How often does a razor/blade combo seem magical?

[Velo2453]

Greetings! Still new here, but wanted to share an experience and see if others have had the same.

For background, I've been DE shaving about 4 months after getting tired of cartridges (mostly gray, coarse hair that chews them up quickly) and serendipitously finding my wife's grandfather's '65 Slim while cleaning out a closet. Did the obligatory tour around a blade sampler before landing on Permasharps as "the one" for smoothness and feel.

Then, a few weeks ago I found a 1959 Fatboy for $12, so I grabbed it and gave it a good clean and polish and put it into rotation. I expected it to be pretty much the same as the Slim until one day last week when I put a new Permasharp into it.

OMG. It was like I didn't even have a blade in it for how smooth it was and how little effort it took to get BBS with 2 passes. I'm 4 shaves into that blade and it still feels the same.

Did I get lucky and this blade just happens to be a standout in the tuck, or do some razors and blades just "click" and seem to work better than expected? Maybe I just loaded this one during the perfect moon phase and planetary alignment, but would love to know if others have experienced the same thing.

 

[idjekyll]

yeah the marriage of the perfect blade and razor combo can be satisfying. there are some razors that just go well with any blades but I don't think there's a blade that is perfect for every razor. once you find the perfect combo, just start stocking up on the blades by the hundreds.

 

[Lockback]

I think the key to a great shave - aside from technique - is the razor/blade combination.
Example: my Pearl Flexi is one of my best razors. It's otherworldly smooth and close as well. It absolutely loves Perma-Sharps. I've never had a bad shave with one in the Flexi. But I tried a Nacet in it once and it just wasn't that great. It was noticeably different. And I usually LOVE the Nacet.
I'm a huge fan of the Edwin Jagger DE89. I've probably tried 20 different blade brands in them (I have two DE89's) and very rarely get a bad shave. I've used the Treet Carbon Steel blade in a number of razors with some mixed reviews but in the EJ's it's been simply stellar.
So that right combination is really important.

 

[DesertIguana]

Think it depends on your personal expectations, if they are low, frequently. If nothing less then perfect Shave will do, hard to achieve every Shave.

JMHO

 

[Alex Jr]

My 6S/C with a Gillette platinum. Nirvana.

 

[brucered]

Every shave for me. I don't rotate blades or razors....or soaps or brushes for that matter.

 

[Hannah's Dad]

TiBird and a Feather — shaving bliss.

 

[idjekyll]

TiBird and a Feather — shaving bliss.

hard to argue with that. its the best combo and I've tried anything a bunch of blades.

 

[gdawg55]

It is quite satisfying when you find the best blade for your razor. Most all blades will work, but there is always that one or two that just work better in any given razor. The fun is in trying all the blades to figure out which one or ones work best.

 

[brucered]

It is quite satisfying when you find the best blade for your razor. Most all blades will work, but there is always that one or two that just work better in any given razor. The fun is in trying all the blades to figure out which one or ones work best.

And then stopping when you find the right combo. But no one seems to so that.

 

[gdawg55]

And then stopping when you find the right combo. But no one seems to so that.

Guilty.

 

[WThomas0814]

To me, a perfect shave is a combination of factors.

Certainly, the shave comfort and closeness are essential. No question.

Add in soaking a brush in your nearly 90 year old father's old work coffee mug.

Or, using your late brother's birth year/quarter Slim during his birth month, or, your late mother's birth year Popular in her birth month.

Then you can splash on an aftershave that takes you back to your childhood because it smells like your grandfather.

And, sometimes, you get to lift your grandson onto the bathroom counter so he can watch you shave, exactly like his father did 35 years ago.

Every shave can be, in one way or another, magical.

 

[wetshaver233]

I came to the realization that Nacet blades work equally well in all of my razors and I see no point in trying new blades just to find our if they are going to match a razor. I do however miss Feather blades, because due to their extra sharpness they tend to add a bit more joy when shaving with a very smooth, but still very efficient razors. I might buy a few 100 Feather blades during the current Black Friday from whatever vendor offers the best price.

