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Quest for a better shave

Testing Summary 20211225 (a work in progress)

Derby Extra
3 blades 6 shaves
average score 0.983
Excellent first shave and then dulls fast resulting in a nick or not a close shave.

Derby Premium
3 blades 6 shaves
Average score 0.9875
This blade makes a very good first shave.
Second shaves yield either irritation, nicks or not close enough. An average shave.

Parker Premium Platinum
3 blades 6 shaves
Average score: 0.950
1/6 shaves had irritation
5/6 shaves had nicks or cuts
2/6 shaves were not close
2/6 shaves were not smooth
There is no reason to continue struggling with this blade.

Astra Superior Platinum
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score: 0.996875
This combo produces excellent shaves with few issues. No irritation, 1 nick in 8 shaves, very close and very smooth. The 1 nick was probably technique related. The shaves are near BBS.

Shark Super Stainless
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.975
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth blade. Closeness was DFS or DFS+.

Shark Super Chrome (first set)
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.981
Some nicks & cuts and closeness issues

Shark Super Chrome (second set)
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.972
1 shave with irritation
2 shaves with nicks
6 shaves not very close. DFS or DFS+ results.
The blades stayed smooth 4 shaves each. It would be nice if I could consistently make DFS+.

Shark Platinum
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 1.000
IMO the best of the Sharks

Silver Star Super Stainless
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.997
A very good blade that retains smoothness and sufficient sharpness through 3 shaves in the EJ 3ONE6.

Egyptian Bolzano Superinox
3 blades 10 shaves
Average score: 0.9925
This blade produced excellent shaves. Most were BBS or near BBS. Nicks or cuts were produced on 3 of the 10 shaves.

Personna Lab Blue
Razor: Merkur HD34C
2 blades 5 shaves
Average score 0.980
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Closeness was mostly DFS+.

ASCO Super Stainless Orange
Razor: Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 Knurled handle
2 blades 6 shaves
Average score 0.9875
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Closeness was mostly DFS+. Blades appear to be good for 3 shaves.

ASCO Super Stainless Red/Blue
Razor: Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 Knurled handle
2 blades 4 shaves
Average score 0.99375
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Mostly DFS+ or BBS shaves. Blade lasts two shaves.


Gillette Perma-Sharp Gold box
Rex Supply Co Envoy
3 blades 15 shaves
Average score: 1.0
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, mostly BBS in shave quality and closeness, very smooth result. All a pleasant shave experience.
The blades last 5 shaves easily.

Edwin Jagger 3ONE6
Gillette Perma-Sharp (Gold Box)
2 blades used on 10 shaves
On the first blade, 3rd shave, a nick on the chin was created which kept reopening on subsequent shaves. I shaved with less efficient tools for 2 days allowing this site to heal. First two shaves on this blade were excellent showing the potential of this combo.

On the second blade I started with a facial cleanser and showered after shaving. Additionally, I used a much lighter touch and used caution on the chin area. With those two changes, the combo achieved 5 really nice shaves.

At this time I prefer the Rex Envoy + Gillette Perma-Sharp combo over the Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 + Gillette Perma-Sharp. The Envoy appears more efficient with less risk of creating a nick. However, it is very easy to over shave with it. The 3ONE6 appears less efficient and easier to generate cuts or nicks. However, I’m not likely to over shave with it. There maybe another blade that makes the 3ONE6 truly shine.

Rex Supply Co Envoy
Bic Chrome Platinum
2 blades 8 shaves
8 irritation free shaves ranging from DFS to BBS
These blades are not as sharp as the Gillette Perma-Sharp (Russia) but they are nice and smooth through 4 shaves.

YMMV
 
I did two shaves under the radar so to speak for a friend:

20211223
Razor: RazoRock Mamba 0.53
Blade: Feather Hi-Stainless (1)
Brush: None
Pre-Shave: Hot Shower
Lather: Dollar Shave Club Shave Butter
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A DFS+ result and a pleasant shave.

Handle angle to the face is about 30 degrees.

I would have to use the combo for a month or so to claim success on the DSC Shave Butter and lack of no exfoliation without the brush.

