Blade suggestions for abnormally tough beard on extremely sensitive skin.

[KrstGor]

R41 and Feather. It sent a chill down my spine. I can't even dream of that. My beard may love it but my skin can't handle it.

With all due respect - it means one thing and one thing only - your technique needs improvement.

Forget about "aggressive" and "mild" razors, it's all b/s. If you master the "light touch / no pressure" technique, no razor will be aggressive.

 

[ironfingers]

With all due respect - it means one thing and one thing only - your technique needs improvement.

Forget about "aggressive" and "mild" razors, it's all b/s. If you master the "light touch / no pressure" technique, no razor will be aggressive.

Could be, considering that I have only had close to 6 months of experience with the DEs now. But what I don't understand is how the Astra SS seems dull and doesn't give me a red face while another blade just above it in sharpness the Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum Black gave me a red face. But how many passed do you do? I always do 3 passes and then a cleanup. The hair on my jawline and just under it on the neck is flat. Even the open comb and slant bars razor do miss it and cleanups are needed. And the hair around my Adam's apple region grows in circular pattern which needs razor passes in many different directions to remove clean enough, again no matter what the razor is. And the neck area is where most of the burn is. The slant bar does give me the closest shave in 2 passes but it's still not BBS and I keep going. I do willingly sacrifice comfort for closeness. But the Feathers, BICs and Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinums were too much of a burn. Also the blades scrape more on the open comb. Should I use a more steeper angle than with the closed comb? I mean should the handle point a lil more away from me. I am not sure if that's called a steeper or a shallower angle.

Anyway that's why I am starting with the Schone for Open Combs. Will learn the technique and then progress to R41 maybe. I would love to be able to use that combo. It will be the best shave I can have.

 

[ironfingers]

Today was my second shave with the Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum Black and the Pearl LS-55 Closed Comb. This was the second shave with the blade too. I had said that in the previous shave I realized what a smooth blade was. And this shave was far more enlightening. I realized what the famed YMMV means.

I always believed in YMMV to the extent of liking or disliking a blade. But very rarely I see people saying Feathers are not that sharp and even claim that some other blade was sharper. I didn't pay much attention to such things. Now I see how all that could've been very real, from their perspective at least.

The Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum Blacks are the worst blades I have ever used. Yes. On the first shave they did feel significantly sharper than the Astra SS but no where near as sharp as the BIC or Feather. The website Refined Shave says that the sharpness readings for the blade are 45, 32, 36 for fresh, after 1 shave and 2 shaves respectively. That means that this blade should be Feather sharp on it's second shave.

On the contrary I could feel it struggle to take out my whiskers as I started the shave WTG on the left cheek. On the right side it felt a little better and similarly on the neck too. I was expecting pronounced struggle in the chin area but to my surprise there wasn't any. However after the pass I saw that most of the hair on my chin was still there. This was the worst first pass at least for the chin. Lathered up and went for the second pass XTG. Blade did struggle a bit in the jaw area and in the chin. Neck was fine. After the pass I splashed some warm water on my face to remove the leftover cream after the second pass. Then I proceeded to assess the shave. After 2 passes it was indeed good. However I was having a burning sensation in some areas of my cheek and neck.

Again this was a first. Never have I had such burn after 2 passes except when trying Feather or Bic in the Open Comb setup of the same Pearl LS-55. Still lathered up and went for pass number three ATG and the cleanup too. The blade clearly struggled in the ATG. Still I didn't feel too uncomfortable. That was until I came to the chin and upper lip area. The last shave with a same blade (but fresh) gave me the most comfortable ATG in the mustache area. But this was the exact opposite. A big weeper on the right side of the mustache area and a big weeper on the left chin right under the lower lip. Many other small ones too. The blade was feeling so horrible that I didn't even bother getting a close shave and hurried the pass and washed off. After the cold water rinse and applying the after shave I could see that around the lip, like a French Beard there was redness.

This was the worst shave in many months. The brush and cream are tested ones. They even gave me better shaves with the more aggressive Parker Semi Slant. And having been shaving for 6 months continuously with DE, mostly with this Pearl LS-55 Closed Comb, I am sure it's not user error either. I am not saying I have the most perfect technique. But considering that I get very comfortable shaves with the same razor, brush, cream with the Feathers and the BICS which are definitely much sharper, I believe I can't take the blame and it's the blade that's at fault.

