Excalibur Club - Blade Longevity DE, SE and Injector

[bosseb]

Shave #42 (6 full weeks) on the Black Indian 7 o'clock Gillette.

The blade is now in the buttery stage, very comfortable and effortless. I will tomorrow load it into my NEW SC after a week each in the Flat bottom and long comb NEWs.

I am able to keep the passes down to the bare two, no need for cleanup so far. I am also breaking in my last brush, a very nice Shavemac 2 band D01 flat top in a Rudy Vey wooden handle. I will soon post a write up comparing it to the Simpsons Manchurian LE from TSN.

 

[ruckin]

I am having a similar choice to make. I have 19 shaves on my last 7am Hi-Platinum and I expect to use it for another 10-15 shaves before I declare it done. My issue is I went a bit crazy earlier and bought a box of pretty much every blade I could find. I have 108 different blades to choose from. I have blades from ASCO to Zorrik and several in between. I discovered this thread in the summer of 2015 and have gone from using a blade for 4-7 days averaging more than 3 weeks. My one exception so far has been a box of Merkur Supers that the best I was able to get was 13 shaves. I was mostly using those while I was traveling so it could easily be an issue with prep/water etc.

I am certain that I will never need to purchase any DE blades again. Heck my son might never need to buy any either (provided he takes up DE shaving at some point).

Ruckin.

 

[Dog Whiskerer]

My issue is I went a bit crazy earlier and bought a box of pretty much every blade I could find. I have 108 different blades to choose from.

I had BAD (blade acquisition disorder) bad and accumulated over 60 tucks and around 30 individual ones--and that's just double edge blades--and one box of 100 before embarking on this Excalibur journey of blade longevity. So yes, like you I have all the blades I need for a while.

Don't feel bad for having 108. There are folks here with thousands and thousands of blades. Even if they are one-and-done shavers, they have many years of blades to draw from.

 

[ruckin]

Maybe I wasn't clear. I have 108 brand/variations of blades (I have at least one tuck of each). The total DE blade count is somewhere around 2400 give or take a couple. If I use my latest running average I won't have to buy blades for about 133 years or so. But if I ever get good at using a straight razor... that collection could literally last forever.

Ruckin.

 

[Dog Whiskerer]

Maybe I wasn't clear. I have 108 brand/variations of blades (I have at least one tuck of each). The total DE blade count is somewhere around 2400 give or take a couple.

PIF time!

 

[psfred]

Lol, I just bought 20 Gillette Rubie Platinums to round out my excessive number of brands and blades -- since both my brother and I are on shave 5 or 7 on an Astra SP with no signs of flagging performance, the 530 or so blades I have should keep both of us shaving until we are too old to wield a razor! My brother is still on the first side, I use both of them because I'm too scatterbrained to keep track in the morning.

With the expectation that I will get similar life from a DE that I did from a cartridge (often a couple months of 5 day a week shaves) I should not be using them up too fast.

I think the secret is to shave in a way that preserves the edge -- as shallow an angle as you can manage, as few passes as possible, keep it clean and dry between shaves. Very good prep probably means more than anything, we both shave after a shower and I make sure my face stays wet the whole time. Dry hair is tough, and will be both much more uncomfortable to shave and will degrade the razor edge much faster.

I believe that many people who discard razors after a couple shaves simply do not have their beard hair fully prepped first -- a coarse beard is going to take longer to soften than a fine one, and if not ready to shave will pull badly no matter what the condition of the razor. But that's just my opinion - I have a coarse but fairly sparse beard, and have always been able to use blades for a very long time. I discard them when I can't stand the pull anymore, not when they are less than "out of the box" sharp. Guess I'm as cheap as my Grandpa, I remember him storing razor blades in oil in a fruit juice glass, and stropping them before shaving on the inside of the glass, even the stainless ones.

Peter

 

[Screwtape]

Maybe I wasn't clear. I have 108 brand/variations of blades (I have at least one tuck of each). The total DE blade count is somewhere around 2400 give or take a couple. If I use my latest running average I won't have to buy blades for about 133 years or so. But if I ever get good at using a straight razor... that collection could literally last forever.

Ruckin.

So what you're saying is you're going to 3017 your razor blades?

 

[Thomas Darkblade]

3017 Excalibur style will take a while , good luck!

Since I wasn't sure what blade to try, I closed my eyes a picked a tuck from the box.
Lucky winner was Derby Extra

(I was trying to pick the Feather, Feather and Derby were in plastic tucks, haha).