***************************
20211225
Razor: RazoRock Mamba 0.53
Blade: Feather Hi-Stainless (2)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Facial Cleanser
Lather: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Facial Toner Witch Hazel Rose

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A DFS result and a pleasant shave.

Handle angle to the face is about 30 degrees.

I gently melted the VDH Luxury into the apothecary mug and let it harden.

I loaded with a dripping wet brush for almost a minute. Then went to the face to complete the lather.

The Feather was dulling out on second shave.

Merry Christmas and happy new year.
 
20211226
Razor: RazoRock Mamba 0.53
Blade: New Lord Platinum Class (1)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Facial Cleanser
Lather: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Aqua Velva Classic Blue

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A DFS+ result and a pleasant shave.

The Shark Platinums were ordered and shipped but they have not yet arrived.

The closest blade to that would be Lord Platinums, I think.

In the Mamba 0.53, a lot of pickups were needed to arrive at a DFS+.

The Aqua Velva report was medium and lasted all of 5 seconds until the alcohol evaporated off.

The lather kept irritation at bay. I would start the load with a dryer brush next time and add water later.

YMMV
 

thombrogan

Lounging On The Isle Of Tugsley.
Thank you, @GBerry

It’s between you, me, the Red, and the Mediterranean Sea whether Lord Platinum and Shark Platinum are the same blade. Regardless, I’d spend the extra $2 per 100 for the neat shark graphics.

At this point, would the Rex Envoy fitted with a Gillette Permasharp blade be your best combination for close and comfortable?
 
Thank you, @GBerry

It’s between you, me, the Red, and the Mediterranean Sea whether Lord Platinum and Shark Platinum are the same blade. Regardless, I’d spend the extra $2 per 100 for the neat shark graphics.

At this point, would the Rex Envoy fitted with a Gillette Permasharp blade be your best combination for close and comfortable?
Yes, so far this is the sweet spot for the Rex Envoy:

Gillette Perma-Sharp Gold box
Rex Supply Co Envoy
3 blades 15 shaves
Average score: 1.0
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, mostly BBS in shave quality and closeness, very smooth result. All a pleasant shave experience.
The blades last 5 shaves easily.

The Rex Envoy is easier for me to shave the chin area. The 3ONE6 has trouble with the chin. The Envoy has more blade feel. I had to get used to that. I think the Envoy clamps the blade better than the 3ONE6.

In the Envoy, Bic Chrome Platinum is less efficient than Gillette Perma-Sharp. Bic Chrome Platinum is a tad smoother.

I hope that makes sense.
 
20211227
Razor: RazoRock Mamba 0.53
Blade: New Lord Platinum Class (2)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and close. A DFS result and a pleasant shave.

The Mamba 0.53 + Lord Platinum required a lot of pickups were needed to arrive at a DFS. The Lord Platinum might do better with a more efficient razor.

I started the lather with a dryer brush. The resulting lather was Goldilocks.

The skin looks better using VDH Luxury even though it’s only been a few shaves.

Test summary

YMMV
 
20211228
Razor: RazoRock Mamba 0.53
Blade: New Lord Platinum Class (3)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and close. A DFS result and a pleasant shave.

The Mamba 0.53 + Lord Platinum combo requires a lot of pickups to arrive at a DFS. The Lord Platinum might do better with a more efficient razor.

The skin looks and feels better using VDH Luxury even though it’s only been a few shaves.

This combo appears to be a good one for people with sensitive skin issues.

Next shave will be with the Rex Envoy + Shark Platinum.

YMMV
 
20211229
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (24)
Blade: Shark Platinum (1)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Very nice shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, smooth and very close. A DFS+ result and a pleasant shave.

The Rex Envoy + Shark Platinum combo is less efficient than the Rex Envoy + Gillette Perma-Sharp (Russia). The combo was pulling to achieve cutting action. More like scraping than cutting.

The shave met my objectives.

YMMV
 
The previous shave seemed out of character for the Shark Platinum. I took a look at my shave logs and the Shark Platinums performed very well in the 3ONE6.

