In search for the most rust resistant razor blade

[NorthernSoul]

The “Graham-Field 3171 Stainless Steel Double Edge Razor Blade”, might be the 0.01in thick uncoated personna blade, or maybe they're coated. Some seem to love this blade, most DE shavers hate it. If the above thickness is true, this blade is 2-1/2 times thicker than the lab blue.

Most uncoated blades I know of are made for other applications than shaving like utility knives, scrapers, that kind of thing. Not sure, though. The 3-facet uncoated GEM blade is made mostly for medical applications.

The generic shaving blades don't have as good quality steel and have lower quality coating, AFAIK. They usually last fewer shaves than the better blades.

The failure mode on the shaving blades is usually chipping out of the steel at the edge, or folding over of the edge. There is not enough steel at the edge to resharpen. Maybe their life could be prolonged with care. There's a thread called Excalibur Club where people talk about it (I guess you've seen it).

 

[NorthernSoul]

I just bought some R100 Acu blades made by Acuderm. I think these are the original med prep blades DE shavers loved.

The older Med Preps looked like these. They may still be available. They seemed very similar to the Comfort Coated, so not sure if they are worth all the extra cost (Personna brand can be pretty confusing)...

 

[esee]

There's a thread called Excalibur Club where people talk about it (I guess you've seen it).

Thanks for the tip, I definitely plan to read through some of that thread

The older Med Preps looked like these.

The picture on the listing only shows the box. I found a picture that look like this.

I found another picture that looks this

This picture looks like an Israeli platinum.

The one I bought is an old stock off of an eBay seller who sells old medical equipment. The seller still has two boxes of 100 left. I hope they are good. Here is a eBay link if you want to check them out.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Thanks for the tip, I definitely plan to read through some of that thread


The picture on the listing only shows the box. I found a picture that look like this.

View attachment 1935317

I found another picture that looks this
View attachment 1935319
This picture looks like an Israeli platinum.

The one I bought is an old stock off of an eBay seller who sells old medical equipment. The seller still has two boxes of 100 left. I hope they are good. Here is a eBay link if you want to check them out.

The way to tell you are getting the right blade is by the stock keeping unit number (SKU). It used to be 74-0002. Those ebay blades look like an entirely different product.

The Accutec blades are made in Verona, VA. They are usually quite expensive. Several years ago, my box of 100 Med Prep blades cost around $25 and that was with a discount code. The Comfort Coated box I got for $13.50 with discount code. They shave very similarly to the Med Prep blades.

The Israeli blades in your picture look like Crystals. They were sold under several different brand names. But you should go by the SKU because that is most reliable way to know what you are looking at.

B&B has the Blade Exchange that might be a good way for you to try blades without having to buy large quantities.

 

[esee]

The way to tell you are getting the right blade is by the stock keeping unit number (SKU). It used to be 74-0002. Those ebay blades look like an entirely different product.

The Accutec blades are made in Verona, VA. They are usually quite expensive. Several years ago, my box of 100 Med Prep blades cost around $25 and that was with a discount code. The Comfort Coated box I got for $13.50 with discount code. They shave very similarly to the Med Prep blades.

The Israeli blades in your picture look like Crystals. They were sold under several different brand names. But you should go by the SKU because that is most reliable way to know what you are looking at.

B&B has the Blade Exchange that might be a good way for you to try blades without having to buy large quantities.

All the advertisements only gives is the lot number. Whatever blades they are, as long as the blades are new, clean and personna, I’ll be happy. I wanted to try the Israeli versions and the Med Preps. so, if it’s one of those, I am happy.

I took a brief look at the Excalibur Club. Most users try to muscle through more shaves. I am a fan of fineness over brute force. I intend to hone and sharpen the blades, so the blades are sharp all the time. Honing a blade through a ceramic pre-angled sharpener only takes 30 seconds and might elongate a blade’s life many folds. I have to experiment with a few blades, but I’m thinking softer high grade stainless that bends but doesn’t chip might be better than the harder mental that chips. It’s better to hone than sharpen. Constantly re-sharpening an edge will change the width of the blade.

 

[TOVT]

If I had to gamble on it. My choice would be the Personna USA (blue box 100ct---$17 online).

 

[str8six]

I never understood risking a bad shave prolonging a blade to save a few cents.

This is why we have problems with the environment: How can we make things affordable without people wasting them to get a tiny bit of convenience? Also, some of the subsequent shaves can be better than the first.

I intend to hone and sharpen the blades

You seem like you'd be best served by a straight razor. They are much more enjoyable and ergonomic to strop than a safety blade, especially a disposable one. You also have complete control over the edge and can tweak many variables. They're far more approachable than one might think---I got into it because I was surprised how much I enjoyed sharpening other knives and wanted more edges to play with and was willing to bleed to master it but it turns out it was way more intuitive and forgiving than I expected and actually much easier on my skin.