Anyways, the first shave today went well, especially considering the face was still raw after yesterday.
Will see how it goes.

 

[psfred]

Funny, I just loaded a Schick Krona with a Derby to try with this morning's shave. Should be fun to see if it feels any different than an Astra SP.

I have a sneaking suspicion that with good technique blade differences are minor......

Peter

 

[Thomas Darkblade]

Second shave with the so called "blade from hell" and Rockwell on plate #3 was smooth, very good result (I guess is BBS) and no alum feel.
It was 6 weeks ago when I shaved with a new Astra SP but from what I remember the Derby Extra is very similar. Maybe it feels a bit duller but no significant difference.
The more I shave the more I think differences between shaves are because of the prep, the lather or the technique.

 

[Cal]

Second shave with the so called "blade from hell" ...

I thought you were on a Derby Extra Cristian... not TBFH?

 

[Thomas Darkblade]

Ahh, you're right, it's a Derby Extra, but I've seen it going with that name somewhere on the forum.
My mistake, sorry.

 

[bosseb]

... The more I shave the more I think differences between shaves are because of the prep, the lather or the technique.

This is very clearly my impression also, perhaps including skin moisturizing after and between shaves.

 

[Thomas Darkblade]

This is very clearly my impression also, perhaps including skin moisturizing after and between shaves.

I didn't tried many blades yet, but I'm thinking "how many ways to sharpen a blade, in the same factory?"
There could be differences because of steel type and coatings, but the blades could be very similar.

You're right about skin moisturizing, I noticed that.
Seems like my mix of WH, glycerin and allantoin, applied twice a day (after shaving and before going to bed) is doing wonders in that regard. I started using this mix late last week and is early to tell for sure, but my face feels a lot better after / during shaving, I also noticed a reduction in the ingrown hairs at the neck base.

At the moment the plan for next year is to test the blades I have and various soaps, giving all enough time. Then select a blade based on performance / availability / price, maybe 2-3 soaps, and be done with that.
If my post shave solution is working at it seems now in the initial stages I can give up the after shaves (still have about 10-12 bottles to finish) and use cologne for scent.
Seems I'm on my way to become a minimalist

 

[psfred]

There are myriad ways to put an edge on a razor blade, and a host variations in coatings. Steel composition, heat treat, tempering, single vs double bevel, hollow vs flat bevels, etc.

The differences are quite real, but the effect at the skin level shouldn't be too great. Sharpness and longevity at the two "skin" results, and they are pretty much one or the other. A shallow hollow bevel at the base of a steeper secondary bevel will be less "sharp" in use, but will last much longer than a wide hollow ground bevel since there is more steel behind the edge.

My brother is already a minimalist -- 70's SuperSpeed, Astra SP blades, either Williams and a badger brush or Edge shave gel. Suits him fine, and a 100 pack of blades will probably last him a decade.

Peter

 

[Runnin_Ute]

Gillette Silver Blue - 26
This is getting near the end

 

[psfred]

Changed the setting on the Slim to three (where I used to keep my old Schick SE adjustable set) and shave #9 on my first ever DE blade was quite nice. Not as close as I'd like, but no irritation and most of it is pretty good. Need to spend some more time getting my stroke directions fixed to actually go ATG, that's the only way to get a smooth shave for me. If I miss the direction even a little bit, I have stubble that the razor glides over in any other direction.

At this rate, I'll be using this blade for a long time.....

Peter

 

[Dog Whiskerer]

My last two shaves with the German-made Wilkinson Sword blade (numbers 17 and 18) in a Gillette Slim were better than shaves #15 and #16. A wider blade gap help. At setting 7 I had a two-pass plus touch up shave where previously I had to buff like crazy to get a decent shave. Setting 5 also provided a good shave. The blade still feels rough as I drag it across my face, but the prove is in the shave--no discomfort or irritation, no alum sting.

However, I don't feel like I'm going to press it to 20 shaves. I'm more interested in taking the Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge and Astra SP to their limit.

 

[LoungeLizard]

I've been using an Astra SP for 9 shaves (probably more like 13 with head shaves included). To think, I used to just toss them after 3 or 4 shaves thinking they would start going downhill from there. This Astra seems to have plenty of fight left in it. Some of you with your 20, 30, 40+ on a blade, wow. Someone out there just posted #94 on a feather today

 

[coolcanuc]

Someone out there just posted #94 on a feather today

Yes I did. This one is lasting a bit better than the last Feather. I will probably be changing the blade soon for no other reason than it is time to start anew. Otherwise the blade is still cutting quite well.