Journey to 100 blades (journal)

[Abz88]

Shave two with the Minora Stainless today and an excellent shave. The blade feels sharper today (I wouldn't class it as Very Sharp, probably closer to an Astra SS than a Perma-Sharp or Nacet) and very smooth again. The end result was a close shave with no irritation or Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

Shave 3 with the Minora. It didn't feel quite as sharp as shave 2, but it was still sharp enough for a close shave and still very smooth.

 

[Abz88]

Fourth and final shave with the Minora Stainless today and it was ok but not as good as the previous three shaves. It still felt sharp (but not as sharp as previous shaves) and smooth but I ended up with some irritation around my neck and some alum feedback. The shave was still close and the irritation seems to have recovered fairly quickly so it was still a fairly good shave.
Overall it's been three good shaves and one average one, a belt I would happily use again but maybe ditch after three shaves or try it in a more aggressive razor.

 

[Abz88]

Blade 57: Gillette Minora Platinum

Up next it's the turn of the Gillette Minora Platinum. Shave 1 wasn't as good as the Minora Stainless, it reminds me of the difference between the Astra SS and SP with the SS being sharper and a better shaver for me (although the Minora Platinum seems to be better than the Astra SP). It felt very smooth but not as sharp as the Stainless version or as sharp as my preferred blade. The end result was that the shave wasn't quite as close although no irritation and minimal Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

Shave two with the Minora Platinum and it was similar to the first shave. It's not overly sharp but it's still very smooth. It wasn't the closest of shaves and there was some Alum feedback, although no signs of irritation or ingrowns.

 

[Abz88]

Shave 3 with the Minora Platinum today and it felt slightly sharper (although I still wouldn't class it as sharp) and still very smooth. A close enough shave (although could be closer) and no irritation or significant Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

Fourth and final shave with the Minora Platinum today and it was another ok shave. Just quick one pass shave today and it felt like it had dulled a bit since shave 3 although still very smooth. The end result was close enough for a single pass (although I've had closer single pass shaves with sharper blades) and no initial irritation or alum feedback. It looks like there might be some ingrowns in coming but I'll have to wait and see.

Overall the blade has performed similar to other mid-sharp Gillette blades like the King C or Platinum (White) but it's turned out to be sharper than the Astra SP I originally compared it to.

 

[Abz88]

Blade 58: Gillette 365

Up next it's another Gillette with the 365 which seems to be a bit of a love or hate blade on the forums. Shave 1 was pretty good for me. The blade felt very sharp and pretty smooth (although not as smooth as some other Gillettes including the Minoras I just tried). The end result was a close shave with no irritation or Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

Shave 2 with the 365 and a bit of a let down. It still feels very sharp and provided a close shave, but it's dropped a bit in smoothness and there was some irritation around my neck accompanied with quite a bit of Alum feedback. There were also quite a few ingrowns that that appeared but they weren't the usual curl backs I get, so could be from the previous Minora Platinum shaves. Hopefully it picks up on shave 3!

 

[Abz88]

Shave 3 with the 365 and an improvement from shave 2. The blade felt sharper without any further drop in smoothness. There was no new irritation or flare up and it was another close shave with no Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

My fourth and final shave with the 365 and it was similar to shave 3 and very pleasant. The blade still felt sharp but it also felt a bit smoother. The end result was another close shave and there was no irritation or Alum feedback today.

Overall it's just been the second shave that let this blade down so I am assuming there was some other factor at play with that shave. I'll need to try another 365 blade sometime soon and see how it compares.

 

[Abz88]

Blade 59: Gillette Super Thin

The next Gillette to get a run out is the Super Thin (from the Gillette China factory for the Thai market). Shave 1 was ok, I would say this is a mid-sharp blade verging on Sharp and it was quite smooth. A close enough shave (although could have been closer) and no irritation or Alum feedback.

Interesting the inside wrapper had an advert for a Gillette Vector Plus cartridge style or disposable razor

 

[Abz88]

Shave 2 with the Super Thin today and it felt sharper and smoother. It definitely feels like its moved from mid-sharp to sharp (similar to an Astra SS or Minora Stainless) and it provided another close and irritation free shave. Some Alum feedback but very minor.

 

[Abz88]

Shave 3 with the Super Thin and it felt sharper again today and still nice and smooth. Another close shave with no irritation and very minimal Alum feedback. For my first Chinese Gillette blade it's setting quite a high bar for the others to follow!

 

[Abz88]

Fourth and final shave with the Super Thin and another pleasant shave. It's still sharp and very smooth with no noticeable change from shave 3. Another close shave with no irritation and no Alum feedback.

Overall this blade has provided a very good set of shaves. To me it feels like a sharp blade similar to an Astra SS but not as sharp as a Nacet or Perma-sharp and it's also nice and smooth. Definitely one I'll look forward to using again.

 

[Abz88]

Blade 60: Gillette Super Thin Platinum

The next Gillette loaded into the FaTip is the Super Thin Platinum, another Gillete China blade but marketed for Vietnam. Shave 1 was ok, the blade wasn't as sharp as the previous Super Thin but it was nice and smooth. The shave wasn't as close as Super Thin either but again, no irritation or Alum feedback.

 

[Abz88]

Shave 2 with the Super Thin Platinum today. I ended up with a bit of next day irritation after shave 1 and a couple of ingrowns so it wasn't quite as good as I had initially thought.
In todays shave it felt a bit sharper and still very smooth. The shave feels a bit closer and there's no sign of irritation, Alum feedback or ingrowns but I'll check again tomorrow!

 

[Abz88]

Quick update on shave 2, I had another couple of ingrowns the following day but no next day irritation (unlike shave 1).

Shave 3 with the Super Thin Platinum was todays shave and it was a pretty good shave. The blade is definitely feeling sharper and is still very smooth. The end result was a close shave with no irritation, Alum feedback or ingrowns. It felt like

 

[Abz88]

Shave 4 with the Super Thin Platinum yesterday using rhe FaTip OC for the first pass and Gentile for a second pass. It was the second day shaving in a row which is unusual for me, but I was heading out to a show so felt I had to make an effort! The blade was of a similar sharpness to the last shave and still smooth but I did end up with some irritation around my neck (gone today and could be a result of back to back shaving days as opposed to a blade issue).

Overall this blade hasn't been as good as the Super Thin, not as sharp and I got some irritation from it. It's probably worth trying again a slightly more aggressive razor.

 

[Abz88]

Blade 61: Winner Stainless Steel by Gillette

The next blade loaded in the FaTip is the Winner Stainless Steel. It's a bit of an oddity as it is not actually a Gillette blade. It's made by Vertice Global (who also make Euromax, Silvermax and their own brand Vertice ONE blades) and marketed by Gillette (picture of the back of the tuck statings this is a bit blurry).

Shave 1 with the blade was ok but a step below the made by Gillette Stainless blades. It wasn't quite as sharp as I would and was a touch rougher than most Gillette blades I've tried. The end result was better than I was expecting. It was close enough with I just some flare up around my neck from the previous shave but not new irritation and minimal Alum feedback.