I've got a new Derby premium loaded in my 6C for tomorrow. It's been a while since I have used one, so should be interesting.
Derby Premium..... shockingly good......Review???
- Thread starter Stingy Jack
- Start date
Today was Day 3 on my first Derby Premium. It's been very comfortable (although I've got a Grooming Dept. Lusso soap in rotation right now which makes everything comfortable), and the first two days were very good shaves.
For shave 3 today I had to work, a ton of buffing, at my swirl areas (chin, mostly). Maybe it's getting dull? I get four to five shaves from most blades.
Maybe I had an off morning today. If tomorrow doesn't shave close easily, this might be a two-shave blade for me.
For shave 3 today I had to work, a ton of buffing, at my swirl areas (chin, mostly). Maybe it's getting dull? I get four to five shaves from most blades.
Maybe I had an off morning today. If tomorrow doesn't shave close easily, this might be a two-shave blade for me.
BigJ, if Extras were from the moon, Premiums are from Mars. Worlds apart!
First shave with a Derby Premium in a while. I only went with 2 passes, and was using my Rockwell 6C on R4. I'd rate it as CCS, which is fine. Blade was smooth, I did have one weeper caused by my lack of attention. Next shave I'll go with 3 passes. I try to avoid 3 passes on my first use of most blades, I find it can be the roughest shave with a blade.
I retired my first Derby Premium after four days in my GC.84. I found it to be extremely smooth and comfortable, but on days 3 and 4 it struggled to cut my beard. I want to love this Derby - but today I switched to a fresh Crystal, and the amount of Derby-missed stubble it discovered was a little embarrassing.
Of course, YMMV, and will.
Of course, YMMV, and will.
I bought a 100 pack of Derby Premiums because I liked Parker Premium that was shipped with my Variant, and someone said that many people thought it was the same blade just rebranded. With Derbys being as cheap as Astras, saving a few dollars and getting a whole lot less didn't make much sense.
Tried them today the first time in a Parker Variant set to 3, on a longer than usual stubble (used an electric shaver in a hurry yesterday morning).
Overall, I really liked the blade. It was smooth and very sharp. I did manage to cut myself and got a couple weepers, so this blade may be a tad less forgiving than Astra (or I just wasn't paying attention). I do think this is a good alternative to Astra SP.
That said, I don't know if it's the same as Parker Premium. I haven't used a whole lot of either so this is only a preliminary impression, but I think that Derby Premium is sharper while Parker is more smooth, with Astra SP in between and all three blades fairly similar. The black plastic box looks similar to Parker's but upon closer inspection is different and has looser tolerances. And the blade itself feels a little less rigid.
Tried them today the first time in a Parker Variant set to 3, on a longer than usual stubble (used an electric shaver in a hurry yesterday morning).
Overall, I really liked the blade. It was smooth and very sharp. I did manage to cut myself and got a couple weepers, so this blade may be a tad less forgiving than Astra (or I just wasn't paying attention). I do think this is a good alternative to Astra SP.
That said, I don't know if it's the same as Parker Premium. I haven't used a whole lot of either so this is only a preliminary impression, but I think that Derby Premium is sharper while Parker is more smooth, with Astra SP in between and all three blades fairly similar. The black plastic box looks similar to Parker's but upon closer inspection is different and has looser tolerances. And the blade itself feels a little less rigid.
Tossed my Derby Premium this AM after 5 fine shaves! 
Perhaps not as sharp or long-lasting as my ‘top-tier’ but these are definitely solid blades IMO!
Perhaps not as sharp or long-lasting as my ‘top-tier’ but these are definitely solid blades IMO!
Thanks for the review! I think i’ll put these down for my second sampler pack order from tryablade.
OK, so having used just one of Derby Premiums over 3 days, and then switching back to Astra, I need to somewhat change my opinion.
Derby, unfortunately, isn't nearly as smooth as Astra SP. It's a sharp blade, but not as comfortable. The difference is especially noticeable by the 2nd and 3rd shave, when Astra is getting progressively smoother yet Derby still feels the same as the first time.