Also during the ATG in the upper lip and chin I had a very odd feeling of the blade. It didn't feel like a blade's edge on my face but more like many pin heads scraping against my face. My theory is that the platinum coating of the blade got damaged awkwardly by my tough whiskers in the process of the whole first shave and the 2 3/4th of the second shave that it felt this way. I went back on this same thread where I had shared my experience with the same blade but on the Open Comb head of the same razor. I had already described that pin head scraping feeling on the face.

Will try another shave with the same blade which would be the 3rd shave with the same blade. If I can only get one shave with each of this blade then the per shave cost is on par with the Feathers which give me 3 shaves. With BICs the per shave price would be just 2/3rds of this. After this shave I will dispose the blade (I do 3 shaves with a blade, even the Feather and the BIC). Sharpness, Smoothness, Price, nothing justifies me continuing with the blade.

Will try another fresh blade from the pack. I don't expect a change of fate but I just want to give the blade a fair chance since so many people claim these are the best blades. This is locally available for me which I thought was fortunate. But it just didn't work for me at all. That's unfortunate. It won't be part of my shave stock. Will give away the remaining 8 blades.

To give you more insight on how bad this shave was, had this been the first shave when I had planned the switch from cartridge razors, it could've very well driven me back. The blade was simply that bad.

 

[JCarr]

Isn't their a Wilkinson Sword manufactured in India that's a good blade? Rating shows a very sharp blade, but not Feather sharp.

Check this link...some interesting data on blades:

https://www.refinedshave.com/razor-blade-sharpness-summary/

 

[ironfingers]

Isn't their a Wilkinson Sword manufactured in India that's a good blade? Rating shows a very sharp blade, but not Feather sharp.

Check this link...some interesting data on blades:

https://www.refinedshave.com/razor-blade-sharpness-summary/

For most maybe. For me it hardly cut through my whiskers in the closed comb. In the open comb it fared better but still in areas like the chin where the hair is densest and coarsest it was puling a lot and making the whole experience bad. Still it's one of the best blades for my Pearl LS-55 Open Comb razor.

 

[RayClem]

Isn't their a Wilkinson Sword manufactured in India that's a good blade? Rating shows a very sharp blade, but not Feather sharp.

Check this link...some interesting data on blades:

https://www.refinedshave.com/razor-blade-sharpness-summary/

The Gillette branded Wilkinson Sword is a good blade. However, I have compared them to the Edgewell branded German Wilkinson Sword Classic blades in identical razors shaving opposite sides of my face. I find the German blades to be a sharper for my tough beard. For those whose beards are not so tough, the Gillettte Wilkie might be a good choice. I understand some of the Gillette blades are made in India and some in China. If you order online, I am not sure which you will get.

 

[JCarr]

The Gillette branded Wilkinson Sword is a good blade. However, I have compared them to the Edgewell branded German Wilkinson Sword Classic blades in identical razors shaving opposite sides of my face. I find the German blades to be a sharper for my tough beard. For those whose beards are not so tough, the Gillettte Wilkie might be a good choice. I understand some of the Gillette blades are made in India and some in China. If you order online, I am not sure which you will get.

I like the German ones also. I ordered 100 of them a couple of weeks ago along with 100 Personna Reds off of Amazon. They seemed to be clearly marked as being the ones from Germany on Amazon's website.

 

[ironfingers]

Today was the 3rd shave with the Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum Black on the Pearl LS-55 Closed Comb. This is the 3rd shave with the same blade. Again the shave wasn't great. The first WTG pass clearly indicated the blade could no longer handle my tough whiskers. Still some areas it did shave easily but still the blade feel wasn't good.

The second pass XTG was even more difficult and the blade's struggle was more pronounced. And I ended up with 3 weepers, 1 big, 1 medium and 1 small. Usually the weepers came rarely and only when in the ATG passes. This time it was in the XTG pass itself. Still lathered up and went for the 3rd pass ATG. In the cheek area on both sides it was rough. There were duller blades I have tried in the past but they at least didn't feel this rough. Luckily there was no feeling of pin points on my face this time. Again the upper lip and chin area were very sensitive in the pass. The chin especially. I had to sacrifice closeness today for comfort because it was very bad. And there were quite a lot of weepers after I was done. Didn't bother to count but there were at least 7 I believe, 3 of which may have been from the previous pass.