 

[Hawkeye_90]

I still play with blades, but I really like Astra and blue platinum in my techs and my merkur

 

[Albert V]

Strangely the Rockwell razor does not pair that well the Rockwell blades, but plays well (or at least better) with most other blades I have tried. Same is often said with the Henson razor not pairing very well with their own RK blades. However, the Feather AS-D2 mates best with their feather blade

 

[helicopter]

Strangely the Rockwell razor does not pair that well the Rockwell blades, but plays well (or at least better) with most other blades I have tried. Same is often said with the Henson razor not pairing very well with their own RK blades. However, the Feather AS-D2 mates best with their feather blade

Feather made they best blade they could produce and then made a razor to fit it. Rockwell and Henson made the best razors they could design and then sourced cheap private label blades because the margins are better.

They didn't really care about blade quality and figured consumers don't know enough to pay less for OEM blades or get something better at the mid tier price point.

The whole YMMV myth that everything is subjective reinforces this behavior.

 

[Albert V]

Feather made they best blade they could produce and then made a razor to fit it. Rockwell and Henson made the best razors they could design and then sourced cheap private label blades because the margins are better.

Henson started out including Astra blades with their razors then decided to make their own blades. Rockwell did not do justice to their line by including a mediocre blade with premium SS razors. Experienced shavers will try different blades to determine which works best for them, but newbiews will likely assume the blade made for the razor is the best pair and may not explore (Unless they come here). The Rex line of razors where designed, according to Matt, around the Perma-Sharp blade to maintain a certain standard/benchmark. Earlier this year they launched their own line of Rex blades made in Poland. Have not tried any Rex products but I suspect the blade was speced to be similar to the Perma-Sharp

 

[helicopter]

Henson started out including Astra blades with their razors then decided to make their own blades. Rockwell did not do justice to their line by including a mediocre blade with premium SS razors. Experienced shavers will try different blades to determine which works best for them, but newbiews will likely assume the blade made for the razor is the best pair and may not explore (Unless they come here). The Rex line of razors where designed, according to Matt, around the Perma-Sharp blade to maintain a certain standard/benchmark. Earlier this year they launched their own line of Rex blades made in Poland. Have not tried any Rex products but I suspect the blade was speced to be similar to the Perma-Sharp

The Rex blade is an overpriced Tatra Platinum in private label packaging. That's interesting they are saying they designed the razors to pair with (the much better blade) Permasharp. I wonder if that is true, or if it is just marketing gibberish. I should try them with that blade.

 

[Albert V]

That's interesting they are saying they designed the razors to pair with (the much better blade) Permasharp. I wonder if that is true, or if it is just marketing gibberish. I should try them with that blade.

He has said this numerous times over the years. He has stated that he likes the Perma-Sharp (which replaced Pol Silver when they stopped making them), because it is a sharp blade and he needs a standard to test razors. So most, if not all, his videos where he uses a razor, any razor, not just Rex, he uses the Perma-Sharp. Testing different razors it is best to keep all other variables constant, like blades and soap.

Never tried the Tatra Platinum. I would thini if it is so good it would be more popular

 

[helicopter]

He has said this numerous times over the years. He has stated that he likes the Perma-Sharp (which replaced Pol Silver when they stopped making them), because it is a sharp blade and he needs a standard to test razors. So most, if not all, his videos where he uses a razor, any razor, not just Rex, he uses the Perma-Sharp. Testing different razors it is best to keep all other variables constant, like blades and soap.

Never tried the Tatra Platinum. I would thini if it is so good it would be more popular

Tatra platinum is often distributed as a white label product. If you have ever tried a blade labeled "Made in Europe," Made in cz," "Made in EU," or "Made in Czech Republic," then you probably have tried it. Bambaw, Rex, Razolution, Fatip, Merkur (the new one in paper tuck), Boker, and a bunch of others are the same blade.