My Journey Through Gillette's Current Offerings

[fightingillini22]

5 days of shaves with the Rubie in the books. This turned out to be a great blade for me! Very comfortable and enjoyable shaves from start to finish. From memory, this felt to be right up there with the GSBs, surpassing all the 7 o'Clock blades for now.

I had seen a few threads around fake Rubie blades circulating the various auction sites, which is obviously worrisome for procuring 100 blade packs. All the fake Rubie threads I saw appeared to use the packaging for the Philippine market Rubies made in China, not the ones made at PPI. I didn't realize there were some being made in China for the Philippines, but since they appear to be difficult to obtain in bulk at reasonable prices, I'm not going to try and evaluate them. My tuck was clearly from PPI and featured the laser etching "Rubie."

1a - GSB
1b - Rubie
2a - Yellow
2b - Black
3 - Green Permasharp
4 - Gillette Wilkinson India
5 - Green SS

Up next, a blade that has been mentioned by multiple people in this thread already, plus many times over in others - the Gillette Nacet!

 

[BigJ]

5 days of shaves with the Rubie in the books. This turned out to be a great blade for me! Very comfortable and enjoyable shaves from start to finish. From memory, this felt to be right up there with the GSBs, surpassing all the 7 o'Clock blades for now.

I had seen a few threads around fake Rubie blades circulating the various auction sites, which is obviously worrisome for procuring 100 blade packs. All the fake Rubie threads I saw appeared to use the packaging for the Philippine market Rubies made in China, not the ones made at PPI. I didn't realize there were some being made in China for the Philippines, but since they appear to be difficult to obtain in bulk at reasonable prices, I'm not going to try and evaluate them. My tuck was clearly from PPI and featured the laser etching "Rubie."

1a - GSB
1b - Rubie
2a - Yellow
2b - Black
3 - Green Permasharp
4 - Gillette Wilkinson India
5 - Green SS

Up next, a blade that has been mentioned by multiple people in this thread already, plus many times over in others - the Gillette Nacet!

Great progress!! (Especially as your tastes are generally similar to my own.)

I predict that the Nacet will be up near the top of your list!!

 

[Mouser]

I can never go wrong with a Silver Blue. It's rarely my # 1, but always in my top 5. Very sharp and very smooth, I'd be hard pressed to think of a blade with better overall balance of all the things that make a blade good. One thing I never understand is people who love polsilvers but dislike silver blues. They are so similar; the differences are barely discernable, at least to me. Silver Blue a bit sharper, Polsilver a bit smoother, but within tiny tolerances of difference. To me, anyway.

I'm with you there. When I was using modern blades they were both on my favorites list. Its amazing how many people who agree on, say, their favorite blade but disagree on what's next. The most ymmv part of wet shaving, imo.

 

[fightingillini22]

Great progress!! (Especially as your tastes are generally similar to my own.)

I predict that the Nacet will be up near the top of your list!!

Three shaves in and you are correct, sir! Not ready to make the formal call until I've finished 5 shaves (or less if I start it delivering an uncomfortable shave I suppose) but the first 3 shaves have been extremely nice!

I'm with you there. When I was using modern blades they were both on my favorites list. Its amazing how many people who agree on, say, their favorite blade but disagree on what's next. The most ymmv part of wet shaving, imo.

I find this very interesting too. For such a YMMV of the hobby, there are clear standout blades where many people agree on the number 1 then digress. I wonder how much of it is a result of group-think or an expectation set prior to using. I would think most would try and stay neutral but there will always be a sense of "well this is widely regarded by many to be great" sitting in the back of people's minds.

Just another interesting facet of this wonder hobby we all share a passion for!

 

[THall]

Just mentioned elsewhere my first KCG blade is at 22 shaves since June 13th. Will give the final count and post a pic when that first tug happens. Still smooth this morning.

I can say positively that it is beating my favorite all time vintage Platinum Plus blades (20 shave average before any tugs) in performance, something I didn’t expect in the least.

 

[danielb193]

Thanks OP for the quality content. Can't wait to see whether the Nacets take top spot...!

 

[fightingillini22]

Well guys, after 5 shaves I am extremely impressed with the Nacets. I don't always have the same results from highly touted products here on B&B as many; I find Feathers to be too harsh a shave and MdC to be a subpar soap even before considering price.