Plus you specifically have an enthusiasm for stainless and the Henckels Friodur straights are made of high quality stainless, were made in high numbers so fairly available, and are widely praised. There are probably a few threads about them kicking around. Also some contemporary ones from Taiwan using modern high-hardness stainless.

 

[esee]

If I had to gamble on it. My choice would be the Personna USA (blue box 100ct---$17 online).

I already bought 200 for $26.70.

 

[esee]

You seem like you'd be best served by a straight razor.

You are probably right. Yet, I am want to first master safety razors, before attempting a straight edge. In hindsight, a single edge safety razor is much easier to sharpen and the blades are usually thicker. Yet, I committed myself to a double edge and probably won’t try a single edge for a bit. Although the extra thick barber’s personna blade may be perfect for longevity and sharpening. The only thing is, most razors can’t handle a blade that is 0.01in thick. The gap becomes too narrow, leading to a shave that won’t cut right.

 

[Brutus]

I am not sure whether this quest serves any real purpose.

As a new joiner, you may not be aware that straight shavers generally prefer carbon steel straight razors because the edge is usually superior. Some stainless steel razors (e.g. Friodurs) come close, but none exceed the best carbon steel blades.

Searching for ‘the most rust resistant razor blade’ may therefore be a self-defying undertaking.
In other words the criterium that you describe is not a criterium that defines the best performing safety razor blade.


Just my thoughts, but don’t let me dissuade you…

​

B.

 

[esee]

I am not sure whether this quest serves any real purpose.

So, are you saying that I shouldn’t get as many brand blades as I can get my hands on, and crack each blade in half, or cut a hole in each blade in order to expose the bare metal? Why would anyone want to do something so preposterous? I would have then left the blades in a pool of half water, where the blades stay wet while exposed to air, and recorded which blades rust and how long it took for each blade to rust. You're saying this is a bad and pointless idea, right?

I’m sure nobody experiences rust after proper maintenance. Rust is just one of our great environmental destroyers. One can do an experiment by planting some plants. They can take three pots, in one pot they will mix some rust dust into the soil, in the next pot they will keep the soil bare, and in the third pot they can mix some copper dust into the pot. They will then see which plant grows best. If my information is correct, the one with rust will barely grow while the one with copper may thrive. Of course there are more variables to the equation, but you should get my point.

Did you know that iron didn’t always rust? The Vikings never had to worry about using a rusty blade to shave. It was only after molten iron/steel came around that iron became synonymous with rust. It was at the same time that cancer appeared. Although rust doesn’t equal cancer, just because cancer became prevalent at the beginning of the industrial revolution.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

 

[Darth Scandalous]

Did you know that iron didn’t always rust?

Banded iron formations have been around orders of magnitude longer than Vikings, or hominins, for that matter. They are sedimentary rocks made up of alternating bands of iron oxides and siliceous cherts.

Best of luck in your quest, though.

 

[Brutus]

So, are you saying that I shouldn’t get as many brand blades as I can get my hands on, and crack each blade in half, or cut a hole in each blade in order to expose the bare metal? Why would anyone want to do something so preposterous? I would have then left the blades in a pool of half water, where the blades stay wet while exposed to air, and recorded which blades rust and how long it took for each blade to rust. You're saying this is a bad and pointless idea, right?

I’m sure nobody experiences rust after proper maintenance. Rust is just one of our great environmental destroyers. One can do an experiment by planting some plants. They can take three pots, in one pot they will mix some rust dust into the soil, in the next pot they will keep the soil bare, and in the third pot they can mix some copper dust into the pot. They will then see which plant grows best. If my information is correct, the one with rust will barely grow while the one with copper may thrive. Of course there are more variables to the equation, but you should get my point.

Did you know that iron didn’t always rust? The Vikings never had to worry about using a rusty blade to shave. It was only after molten iron/steel came around that iron became synonymous with rust. It was at the same time that cancer appeared. Although rust doesn’t equal cancer, just because cancer became prevalent at the beginning of the industrial revolution.

Stick to what was actually written in my response.
If your intent was to draw me into a discussion about things that were neither written nor implied in my response, you failed miserably.

As far as rust being “our great environmental destroyer” is concerned, you might want to educate yourself what rust actually is and what iron ore consists of.

And I am neither interested in your potting exercises nor your rust and cancer theories.
When I visit this forum, I come here to discuss shaving, not one’s pet pseudoscience theories.



B.

