozens) of some types (Super Speeds, Techs, Slims, Fatboys, Lady Gillettes). I really enjoy restoring them, and I need to rehome many of them.

A taste of my collection is found HERE, but I've added a number of interesting items since that post. A few British TTO razors are among my favorite additions since that post. I've posted about all of them in the Razor Acquisition thread. A rare 1956 British Aristocrat DeLuxe is among my favorite razors. I'm sort of an Aristocrat freak actually. Not shown in that linked post is my rather large collection of SE razors of the GEM/Ever Ready variety and the Schick Injector variety. Those span from the early 1900s until the 1970s. I enjoy both of these types of vintage SE razors quite a bit.

I also have a handful of new razors, but I have nowhere near the investment in those (yet). I have a Rockwell 6S (love it), Fatip OC Slant, Parker Semi-slant, Parker Variant, Merkur 34C, and Razorock Hawk V2 AC razor. They all work pretty well for me, but the Rockwell and Hawk V2 are my favorites among my new razors. I'm on the waiting list for a Lambda Athena, which will be my most expensive new razor by a wide margin (but not my most expensive razor, also by a wide margin). I find it to be incredibly beautiful, and the B&B brethren who've used one rave about it.

When I write a post like this, I wonder whether I need to seek membership in Razor's Anonymous . Heck, I could be a founding member!

 

[Guido75]

Amazing collection Mitch. WOW! Regarding TTOs (going off topic of your thread here) - which would you say is mild(est)? My son of 16 wants to get into wet shaving too and I was thinking TTO (modern or vintage) for him which I do not have (except for my birth quarter razor).

Thanks,

Guido

 

[mgweatherly]

Amazing collection Mitch. WOW! Regarding TTOs (going off topic of your thread here) - which would you say is mild(est)? My son of 16 wants to get into wet shaving too and I was thinking TTO (modern or vintage) for him which I do not have (except for my birth quarter razor).

Thanks,

Guido

The mildest vintage Gillette TTOs by design are Blue Tip Super Speeds and Lady Gillette razors. My youngest son was most interested in trying the Lady Gillette because he thought it looked cool and liked the longer handle. I've used both types and can verify that they are both mild. I think the vintage Gillette adjustables can be even milder when you use settings 1 or 2. My favorite among the Adjustables is the Slim because its head has a lower profile than the Fatboy, and the handle is more durable and grippier than both the Fatboy and later Super Adjustable. They all work well though.

 

[Guido75]

Thanks!

 

[ShaveWok]

Nice!!
What is everyones blade rotation (if you have one)?

I started with Tatra blades because they came with my razor, but I wanted to go sharper, so I bought a pack of Feathers.
I used the Feathers for almost a year with the Tatra every so often.

Then one day I got inspired to try new blades and I have the following rotation dialed in:

Persona,
Gillette 7o'clock yellow,
Feather,
Tatra,
Shark,
Gillette silver blue

 

[Guido75]

Because of the Discovery Blade Adventure my rotation is very limited at the moment between Timor, Bolzano and Eddison. All three good blades with good longevity.

Usually I rotate between Dorco’s, KCG, Tiger Platinum, Gillette 365 (al least those are the ones I have in bulk). Besides those I have (too?) many others (like Feather, Personna, Gillette Platinum, Gillette Blacks, GSB), but in lesser quantities. I am beginning to have a liking for Feather - they just work for me. Sharks I only use for Shark week

Guido

 

[Rosseforp]

The mildest vintage Gillette TTOs by design are Blue Tip Super Speeds and Lady Gillette razors. My youngest son was most interested in trying the Lady Gillette because he thought it looked cool and liked the longer handle. I've used both types and can verify that they are both mild. I think the vintage Gillette adjustables can be even milder when you use settings 1 or 2. My favorite among the Adjustables is the Slim because its head has a lower profile than the Fatboy, and the handle is more durable and grippier than both the Fatboy and later Super Adjustable. They all work well though.

I would definitely say go with the Slim. Mine is unbelievably smooth on #4, and with proper technique a close shave can be achieved on #1.

~doug~

 

[mgweatherly]

Blade journey shave #4 with this setup:

• Razor: Birth year 1961 G4 Gillette Tech with @Rosseforp custom handle gold plated by Chris Spencer
• Blade: Derby Premium blade
• Brush: Semogue 820 Boar brush
• Pre-shave: Noxema pre-shave wash
• Soap: Mike's Natural Tallow Soap, Babershop scent
• After shave: Thayer's unscented witch hazel, Proraso Rinfrescante balm, vintage Old Spice splash

Two days growth. I delayed posting this shave until the next day so I could include my 12-hour report. The stand out feature of the Derby Premium blade was its lack of irritation; I had none at all. I did not find the blade to be particularly sharp or "smooth" (probably due to its lack of sharpness). That is, I felt a very very slight amount of tugging on the first pass. Nothing off putting, but it was there. I needed three full passes to get the BBS finish that I prefer, so I wouldn't say this blade was efficient. It definitely got the job done though because, at the 12-hour mark, I still had a DFS+ level finish. If avoiding irritation is your goal, this blade worked well for that.

The Mike's Natural soap is new to me, and I found it to be quite good. It does not explode with lather, but the lather I got from it worked wonderfully, very slick and protective. I also enjoyed the subtle Barber Shop scent, but I'm terrible at describing scents, so I won't try. I used my Semogue 820 Boar because the soap is on the hard side, and the backbone of this brush allows it to pick up this type of soap very nicely.