Switching back to Astra was a revelation in shave comfort.
Now, I am not knocking Derbys. First, I've only used one blade, perhaps there's some variance. Second, I did not get that much more irritation from them than I get with Astras, so the end result was definitely pretty good. It's just that I did get a few weepers every time I used DP, while I generally avoid them with ASP now, and while shaving they felt just a little bit less comfortable. If anything, I'd compare them with Personna Blue more so than with Astra SP. With Personna I, too, cut myself almost every time. But DP is certainly a contender for my blade stash.
Derby, unfortunately, isn't nearly as smooth as Astra SP. It's a sharp blade, but not as comfortable. The difference is especially noticeable by the 2nd and 3rd shave, when Astra is getting progressively smoother yet Derby still feels the same as the first time.
Switching back to Astra was a revelation in shave comfort.
Now, I am not knocking Derbys. First, I've only used one blade, perhaps there's some variance. Second, I did not get that much more irritation from them than I get with Astras, so the end result was definitely pretty good. It's just that I did get a few weepers every time I used DP, while I generally avoid them with ASP now, and while shaving they felt just a little bit less comfortable. If anything, I'd compare them with Personna Blue more so than with Astra SP. With Personna I, too, cut myself almost every time. But DP is certainly a contender for my blade stash.
The secret to derby premium blades is pairing them with a razor that is as close to chatterless as possible. This blade is pretty great in a rockwell 6C or a slant as nessunego said previously, particularly because they don't allow the blade to move inside the head. I would like to hear from someone who owns a henson razor and derby premium blades comment on what they think of derby and other thin blades and their performance in this sort of combo.
I find derby premium so harsh and scratchy. It’s weird because of all the wonderful reviews. Despite not being my favorite blade, I find derby extra a lot smoother and not so different in sharpness.
I find Rapira Platinum Lux blades quite similar to Derby Premiums. Both very good blades for me. Derby Extras are not as sharp and not so smooth for me either.
Nothing labeled Derby is allowed to touch my face. YMMV. 
- Thread starter
- #36
Yup I totally get that! I had the same philosophy until I tried the Premiums. They are my go to blades now.Nothing labeled Derby is allowed to touch my face. YMMV.
Derby Extra's still suck
Great avatar, sir!
- Thread starter
- #38
Thank you!Great avatar, sir!
Derby Extra blades work well for me. Never tried the Derby Premium - Not sure what the difference is between them and Derby Extra blades outside of the packaging and name.
Per the Derby Catalog all Derby blades are made the same way from the same quality of steel on the same equipment with the same chrome, ceramic, platinum and tungsten coatings. Specifically the Derby Extra and Premium Blades have almost the exact same descriptive marketing copy in the catalog. If there is a material difference between Derby Extra and Premium blades it would be great if Derby would publish the information.
Regardless since both Extra and Premium blades are sold for similar prices (within a couple bucks for a 100 pack) either one is a great value and given YMMV enjoy whatever you perceive as working best for you.
Per the Derby Catalog all Derby blades are made the same way from the same quality of steel on the same equipment with the same chrome, ceramic, platinum and tungsten coatings. Specifically the Derby Extra and Premium Blades have almost the exact same descriptive marketing copy in the catalog. If there is a material difference between Derby Extra and Premium blades it would be great if Derby would publish the information.
Regardless since both Extra and Premium blades are sold for similar prices (within a couple bucks for a 100 pack) either one is a great value and given YMMV enjoy whatever you perceive as working best for you.
A bit late in the reply to this post, but I've been trying the Derby Premium in my GC .68-P and it's been a great blade. I've got two shaves on the blade so far. I haven't tried them in my Henson AL13 mild yet, but I think I'll give it a shot there too. Right now the Treet Platinum is my go-to for close, comfortable shaves. It would be nice to have a second option. Particularly at the price point.