For the 3ONE6 shaves, prep was hot shower and lather was Stirling Naked & Smooth.

Prep for the Rex Envoy shaves was wash face with Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser and lather with VDH Luxury. The pulling may suggest a dud blade.

Happy Shaves.
 

thombrogan

Lounging On The Isle Of Tugsley.
Over in the Razor Blades subforum, some people lauded spendy bladez for having more consistency versus more sharpness, smoothness, or durability. That is, you might not enjoy a particular expensive DE blade, but; allegedly; you’ll always dislike it for the same reasons. Or enjoy it
 
20211230
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (25)
Blade: Shark Platinum (2)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Stirling Soap Co Naked & Smooth
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Good shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, smooth and close. A DFS result.

The lather was changed from Van Der Hagen Luxury to tallow based Stirling Naked & Smooth to see if the Stirling would soften the beard a bit more. If there was a difference, I could not tell on a single shave.

This blade may not be a good match for the Rex Envoy.

YMMV
 

thombrogan

Lounging On The Isle Of Tugsley.
ARKO! softens my whiskers better than Stirling Naked and Smooth. Probably because it’s more alkaline which is probably the reason it feels more drying.
 
I looked into ARCO’s ingredient list and there is a chemical that creates problems for some people. It’s the one which also whitens the puck.
(Disodium Distrybiphenyl Disulfonate)

Both ARCO and Stirling Naked & Smooth contain Stearic Acid which is the chemical that softens the hair. It is also a bit drying.

Stirling does not contain Disodium Distrybiphenyl Disulfonate.

And you are right, high PH lather opens the scales on the hair shaft allowing water to get in and soften the whisker.

The highest PH lathers will definitely cause problems for my skin.

Shaving deeply increases the skins sensitivity to the products we put on the skin.
 

thombrogan

Lounging On The Isle Of Tugsley.
It is a tough tradeoff and I suspect Golddachs would kill us both.

I’ve heard letting a sacrifice lather hang out on the whiskers for a few minutes before washing and lathering to shave helps. Will try some time. Will be back on Sharks when it happens.
 
20211231
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (26)
Blade: Shark Platinum (3)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Stirling Soap Co Naked & Smooth
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Good shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, smooth and close. A DFS result.

The Rex Envoy performs much better with a sharper blade.

The Shark Platinum blades are not overly sharp and they are super smooth.

The Stirling lather has residual slickness to allow for more buffing.

I’ll do a second blade to make sure this is not a dud blade.

YMMV
Happy New Year
Happy Shaves
 
It is a tough tradeoff and I suspect Golddachs would kill us both.

I’ve heard letting a sacrifice lather hang out on the whiskers for a few minutes before washing and lathering to shave helps. Will try some time. Will be back on Sharks when it happens.
Look for Kyle’s prep. He did the study and documented the technique.

Applying VDH lather and then covering it with a not too hot damp towel for 2 minutes just might help.

Focusing on the quality of your strokes may give you better returns.
 
20220101
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (27)
Blade: Shark Platinum (1)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Stirling Soap Co Executive Man
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Very good shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A DFS+ result.

This blade did not pull like the first blade did. I was able to get a much better shave with this blade. I would call the first blade a dud.

The Shark Platinum blades are not overly sharp but they are super smooth.

The Stirling lather has residual slickness to allow for more buffing.

YMMV
 
20220102
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (28)
Blade: Shark Platinum (2)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Lather: Stirling Soap Co Executive Man
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Very good shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A DFS+ result.

The Shark Platinum blades are not overly sharp but they are super smooth.

The Stirling lather has residual slickness to allow for more buffing.

YMMV
 
20220103
Razor: Rex Supply Co Envoy (29)
Blade: Shark Platinum (3)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Pre-Shave: Hot shower
Lather: Stirling Soap Co Executive Man
Aftershave: Cold Water Rinse; Thayer’s Witch Hazel Rose

Excellent shave. No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth and very close. A BBS result.

The hot shower prep made for an easier shave. The cotton ball used to apply the witch Hazel did not find any stubble or leaks.