I rate the shave 8.5/10 by my average of factors on my summary sheet. But, honestly, this feels a little low to me.

Next up tomorrow morning is the RK Stainless blade from India. I'm tempted to use it in one of my Parker razors, but I'll stay true to the test and put it in my Tech.

 

[Guido75]

I believe Derby’s are known for their mildness. Sharp enough for one or two shaves and then retired. I have never tried them honestly. My KCG came with KCG blades and they worked so I figured “if they work, I need more of them”. I only ventured out to other blades out of curiosity (and the fact that KCG blades are in the more expensive side of blades relatively speaking).

Thanks for the tip by the way, I have been incorporating the 12 hours mark in my thoughts - may want to add it to my journal as well. Last three shaves were amazing beyond the 12h point even.

Cheers,

Guido

 

[mgweatherly]

For my PIF'd Blade Journey shave #5 (rated 9.5/10), I used the following setup:

Razor: Birth year 1961 G4 Tech with custom stainless handle by @Rosseforp
Blade: RK Stainless "Specifically designed for the Henson AL13"
Brush: Semogue Owner's Club Mistura Taj (my favorite)
Preshave: Noxema wash with dwell time on the face before rinsing (inexpensive, effective pre-shave)
Soap: D.R. Harris Marlborough shaving stick (superb)
After shave: Thayer's unscented witch hazel, Intesa balm, vintage Old Spice splash

I had never used an RK Stainless blade, which is "Specially designed for the Henson AL13," and I had low expectations (not sure why). I was pleasantly surprised during the first pass WTG by the blade's sharp, smooth, and comfortable glide. Most of my two-day stubble other than my neck was gone. Going WTG on my neck always leaves stubble. The second pass felt very smooth also, but it resulted in a few weepers (left mustache edge, right jawline, left neck next to Adam's apple). These weepers stopped bleeding by the end of the shave. It seems that sharper blades just do this to me. I judge efficiency by how much work is left for the third pass, which was more like comprehensive touch ups than a full pass. As always, I kept at it until I achieved a BBS shave. I had a minor amount of irritation near the weeper areas.

The D.R. Harris stick provided a very nice lather with lots of cushion and slickness. Dare I say, it's like a more refined version of Arko, which I consider to be a high complement. I bloomed the end of the stick by putting a small amount of water in the cap and replacing it on the stick, which I believe made applying soap easier. My post-shave use of witch hazel, balm, and splash was refreshing with very little sting, so I don't expect the irritation I felt to last very long.

At 12 hours, I still had a BBS- finish with no remaining irritation. This was a very nice shave indeed.

Summary sheet of my PIF'd Blade Journey is HERE.

Next up is another blade I've never used (or even heard of), the LOI Titanium made in Bangladesh. Should be interesting!

 

[Guido75]

@thombrogan has had good shaves with the LOI. From what I can tell based on his reports this is one of those good blades flying under the radar. I have a similar experience with Gillette 365 and Dorco’s.

Guido

 

[thombrogan]

Loi Titanium are perfection in some razors and rejection in others.

 

[Alum Ladd]

I just received a very generous PIF of 20 different blades from @dmshaver and the blade exchange.

View attachment 1563276

I've decided to try each blade in succession until I've tried all 20 and keep track of my reactions here, journal style. I'm only going to use each blade once for now because an important characteristic of a blade for me is that it feels good on its first use. I'll save them also to give me an option to go back for a second run with each blade.

I'm also going to use the same razor every time to take that out of the equation, my birth year 1961 Tech on my @Rosseforp company time handle. If a blade won't work in a Tech, I'm skeptical .

I'll probably limit the shaving soaps also to only tallow based soaps, which seem to work best for me. Arko will definitely be in the rotation because it is so easy to lather in repeatable fashion, but I'll use others too. I'm also going to let at least 36 hours (and typically 48 hours) pass between shaves unless I run into an "emergency" need for a shave. I want my beard to have a consistent starting condition.

To avoid selection bias, I'm going to use the blades in the order defined by the photo above; left to right and top to bottom. So, first up will be the Gillette Wilkinson Sword blade. When I post reactions, I'll be blunt because I want to record differences. I'll admit to having fairly low expectations for some of these blades (I'm looking at you Shaverboy). This should be fun !

Hi Brother mg! An excellent thread.

Your first experience with the Indian Gillette/WS rather paralled mine. I found them to be excellent economy blades with no real vices. I have been neglecting them somewhat recently to try other, maybe more 'trendy' blades. But I have a stash of 100 of them, and they are fine stand by ammo. They were very popular a couple of years back, both on here and in other forums but seemed to have fallen rather in affection. I'm unsure why.

I predict you will love the Personna 'X' Series blade. A bold assertion but that's where my money is as to one of your top 3 favourites. A superb blade, basically an economy Israeli Red. These too are meant as barber "Saloon" blades, but have all the qualities of an IR or a Crystal. They just lack longevity a little, but all the sharpness paired with smoothness is there. I got 16 great shaves out of one, and it is still in it's wrapper. I suspect I could get a half dozen more. I would happily pick up a 100 stash of them. A lovely blade, arguably a little better than a Gillette Platinum.

They were tested by a few of us some months back, helped by the kindness of the Great @Grundi and the inimitable @mikey and the results were reported widely as being favourable to excellent. The entire and very entertaining thread is here Participation PIF - A Very Mysteree-X Shave - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/participation-pif-a-very-mysteree-x-shave.622972/

Happy testing, my Dear mg!