Surprisingly there wasn't much burn when applying the aftershave. I am kind of getting the feeling that this is a one shave per bade kind of blade, for me at least. Disposed off the blade after the 3rd shave. Like I had said earlier I would try another shave with this blade to give it a fair chance. I don't think it's gonna do any better but I just want to try again as many people love this blade. Will post the results.

 

[Fat Larry]

Sorry if i covering something thats already been mentioned but i haven't read the entire thread(its long!).

I believe i have a tough beard, though i've nothing to compare it to (except sand paper). I found the Thai Gillette super thins when i was in Sri Lanka a few years back and they worked great for me.

Gillette Super Thin (Made in Thailand) - Reviews

www.badgerandblade.com

Also the Malaysian Super Nacets are another go to blade. You might be able to access either of these?? I pair them with a Tech and get excellent results. Have you tried any of the Tech clones that pop up all over Asia?

Also aren't the Super Max blades made by Vidyut in India? They had some sharp options like the Super Platinum Tiger or something. Believe they out of production though.

I find feathers sharp but a little rough and don't use them regularly. Nacets are much better in my opinion.

 

[ironfingers]

Sorry if i covering something thats already been mentioned but i haven't read the entire thread(its long!).

I believe i have a tough beard, though i've nothing to compare it to (except sand paper). I found the Thai Gillette super thins when i was in Sri Lanka a few years back and they worked great for me.

Gillette Super Thin (Made in Thailand) - Reviews

www.badgerandblade.com

Also the Malaysian Super Nacets are another go to blade. You might be able to access either of these?? I pair them with a Tech and get excellent results. Have you tried any of the Tech clones that pop up all over Asia?

Also aren't the Super Max blades made by Vidyut in India? They had some sharp options like the Super Platinum Tiger or something. Believe they out of production though.

I find feathers sharp but a little rough and don't use them regularly. Nacets are much better in my opinion.

I am going to try the Gillette Nacets soon. Aren't they Russian? Feathers work fine for me as long as I used a shaving cream that I am comfortable and confident with. If I am experimenting with the cream then I would choose the BIC instead as I am more comfortable with that when there's something else that is variable. Gillette Nacets, I believe I too will like.

I haven't started experimenting with razors yet. At present I have the Pearl L55 with both closed and open comb heads and a Parker Semi Slant. There's also a Schone which I haven't tried yet and will be doing soon. Will explore on the Tech. Super Max blades I haven't explored yet. Need to find a store that sells them. I am not very confident that they'll work for me because the famed Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum which is reputed to be one of the sharpest and smoothest blades didn't work for me. As of now I have 2 blades that I love to use with the Pearl L55 closed comb which are the Feathers and the BICs. I have tried the Parker Semi Slant only with the Astra SS and that's the only razor with which the Astra doesn't tug and pull. Haven't found any blade to work with the Pearl L55 open comb. The Gillette Wilkinson Swords gave me smooth and close shaves but there was a lot of tugging.

 

[Atlantic59]

...Haven't found any blade to work with the Pearl L55 open comb. The Gillette Wilkinson Swords gave me smooth and close shaves but there was a lot of tugging.

I have a Pearl open comb, sold as a Cadet brand here. I've found it can shave very close, but you must use almost no pressure with it for best results. If you have not already, try a steep blade angle with it. I've had best success with a blade such as Silver Star or 7 O'clock Yellow.

Nacets are Russian, made in the Saint Petersburg plant. Not everyone likes them, but most do.

For Supermax, they make many different blades. I've had good success with the Blue Diamond Platinum and Blue Diamond Titanium. I'm not sure those are being made any more. Anyway, try to find the best one they make, which I believe is Diamond Edge.

 

[ironfingers]

Sorry if i covering something thats already been mentioned but i haven't read the entire thread(its long!).

I believe i have a tough beard, though i've nothing to compare it to (except sand paper). I found the Thai Gillette super thins when i was in Sri Lanka a few years back and they worked great for me.

Gillette Super Thin (Made in Thailand) - Reviews

www.badgerandblade.com

Also the Malaysian Super Nacets are another go to blade. You might be able to access either of these?? I pair them with a Tech and get excellent results. Have you tried any of the Tech clones that pop up all over Asia?

