I would wager they were pulled because consumers always go for lower price over longevity. We're seeing it in the LED light market right now. All the older models with massive heatsinks and what not (that cost $15 or $20) simply didn't sell. So they are moving to cheap plastic bulbs with no heatsink. Much cheaper but wont last nearly as long.
Personna 74 Tungsten Blade Variants
- Thread starter Norman Gunston
- Start date
In the big picture, meaning the end of DE shaving in the first world, was the convenience and time saving of multi blades, same as why canned foam took over from brush and soap/cream. That's when the vast majority of DE shaving shifted to places like India and such. So the focus of blade making changed from making the best blades to cheaper, more accessible ones.
I just got delivery of a razor that still contained a Personna 74 Tungsten blade, which prompted me to look it up. It's soaking in disinfectant now; I've examined the edge under 40X magnification & it looks sharp & smooth without any dings or nicks. Maybe I'll give it a shave over the weekend.
If you do shave with it, be prepared to spend many late nights scouring the auction sites for NOS 74's. 
Yep - that's what I'm afraid of.If you do shave with it, be prepared to spend many late nights scouring the auction sites for NOS 74's.
Nice post. I am currently using a P74 from that very box that is the 2nd picture in the original post. I've been using it since August and it hasn't dulled yet.
I have also seen unmarked razor blades (with only the directional arrows) within the Personna 74 black blade case. The seller says that the blades are unmarked because the blades were samples/promotional. What does everyone think? Are these unmarked blades in Personna 74 blade dispensers legit Personna 74s? @Mouser @Norman Gunston
I have the same question, I have at least 10 unmarked (except for the directional arrows) blades in Personna 74 blade dispensers.
I had a couple I won in an Ebay lot years ago yes they are legit and from what I know some of the earliest produced versions of the blade but mine were not in a dispenser they were in individually wrapped as samples (like your seller suggested). I didn't care for them, prefer the later incarnation SPC's much better.
Thanks @Dalejr. I just wanted to make sure.
- Thread starter
- #51
I haven't seen such unmarked blades, but you will no doubt soon become aware if it is a P74 or not by its performance.
Does anyone have blades that look like this? This particular blade started off a bit rough for the first couple of shaves but has been smooth and awesome ever since. I've put 7 shaves on it now.
I have the same packaging and blades. I'm very interested to see if they are actual Personna 74 Tungsten blades and how many shaves you get out of it. So far, I have gotten 29 shaves on my blade that has "Personna 74 Tungsten Steel" printed on the blade.
I may have mispoken or been unclear but the majority if not all of the early 74s were just as pictured here. For the most part they started stamping the name on the blades around when the packaging stopped saying Personna 74s Tungsten Plus and went to SPC. I have every "edition" of the blades and even the free introductory singly wrapped very first ones were unmarked except for the directional arrows.
Is there a modern version of Tungsten blade ?
I don't use modern blades anymore but when I did there was a blade or two that used tungsten so in the sense of a modern version of a tungsten blade, yes, but I wouldn't call them a version of the P 74s.
I found another variation while web surfing tonight, found these on Etsy, appears to be British version and they are currently selling for $39.00 per tuck of 5.
Hey Norman. Is it your belief that the variant Maxime describes above (7/26/18), ie different font, no mention of Tungsten on the blades (just PERSONNA and arrows), but in packaging which describes Tungsten on the back, is another variant of the P74? The blades I just received are pictured below, with the blade and packaging, and the mention of the tungsten alloy visible.
Attachments
No, you have to go by the blade itself & in your photo they are the successor: SPC's. Some leftover 74's were produced in the successors packaging though. As I've stated in various posts I prefer the later SPC's myself even if they don't last as long. Even those that pop up are being snatched up on the bay now for more than I feel they're worth.
