First SE shave...not so good

[SO758]

Received personna blades yesterday from UPS. They were made in Mexico. Mounted one in my Gem micromatic this morning......not even one pass! Horrible blades. Finished the shave with my sledgehammer.

Trying to find feather SE blades....anybody know where some are?

 

[HoosierTrooper]

The Feathers are sold online by a couple vendors. If you have a Walgreens, Rite Aid or CVS drugstore nearby they carry very good blades.

 

[craig87c]

The drugstore blades are going to be a lot cheaper than the Feathers too. Plus they won't require modifications to mount them in the GEMs.

 

[Slivovitz]

Received personna blades yesterday from UPS. They were made in Mexico. Mounted one in my Gem micromatic this morning......not even one pass! Horrible blades. Finished the shave with my sledgehammer.

Trying to find feather SE blades....anybody know where some are?

The only Feather SE blades I know about are these, which are meant for Auto-Strops. I'd be surprised if you could get them to work in a Micromatic, although I'm open to correction. The Micromatics seem to need the central oval cutout; the cutouts on the Feathers fit the Valet razors.

I haven't seen Personna blades that were made in Mexico. As far as I know the drugstore Gems and the Treets are US made. There's a good chance you can find one in a local store. Try Walgreens or ShopRite for the Gems. CVS has their own brand which seems to be re-branded Treets. Both shave well, although the stainless Gems last longer.

Alice.com also has the Gem blades. They charge sales tax but not shipping. Minimum order of six items, but I believe they waive that on the first order.

If you decide you like the Gem blades there are bulk ordering options from medical supply houses, or even from here, but you'll probably want to just buy a single five or ten pack first.

And whatever you do, do not get Dorco SE blades.

 

[SO758]

I bought these from emsadasium? I think I have the name right. Spent a small fortune shipping them. On top of the carton is a sticker that says made in Mexico......on the side, personna. Thanks for the other suggestions and info! Will check out the wal greens and sites you guys mentioned!

 

[Greyfox]

SE's require a slight technique tweak after using a DE.

 

[craig87c]

How did you shave? What angle did you use? Hope you didn't use any pressure.

If you let us know what you did, we can probably help.

 

[SO758]

Guys it was like shaving with a fork! I tried a few angles but couldn't take the whisker tugging!

 

[mgiah]

Were they the teflon coated GEM/Personna/ASR blades or the uncoated or the scraper blades?

There are a few variations of these blades

For shaving - 3 facet (coated and uncoated) and
Scraper Blades - 2 facet

The ones at the drugstore are 3 facet coated.

When you get them online, make sure your getting the 3 facet coated ones.

I get at least 5 (3-4 pass) shaves with these and they are smooth. (DE blades I get 3 shaves on a good blade).

Or maybe you just got a bad blade.

 

[lradke]

Try the GEM PTFE if you are using a GEM razor (I order mine form Connaught Shaving). I found that they work the best for me. I use them in my Featherweight, 1912, and Lather Catcher; they work great and are low maintenance!

As already mentioned, the Feather SE's will require you to put a spine on them if you want to use them in the GEM razor. But they do fit almost all Valet razors. The cheapest way to get them is to have a connection in Japan order them form the Feather Shop (but you get them in cases of 100 ).

Just remember that the blades vary from person to person. You'll get there! SE razors are great, I find the shaves last longer than DE (but that is just my oppinion).

Good luck in your hunt for a better shave!

 

[SO758]

Well I screwed up. These are definately the wrong blades for shaving. 1. the box says for industrial use only. 2. they are obviously not coated, the one I tried to use yesterday morning is rusted already.

Went on Alice.com and ordered the Gem's from there.

 

[drews50]

Well I screwed up. These are definately the wrong blades for shaving. 1. the box says for industrial use only. 2. they are obviously not coated, the one I tried to use yesterday morning is rusted already.

Went on Alice.com and ordered the Gem's from there.

This is a very common mistake, don't feel bad. Proper blades will make you a die hard member of the Gemocracy.

 

[proxymoron]

I bought these from emsadasium? I think I have the name right.

They're a reputable vendor (though for my money, Ted Pella comes in a bit cheaper). Did you get the PFTE coated ones? Never tried the uncoated ones myself, but from what I hear a little bit of teflon makes a huge difference in shave quality.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Well I screwed up. These are definately the wrong blades for shaving. 1. the box says for industrial use only. 2. they are obviously not coated, the one I tried to use yesterday morning is rusted already.

Went on Alice.com and ordered the Gem's from there.

Well, you can still use them to scrape paint off your windows.

 

[Duke of Buckingham]

The only Feather SE blades I know about are these, which are meant for Auto-Strops. . .

Silovitz - thanks for the link. I've been meaning to use my AutoStrop for a while now, but not figured out where to get the blades.

I'm also thinking of getting a Gem, too - which is why I was reading this thread.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Well I screwed up. These are definately the wrong blades for shaving. 1. the box says for industrial use only. 2. they are obviously not coated, the one I tried to use yesterday morning is rusted already.

Went on Alice.com and ordered the Gem's from there.

I'm really curious which blades you got from emsdiasum because the PTFE coated stainless steel Gem blades from them and Ted Pella also come in white boxes with the industrial use only wording because they are packaged for use in medical lab equipment. Can you look on the box or your receipt and see what item number you got?

Don't write off uncoated carbon steel blades after this experience, they can be wonderful blades for shaving. Treet, Gem Blue Star and the CVS house brand blades are uncoated carbon steel and work great for a lot of us.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Silovitz - thanks for the link. I've been meaning to use my AutoStrop for a while now, but not figured out where to get the blades.

I'm also thinking of getting a Gem, too - which is why I was reading this thread.

Depending on which model Autostrop you have you can use the regular single edge blades in them by simply removing the spine.

 

[SO758]

When I get home I will post a pic and info of the blades I have!