 

[esee]

Thanks to this community, I got past a wall I hit on my research for quality DE blades. There doesn’t seem to be much interest in whether one blade rusts faster than another. So, buying a 150 pack sampler just to test 150 different blades without even using those blades will add to the wealth of information on this forum. Yet the community doesn’t seem interested and I will probably shave with a few blades I currently ordered, at least for now. For now, I plan to test the KAI, Personna comfort coat, Astra SP, (as they included an Astra SP in one of my vintage razor orders), and a Acuderm R100 which might be the Perssona crystal. I’m pretty sure the Astra SP will rust first. I think the others might do really well.

 

[Whisky]

I think you are putting the cart before the horse worrying about this. Blades are meant to be disposable and while some guys get 150 shaves out of a blade, most change it after 3 or 4.

This. The blades are made of "inferior steel" because that's all that's needed to get the job done. Most people use a blade for 5-6 shaves (or less) then toss the blade. Rust really hasn't been an issue with DE blades since they stopped making them from Carbon steel.

I hope not to throw out my blades and sharpen them like they did yesteryear.

I don't think that modern (the last 100 years) DE blades were ever made to be sharpened. Part of Gilletes marketing was sell the blade holder once and then keep people coming back for blades. Or even better have Uncle Sam give them the blade holder during WW1 then when they get home all they have to do is keep buying blades.

There may have been a little more sharpening when blades were carbon steel instead of stainless but none of the contraptions that have been made over the years to sharpen DE blades have ever caught on for a reason. If you want a razor that you can sharpen, and was made to be sharpened/stropped in between used, check out the Rolls Royce safety razor. Also, using a kitchen knife sharpener on a DE blade is probably a bad idea. The grind angle on the two different types of edges is more than likely different. Most kitchen knives are not sharpened to a razors edge.

Med Prep blades were intended for medical use and are sterilized and certified.

Not necessarily any more. I'm pretty sure it's a marketing thing. Most hospitals use disposable razors for surgical prep now days. Less chance of cutting the patient and they come pre-packaged in the specific surgical kits that they use.

Anyways, good luck with your quest. I have a feeling it'll be quite a while before you see any noticeable rust unless you're actively trying to get the blades to rust. I just rinse and shake out my razors after a shave then loosen the top cap a little before I put them away. Depending on how frequently I shave a blade my be in the razor for 5 days to 2 weeks. I've never, in 10ish years of shaving with a DE, had any rust on any of my blades. I've used all of the blades that you have listed and many, many, many more. The blade rabbit hole is deep.

 

[psfred]

As I said before, all I've every seen is a trace of rust colored stain around where the blade is clamped in a razor that had lost a lot of plating. The blades themselves are very very very unlikely to rust unless immersed in something more corrosive than soap scum. And the blade that stained a little was in the razor for two years, used once a week. Well over 100 shaves.

Carbon steel blades have serious rust issues, don't confuse them with anything stainless.

I doubt you will find much interest in searching for a "rust resistant stainless blade" since no one ever has a problem like that. They certainly do not rust in the package before use.

 

[Trollky]

Didn't realise rusty blades were such an issue... I leave a blade in a razor for anything between 5 and 30 days of daily shaves and none have ever rusted.

 

[luvmysuper]

So, are you saying that I shouldn’t get as many brand blades as I can get my hands on, and crack each blade in half, or cut a hole in each blade in order to expose the bare metal? Why would anyone want to do something so preposterous? I would have then left the blades in a pool of half water, where the blades stay wet while exposed to air, and recorded which blades rust and how long it took for each blade to rust. You're saying this is a bad and pointless idea, right?

I’m sure nobody experiences rust after proper maintenance. Rust is just one of our great environmental destroyers. One can do an experiment by planting some plants. They can take three pots, in one pot they will mix some rust dust into the soil, in the next pot they will keep the soil bare, and in the third pot they can mix some copper dust into the pot. They will then see which plant grows best. If my information is correct, the one with rust will barely grow while the one with copper may thrive. Of course there are more variables to the equation, but you should get my point.

Did you know that iron didn’t always rust? The Vikings never had to worry about using a rusty blade to shave. It was only after molten iron/steel came around that iron became synonymous with rust. It was at the same time that cancer appeared. Although rust doesn’t equal cancer, just because cancer became prevalent at the beginning of the industrial revolution.

Do whatever experiments you wish. Your time and money is yours to do with as you please. Good luck on your quest!

However...
Pseudoscience on rust not appearing till the Vikings and nonsense about cancer appearing after rust did could make any sensible persons head explode.

Stick to your endeavor and leave rumor/fear mongering out of it.
That's NOT permitted here.

 

[Virgil Sollozzo]

I toss all my blades after one use, so all my blades are rust resistant. Even my most expensive blades at $1 per, are far cheaper than a cup of coffee, so I never understood risking a bad shave prolonging a blade to save a few cents.

I completely agree. My blades last longer, so I use them longer but I value a great shave dearly.