See link below for testing summary.
Testing Summary

YMMV
 
Last edited:
Testing Summary 20220103 (a work in progress)

Derby Extra
3 blades 6 shaves
average score 0.983
Excellent first shave and then dulls fast resulting in a nick or not a close shave.

Derby Premium
3 blades 6 shaves
Average score 0.9875
This blade makes a very good first shave.
Second shaves yield either irritation, nicks or not close enough. An average shave.

Parker Premium Platinum
3 blades 6 shaves
Average score: 0.950
1/6 shaves had irritation
5/6 shaves had nicks or cuts
2/6 shaves were not close
2/6 shaves were not smooth
There is no reason to continue struggling with this blade.

Astra Superior Platinum
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score: 0.996875
This combo produces excellent shaves with few issues. No irritation, 1 nick in 8 shaves, very close and very smooth. The 1 nick was probably technique related. The shaves are near BBS.

Shark Super Stainless
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.975
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth blade. Closeness was DFS or DFS+.

Shark Super Chrome (first set)
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.981
Some nicks & cuts and closeness issues

Shark Super Chrome (second set)
2 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.972
1 shave with irritation
2 shaves with nicks
6 shaves not very close. DFS or DFS+ results.
The blades stayed smooth 4 shaves each. It would be nice if I could consistently make DFS+.

Shark Platinum
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 1.000
IMO the best of the Sharks

Silver Star Super Stainless
3 blades 8 shaves
Average score 0.997
A very good blade that retains smoothness and sufficient sharpness through 3 shaves in the EJ 3ONE6.

Egyptian Bolzano Superinox
3 blades 10 shaves
Average score: 0.9925
This blade produced excellent shaves. Most were BBS or near BBS. Nicks or cuts were produced on 3 of the 10 shaves.

Personna Lab Blue
Razor: Merkur HD34C
2 blades 5 shaves
Average score 0.980
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Closeness was mostly DFS+.

ASCO Super Stainless Orange
Razor: Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 Knurled handle
2 blades 6 shaves
Average score 0.9875
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Closeness was mostly DFS+. Blades appear to be good for 3 shaves.

ASCO Super Stainless Red/Blue
Razor: Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 Knurled handle
2 blades 4 shaves
Average score 0.99375
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, very smooth. Mostly DFS+ or BBS shaves. Blade lasts two shaves.


Gillette Perma-Sharp Gold box
Rex Supply Co Envoy
3 blades 15 shaves
Average score: 1.0
No nicks or cuts, no irritation, mostly BBS in shave quality and closeness, very smooth result. All a pleasant shave experience.
The blades last 5 shaves easily.

Edwin Jagger 3ONE6
Gillette Perma-Sharp (Gold Box)
2 blades used on 10 shaves
On the first blade, 3rd shave, a nick on the chin was created which kept reopening on subsequent shaves. I shaved with less efficient tools for 2 days allowing this site to heal. First two shaves on this blade were excellent showing the potential of this combo.

On the second blade I started with a facial cleanser and showered after shaving. Additionally, I used a much lighter touch and used caution on the chin area. With those two changes, the combo achieved 5 really nice shaves.

At this time I prefer the Rex Envoy + Gillette Perma-Sharp combo over the Edwin Jagger 3ONE6 + Gillette Perma-Sharp. The Envoy appears more efficient with less risk of creating a nick. However, it is very easy to over shave with it. The 3ONE6 appears less efficient and easier to generate cuts or nicks. However, I’m not likely to over shave with it. There maybe another blade that makes the 3ONE6 truly shine.

Rex Supply Co Envoy
Bic Chrome Platinum
2 blades 8 shaves
8 irritation free shaves ranging from DFS to BBS
These blades are not as sharp as the Gillette Perma-Sharp (Russia) but they are nice and smooth through 4 shaves.

Rex Supply Co Envoy
Shark Platinum
2 blades 6 shaves
6 irritation free shaves ranging from DFS to BBS.
These blades are not as sharp as other blades but they are very smooth. I strongly suspect the first blade was a dud. It felt ready to be binned.

YMMV
 
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