Different results from different blades

[sherlock]

Hey all, not been logged on for a couple of weeks but have been working my way through a small sampler pack of blades with some interesting results.
So far i have used feathers,gillette 7 o'clocks,astra's and iridiums all of which i have used in my merkur 38c barbers pole razor.
Before starting the sampler pack i had only used derby blades which i found good to start with but soon fell out of favour with me over the poor quality of some of the blades something i see others here on B&B had the same problem with.
First blade i used from the sampler pack was the feather which i used with no problems got a very close shave and had no irritation on my neck which was a big thing for me as i always had this with the derby blades and put this down to a technique issue, next i tried the 7 o'clocks which did not agree with me this was disappointing after all the good reviews i had read about them,next was the astras which for me gave a shave like the derby and left irritation on my neck lastly i tried the irridiums which gave a great but not as close a shave as the feather but still left my neck irritation free.
My question is this, is the irritation on my neck a technique thing or is it that not all blades are made the same some are better thanothers and or a YMMV.
Any advice,thoughts or tips are greatly appreciated, i still have a couple other blades to try from my sampler i think personna is one and then i will try these blades in my barberpole slant and see if there is any difference.
Thanks for reading the post and if you have any advice please let me know .

 

[Coleman]

Great question. I have the same issue. I've tried Derbys, Red Personnas, Feathers, even a SE Gem Micromatic, and found that so far Feathers give me the best shave, however still have issues with my neck. I just ordered a slant that I'm hoping will help give me a better shave on my neck.
I was assuming it was my technique, but after I had been using Feathers for a while, I tried a Derby again, and it was significantly worse. For now, I'm just trying to maintain consistency and working on technique.

 

[funkyb]

The Gillettes, which ones did you use? The green, black, and yellow packs are all quite different. IMHO, yellows are the best by a longshot (but cost the most too)...

 

[sherlock]

The Gillettes, which ones did you use? The green, black, and yellow packs are all quite different. IMHO, yellows are the best by a longshot (but cost the most too)...

Sorry mate but it was the yellow pack i was using but this is a case of YMMV

 

[moodymick]

using a 38C & 34C, i have worked my way through the following: wilkinsons, derby, treet, astras, blue personna, crystals and today my first iridium.

to be honest, I liked the astra's, but these were pipped by the crystals for me.

the iridiums i will keep using for the next week to see how they grow on me, that will just leave me to try some feathers.

my plan though is to stick to 2 blades as i have a pile of vintage gillettes i want to start using and don't want to keep swapping blade types, would rather just improve the technique instead.

 

[beginish]

My guess is that it is a technique issue on your neck, and not necessarily a question of blade. If you skip a day of shaving, take some time to really get a handle on the grain of your whiskers. On my neck, they're all over the place. Once you know that, you can really go after WTG, XTG and ATG strokes. WTG and XTG should get you to a close shave and not be as irritating as ATG.

Personally, the Black 7 O'Clocks worked best for me, and they are as expensive as the yellows, if not more so.

 

[ajkimmins]

By this time, if you get irritation free shaves at all, it's not your technique anymore. I doubt that you are changing your technique from blade to blade, therefore, some blades do not agree with you. I have found a few like that, in certain razors, that just don't work. They'll work fine in a different razor but if you use one razor to test the different blades then the ones that give you irritation free shaves are the ones to use in that razor.
One word of caution though, don't get rid of the blades that don't work in your razor. If you have or add another razor, SuperSpeed for instance, you'll want to try them out again, they may end up being the best in that razor.

 

[manythoughts]

yellow 7 o'clocks, iridiums, astras and derbys all give me near BBS, but I get irritation on my neck. Lords and Dorcos barely give me CCS and they don't last long.

I found the the Red Pack Israelis give me a DFS and no irritation. So, I those are now my blade of choice.

So, I understand your experience.

 

[sherlock]

All good sound advice thanks for your help guys