Nacets on the other hand appear to be an exception to that rule! The blade hit exactly the right combination of smoothness and sharpness and delivered 5 exceptional shaves. I can confidently say that the Nacet has rocketed to the top of my rankings thus far!


1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
4 - Green Permasharp
5 - Gillette Wilkinson India
6 - Green SS

Moving right along to the next Gillette blade, and this is one I don't really recall seeing much discussion around. The Gillette 365. We'll see if it matches up closer to the Yellow blades which were perfectly adequate for me or the Wilkies which were very much not...

 

[BigJ]

Well guys, after 5 shaves I am extremely impressed with the Nacets. I don't always have the same results from highly touted products here on B&B as many; I find Feathers to be too harsh a shave and MdC to be a subpar soap even before considering price.

Nacets on the other hand appear to be an exception to that rule! The blade hit exactly the right combination of smoothness and sharpness and delivered 5 exceptional shaves. I can confidently say that the Nacet has rocketed to the top of my rankings thus far!


1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
4 - Green Permasharp
5 - Gillette Wilkinson India
6 - Green SS

Moving right along to the next Gillette blade, and this is one I don't really recall seeing much discussion around. The Gillette 365. We'll see if it matches up closer to the Yellow blades which were perfectly adequate for me or the Wilkies which were very much not...

GSB and Nacet are top-tier blades for me also!! Two great blades!!

 

[dan86]

Well guys, after 5 shaves I am extremely impressed with the Nacets. I don't always have the same results from highly touted products here on B&B as many; I find Feathers to be too harsh a shave and MdC to be a subpar soap even before considering price.

Nacets on the other hand appear to be an exception to that rule! The blade hit exactly the right combination of smoothness and sharpness and delivered 5 exceptional shaves. I can confidently say that the Nacet has rocketed to the top of my rankings thus far!


1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
4 - Green Permasharp
5 - Gillette Wilkinson India
6 - Green SS

Moving right along to the next Gillette blade, and this is one I don't really recall seeing much discussion around. The Gillette 365. We'll see if it matches up closer to the Yellow blades which were perfectly adequate for me or the Wilkies which were very much not...

Great to read that the Nacet performed well. Arguably it comes with the best design on the pack but I was very impressed with them last year and bought 100 of them a few weeks ago.

Never heard of the 365 blades before. The design on the pack isn’t worlds apart from that of the Gillette Wilkinson Sword Indian Saloon pack ones.

 

[Tostig]

Any blade that can cut a crocodile in half has to be good.

 

[fightingillini22]

Never heard of the 365 blades before. The design on the pack isn’t worlds apart from that of the Gillette Wilkinson Sword Indian Saloon pack ones.

I hadn't heard much about them either but 100 packs seem extremely reasonable out on the Bay.

First 2 shaves with the 365 have really surprised me. From what I've read, the general consensus is that these blades are not great. People complaining about smoothness, lack of longevity, having to throw away the blade half way through the shave, etc.

Not for me thus far! First shave was great. Second shave was on par and there wasn't any noticeable difference vs the first shave. I wouldn't put them on par with Nacets, GSBs or Rubies, but they've felt equally as good as the Yellow and Black blades. Barring and noticeable down tick in performance that would prevent me from getting 5 shaves from it, I'm projecting them to land in that second tier alongside the Yellow and Black.

 

[merovirginian]

Just finished reading the thread. Always interesting to read razor reviews because they can be so idiosyncratic. I am a big fan of GSBs and Yellows. Blacks, Rubies, and Nacets slightly lesser. We agree on the Green Super Stainless—I had to abandon that blade mid-shave. I have a new razor in the den, though. Which means another cycle of blade testing!

I've sampled other Gillette blades but am refraining from commenting. I don't want to interfere with the objective process!

 

[fightingillini22]

5 shaves completed with the Gillette 365 blade and color me surprised, I had some very decent shaves. Definitely did not live up to the "had to toss mid-shave" reputation I had seen in some other threads. Smoothness seemed to be on par with the Yellow and Black 7 O'Clocks and I had no issues getting 5 very comfortable shaves with this blade. I wouldn't pick it over a Nacet, GSB, or Rubie, but it definitely surprised me with how nicely it performed in my 40's SS and Krona.

1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
3c - 365
4 - Green Permasharp
5 - Gillette Wilkinson India
6 - Green SS

9 blades down, with a 2-way tie for second and a 3-way tie for third. Really shaping up a little differently than I had anticipated, but I'm having an absolute blast working my way through these. Hopefully those following along are enjoying it too, despite blades being such a subjective wet shaving item.

