It would be about right that they stop making these now I've decided that they're the blade for me....
Gillette Platinum/Swedes alternative packaging?
- Thread starter JEEP
- Start date
So...am I to understand correctly that the fabled Swede is going away?
V
VR6ofpain
I wish people would stop calling them "Swedes". These blades are made in Russia, just like the Super Inoxyable blades everyone hates, and Green/Yellow packs a lot of us love. They are not Swedish!
OK, I received two of these Gillette Platinums/"Swedes" in the new packaging from Jakob. Many thanks!
First impressions: those four blobs of glue are pretty unsightly. They even extend as far as the shaving edge of the blade and I do hope that this is only a cosmetic problem and that the shaving capabilities of the blade are not impaired. Does this glue disappear in soapy water? Or should I try to remove it with alcohol?
I will shave with this blade tomorrow morning and I'll report in this thread.
First impressions: those four blobs of glue are pretty unsightly. They even extend as far as the shaving edge of the blade and I do hope that this is only a cosmetic problem and that the shaving capabilities of the blade are not impaired. Does this glue disappear in soapy water? Or should I try to remove it with alcohol?
I will shave with this blade tomorrow morning and I'll report in this thread.
Hmmm. Why are they called Swedes?
Because in the past the back of the package said this (see below).
Note that the blades could just as well have been called French, Finns, Danes, British or Norwegians.
This morning I shaved with a blade that Jakob sent to me. Immediate impression: not as sharp as a plastic dispenser-"Swede". I experienced more resistance than I normally do with a fresh blade. The other side of the coin is that these blades are also more forgiving: I used some risky ATG moves around my mouth but I did not get a single weeper.
I use plastic dispenser-"Swedes" for 14 shaves. I seriously doubt that these blades will last that long, however, I will see how far I can push them.
These Gillette Platinums in the cardboard box are perfecly useable blades, but I don't think that they are the plastic dispenser-"Swedes" in a different packaging. To me they seem to be different blades. As far as I know, they are in the same premium price range as the plastic dispenser-"Swedes", so an important question is, how long will they last? If they don't last as long, I see no reason why they should be worth that price.
I use plastic dispenser-"Swedes" for 14 shaves. I seriously doubt that these blades will last that long, however, I will see how far I can push them.
These Gillette Platinums in the cardboard box are perfecly useable blades, but I don't think that they are the plastic dispenser-"Swedes" in a different packaging. To me they seem to be different blades. As far as I know, they are in the same premium price range as the plastic dispenser-"Swedes", so an important question is, how long will they last? If they don't last as long, I see no reason why they should be worth that price.
My new ones are the same!
I was somewhat mocked for panic buying 200 of these late last year when they disappeared from the shelves of my local retailer, but I'm glad I did now, and will be rationing them!!
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The same as what? The old plastic packing or the new cardboard one?
Same printing on the pack. From Oslo and Stockholm. Let's hope the blades in the new packs prove to be as good as the old ones, Astras for me if not. . At least till I can get bbs with my straight!
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Oh - that makes them "real" Gillettes (ie pre-P&G takeover)- definitely made in Lodz, Poland.
Old stock then. Get em while they're here! Still every day I use the straight gets closer, a little easier and very gradually less scary, I love that razor. Won't be long before I stop with the DE apart from when I'm on holiday.
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Oh, it is sad to see them changing, I figured they would, as I really liked them in the sampler pack I received when I first started back into DE. As luck would have it, I have a few more unopened packs. I seem to be able to get a rediculous number of shaves out of them, but from what I have read others were able to as well, hence the popularity.
Shave four with the new cardboard box-Platinum today. No problems and no signs of the blade giving up yet. I still don't think that these blades are exactly the same as the "Swedes" -- I get an impression of 'not quite as sharp and more forgiving' -- but so far, they seem to be good.
I would be interested in a review with microscope photographs too see how the edges look under magnification, so that a more objective comparison of these blades with the "Swedes" is possible.
I would be interested in a review with microscope photographs too see how the edges look under magnification, so that a more objective comparison of these blades with the "Swedes" is possible.
Sorry to say this, but I've received at least two independent reports the Swedes are no more. One from a distributor, another from the P&G UK rep through a contact. The rumor seems to be true that they've shut down all DE manufacturing at the plant to focus on more cartridge razors. One of my sources, one of the largeset pharmaceutical distribution centers in England, discontinued the SKU entirely. Othere are reporting being out of stock indeffinetely.
From the limited feedback on the boxed Platinums, they sound similar to the 7 O'Clock SharpEdge blades from Russia. I'm pretty sure these new blades are indeed made in Russia, and I'd be interested to find out if the "recipe" is any different from the SharpEdge.
From the limited feedback on the boxed Platinums, they sound similar to the 7 O'Clock SharpEdge blades from Russia. I'm pretty sure these new blades are indeed made in Russia, and I'd be interested to find out if the "recipe" is any different from the SharpEdge.
J
Jarmo P
I have still some time to check all local shops in here, but I think not doing that. For the price over 5 euro, they are just blades and too costly for their worth. Even if they go extinct. Blades that I have not used for almost a year.
More important to me than gather all the costly 5 blade packgages is to remember in memory the first DE blade brand that made me a shaver besides giving me also a few nicks from bad tech.
Jarmo
More important to me than gather all the costly 5 blade packgages is to remember in memory the first DE blade brand that made me a shaver besides giving me also a few nicks from bad tech.
Jarmo
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Seems we got the same story from different places - my information came from P&G Germany (in the plant making the blades go into M3 & Fusion that are shipped to Lodz for assembly and packaging there)
The continuing saga rolls on over at SMF, with the ultimate "Swede" diehard having just shaved with a Russian "Swede" and giving a blow-by-blow, almost hourly report. Ultimate test will be how many shaves he gets from one.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, a well-connected source in the UK is saying that P&G is no longer distributing these blades because the volume just doesn't make it worthwhile. He is checking with other agents among his connections...
Oh, the drama, the suspense! "I'm mad as hell and I'm just not gonna take it anymore!"
P.S. The glue spots, if like those on the 7O'clock yellow, will dissolve into a melange with the lather. Result is a thicker film of scum at the end of the blade's life, but no effect on shaving. Does make more difficult to unwrap and load in the razor. A Silver Star (Lord brand) I tried several weeks ago had four glue spots that were in place just as firmly when I was finished with it.
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All the shops I knew that had the plastic dispenser now have the cardboard box ones. Yesterday I still saw some "plastic" ones at a shop, but costing 3.60 euros they can keep them. I am still testing DE shaving, so it wouldn't be very nice to find a go-to blade that I will not be able to... go to 
.
Last week I went to a store that just went out of stock on the Platinums. They said some more would come this week, I'll check out tomorrow if they are the "new ones" as well.
.Last week I went to a store that just went out of stock on the Platinums. They said some more would come this week, I'll check out tomorrow if they are the "new ones" as well.