Also aren't the Super Max blades made by Vidyut in India? They had some sharp options like the Super Platinum Tiger or something. Believe they out of production though.

I find feathers sharp but a little rough and don't use them regularly. Nacets are much better in my opinion.

Checked the Gillette Tech Razor and the head geometry reminds me of the Gillette 7 O'Clock Sterling Silver's head which was too mild for me and didn't shave me close enough even with a Feather.

 

[ironfingers]

I have a Pearl open comb, sold as a Cadet brand here. I've found it can shave very close, but you must use almost no pressure with it for best results. If you have not already, try a steep blade angle with it. I've had best success with a blade such as Silver Star or 7 O'clock Yellow.

Nacets are Russian, made in the Saint Petersburg plant. Not everyone likes them, but most do.

I always get confused with this steep angle. Does it mean that I take the handle further away from my face or closer actually?

 

[Atlantic59]

I always get confused with this steep angle. Does it mean that I take the handle further away from my face or closer actually?

A picture is worth 1000 words they say...

 

[ironfingers]

A picture is worth 1000 words they say...

View attachment 1111498

Okay. In that case the steep angle takes more strokes and passes and the blade feels scrappy and not sharp, even Feathers and BICS. There's serious tugging and pulling too. But despite that the Gillette Wilkinson Sword and the Astra SS did give me a good clean shave without irritation later but the tugging and pulling was too much for me.

 

[Atlantic59]

Okay. In that case the steep angle takes more strokes and passes and the blade feels scrappy and not sharp, even Feathers and BICS. There's serious tugging and pulling too. But despite that the Gillette Wilkinson Sword and the Astra SS did give me a good clean shave without irritation later but the tugging and pulling was too much for me.

In that case, you may need to go more toward a neutral angle. You should not get tugging and pulling, but you should hear a sound like scraping of burned toast.

The geometry of the open comb is really quite different than the safety bar version.

 

[Fat Larry]

I am going to try the Gillette Nacets soon. Aren't they Russian? Feathers work fine for me as long as I used a shaving cream that I am comfortable and confident with. If I am experimenting with the cream then I would choose the BIC instead as I am more comfortable with that when there's something else that is variable. Gillette Nacets, I believe I too will like.

There are two versions, Nacets and Super Nacets. I believe the supers are made in China. They both give me great results.

Bics were tuggy for me. I really didn't like them.

My first DE was a Pearl Open Comb... that blade exposure...It was terrifying.

 

[ironfingers]

Yesterday I shaved with the Pearl L55 Closed Comb with a fresh Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum Black blade. The shave was again great and smooth with not much irritation when applying the Gillette Arctic Ice Aftershave and through out the day. Again this blade is clearly a few steps down in sharpness from Feathers and BICs. Luckily no weepers this time or at least none visible enough.

Going to shave again with the same combo and the same blade on it's second shave tomorrow. The last time the second shave was so dreadful. I believe it would be so this time too. If it is then I am likely to do only single shaves with each of the remaining new 8 blades of these.

Order a pack of 20 Crystal Blades. Not sure what to expect. The Refined Shave puts the sharpness numbers of this blade around the same region as that of the Astra SS. The Astra SS didn't turn out to be sharp enough for me in the Closed Comb. This too might work out similar. Still wanted to try.

 

[ironfingers]

Today I shaved again with the same Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum Black on my Pearl L55 Closed Comb. This is the second shave with the blade. It wasn't as smooth as the first. But luckily this time it wasn't anywhere as rough as the second shave with the previous blade of the same kind. In fact the neck felt comfortable. Usually this is the most sensitive area for me. But the blade did struggle during the first WTG and then the third ATG passes on the cheeks. The jawline needed multiple strokes to get close. But again the chin and mustache area felt very rough and raw. Could feel the blade scratch in the mustache area especially which felt very unpleasant. I believe that the coating is damaged unevenly and the blade edge is left with teeth like structures that is causing this.

The remaining 8 blades will see only a single shave each. I think the Feathers and the BICs set the bar pretty high and I am not able to cope up with blades that are not near these in sharpness.

 

[Atlantic59]

When will you try the Schone? I'm curious how well you will like it.

I've found Silver Star blades a good match with the Fatip OC razors. Those are made in Egypt and very inexpensive, so quite a bargain. I think those are sold in India.