Up next I'm going to try out the Super Thins. Coming out of China, my tuck is one of the ones for the Thai market. I've seen a lot of counterfeit threads around the Super Thins, so I'd be cautious about getting a bulk order from overseas on eBay, but don't have any concerns with the tuck I got from RazorBladeClub.

 

[fightingillini22]

5 shaves with the Super Thin completed and while nothing spectacular, nothing particularly bad either. A little irritation this morning on the 5th shave, but it was the first time shaving with a NEW SC so probably more to do with that than with the actual blade performance.

I'm placing the Super Thin squarely in the middle of the road. I would have no issue using the blade in the future but wouldn't reach for it again with so many other great blades out there.

1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
3c - 365
4 - Super Thin
5 - Green Permasharp
6 - Gillette Wilkinson India
7 - Green SS

As I'm working through a vintage Gillette passaround box, I'm placing the blade experiment on temporary hold as I'd rather use blades I know work well in these razors.

After the hiatus, I'm looking forward to giving the Sputniks a try!

 

[BigJ]

5 shaves with the Super Thin completed and while nothing spectacular, nothing particularly bad either. A little irritation this morning on the 5th shave, but it was the first time shaving with a NEW SC so probably more to do with that than with the actual blade performance.

I'm placing the Super Thin squarely in the middle of the road. I would have no issue using the blade in the future but wouldn't reach for it again with so many other great blades out there.

1 - Nacet
2a - GSB
2b - Rubie
3a - Yellow
3b - Black
3c - 365
4 - Super Thin
5 - Green Permasharp
6 - Gillette Wilkinson India
7 - Green SS

As I'm working through a vintage Gillette passaround box, I'm placing the blade experiment on temporary hold as I'd rather use blades I know work well in these razors.

After the hiatus, I'm looking forward to giving the Sputniks a try!

I’ll go out on a limb to predict that the Nacets and GSB will remain on top of the pile!!

 

[Sotiris_A]

Thank for the reviews @fightingillini22 !

 

[THall]

Well my KCG blade journey on blade 1 ended yesterday morning at 33 shaves. Felt my first tug on my mustache area WTG yet still completed the shave with a comfortable BBS. Didn’t think starting out on June 13th that the blade would go that long. Remained smooth from the start. I could probably get plenty more shaves out of it, but first tug is my golden rule for testing blade performance and longevity. After each shave, I removed the blade, patted it dry and put it back in the razor. Did not use alcohol but I’ve heard some get more longevity out of blades using it, just never tried personally.

If you like the smoothness of the vintage US Platinum Plus, this is a keeper.

 

[fightingillini22]

Well my KCG blade journey on blade 1 ended yesterday morning at 33 shaves. Felt my first tug on my mustache area WTG yet still completed the shave with a comfortable BBS. Didn’t think starting out on June 13th that the blade would go that long. Remained smooth from the start. I could probably get plenty more shaves out of it, but first tug is my golden rule for testing blade performance and longevity. After each shave, I removed the blade, patted it dry and put it back in the razor. Did not use alcohol but I’ve heard some get more longevity out of blades using it, just never tried personally.

If you like the smoothness of the vintage US Platinum Plus, this is a keeper.

That is some impressive longevity from whatever repackaged blades the KCG ones ultimately are! Glad you'll have no issues getting your money's worth of that tuck.

I've never really considered the alcohol thing for blades but I too disassemble everything and dry my blades after each use. Firmly believe that does increase longevity of all blades.

 

[THall]

That is some impressive longevity from whatever repackaged blades the KCG ones ultimately are! Glad you'll have no issues getting your money's worth of that tuck.

I've never really considered the alcohol thing for blades but I too disassemble everything and dry my blades after each use. Firmly believe that does increase longevity of all blades.

330 shaves or more from a 10 pack, not bad. Almost a year worth of shaves for $7. Obviously online blade sales a lot less but you get a great blade for the buck with these.

 

[fightingillini22]

330 shaves or more from a 10 pack, not bad. Almost a year worth of shaves for $7. Obviously online blade sales a lot less but you get a great blade for the buck with these.

IMHO, even more importantly, you can walk into a Walgreens and pick up a couple tucks (at least for now!)