Thank you, Feather Hi-Stainless, for helping me understand

[Rodeodave]

So this is shaving, eh?

After several weeks of DE shaving, and really enjoying the increase of comfort as compared to cartridge razors, I decided that it was time for me to see what the Feather hype was all about. I've tried Wilkinson Sword, Personna Platinum, Derby Extra, Crystal Platinum Chrome, Shark Super Chrome and Astra Superior Platinum blades before, with acceptable outcome each time.

Convinced that I had my routine and technique down, which is composed of shower, cold water rinse, rubbing in a few drops of Olive oil, lathering from Speick, Omega or Palmolive soap with a boar brush, three pass shave (w/x/x), alum bar and finally Nivea Sensitive ASB, I manned up and tightened down a shiny new Feather blade in my G3 Gillette Fatboy, set at 3 for this venture.

When I set the razor down on my two days' worth of stubble I understood. "No pressure, let the weight of the razor do the work." Really? How am I supposed to do that when the blade keeps jumping, pulling, even tugging at times? Not this time. The feather leisurely sliced through my whiskers, all I had to do was smoothly guide the razor down, letting it do the work. It was the most effortless and comfortable shave I've ever had. The alum bar gave zero sting, and the shave feels close and uniform. This might very well be my blade.

So, the remaining question are, how many shaves will the Feather last, and who wants to buy my 200 Astra SP blades that are in the post?

 

[crfcom]

Might want to hang on to the Astra's til you figure out the part about how long the Feather's last.
Any top level blade will duplicate your experience with the Feather, but probably last longer. Its a result of the grind angle Feather uses. Don't let the huge difference in price between these two blades fool you, Astra SP is a good blade, and Gillette 7 o'clock blacks, yellows, and blues are even better. Also, try some Personna Reds, Med Preps and Lab preps. Polsilver Super Iridium and Super Stainless are extremely sharp and durable. There are a lot of really good blades out there that it sounds like you've missed. You might enjoy checking them out.

 

[Chester]

So, the remaining question are, how many shaves will the Feather last, and who wants to buy my 200 Astra SP blades that are in the post?

It depends on how hard you beat up the very fine edge on the feather, but I get only three shaves out of them. The second shave is the best, and the third is pretty good, but by the 4th shave I reach for the new ones. Hang on to the Astras, though.
-- Chet

 

[bryan1980]

Glad that you had a good experience with a Feather blade. They could very well be the blade for you, but make sure you try the others crfcom mentioned. Those are all fine blades in their own right, and worth a try. Most of them are also more reasonably priced as well. As far as how many shaves you can get with a Feather, that's one of those "YMMV" things. But take note that there are quite a few members on here that report getting no more than three shaves per blade from a Feather.

 

[Rodeodave]

Thanks for your comments, guys! I'll try to get my hands on Personna Med and Lab Preps, and also the Polsilver blades. I have a pack of Gillette black 7 o'clock, but I had to abort the shave with one of them because it just wouldn't cut properly. I'll give them another try, and if I can, the yellow ones too.
Thanks for your input!

 

[Nick Danger]

Funny, I was just getting ready to post something about how long I'm finding Feather blades last me: two shaves, same as my experience with Astras. They start to feel rough by the third shave. I like the shave quality much better than with Astras, and I did just buy 100 Feathers at a great price from our B&B vendor in Singapore, so I'm not feeling too badly about tossing them after two shaves. So far, I still like them much better than anything else I've tried, including Personna Reds. I do have some Personna Labs on hand, but I've only tried them in my Super Speed, which was a bit too mild a razor for me. I'll give the Labs a spin in my Merkur HD to see how they feel, but I bet they only last two shaves for me as well. I think that I just like the feel of a nice, fresh, sharp blade. Given the cost of DE blades compared to cartridges, I'm still getting a heck of a value for my money.

Nick

 

[Rodeodave]

So today was the second round with the Feather, and I am still amazed. I opened the Fatboy up to a 4, which is my usual setting. Again, effortless shave with close to zero sting from the alum bar. I'm not sure, but it seems that the blade performed a tiny bit better yesterday, but I could be imagining things.
I wonder how it will hold up on the third shave.

From an Astra SP blade I can get three fine shaves, but it takes more effort than with the Feather. I think I'll stick with the Feathers for a little while now, and look out for the Polsilver and Personna M/L Prep blades.

 

[jmsodpc]

seems that these feather blades are triple the price of the astra sp blades so i dont think they are a better deal than astras...but they still might be better and more money too.

 

[Rodeodave]

seems that these feather blades are triple the price of the astra sp blades so i dont think they are a better deal than astras...but they still might be better and more money too.

Better deal? No, I don't think they are. But if they provide a substantially better shave, which for me they do, I don't really care. Feathers can be had for reasonable money, and compared to what most of us spend on razors, brushes, soaps, aftershaves, preshaves and other accessories, it is easily justifiable to use them. Of course that is just my view of the situation

 

[kingfisher]

Yep. Feathers are nice blades.

Feather in a Fatboy is pretty close to shaving nirvana.

 

[Rodeodave]

Today I had the third shave with the Feather, and while still being acceptable, performance was clearly impaired compared to the first and second shave.
So I guess there we have it, I only two DFS's out of a Feather for me.

I still have to try the Lord Platinum, and the Gillette Siver Blue and 7 o'clock super platinum (black) from my sampler pack. I hear these blades are comparable to the Feather Hi-Stainless. We'll see.

 

[Silence!]

Might want to hang on to the Astra's til you figure out the part about how long the Feather's last.
Any top level blade will duplicate your experience with the Feather, but probably last longer. Its a result of the grind angle Feather uses. Don't let the huge difference in price between these two blades fool you, Astra SP is a good blade, and Gillette 7 o'clock blacks, yellows, and blues are even better. Also, try some Personna Reds, Med Preps and Lab preps. Polsilver Super Iridium and Super Stainless are extremely sharp and durable. There are a lot of really good blades out there that it sounds like you've missed. You might enjoy checking them out.

I've tried most of those blades, and I have to say that I really enjoy the Personna blades, the Reds and Labs. You can't beat them in terms of sharpness and comfort. I now exclusively use the Personna Labs. As for the Feathers, they are super sharp, and they get the job done, but it leaves the feeling I get after using a Derby, which is a very uncomfortable and unpleasant feeling in my face. Try out the Personna Labs, you'll find they're almost as sharp, but leaves you feeling good. Also, it's more than half the price of Feathers, which makes it a great deal.

 

[JimK]

Two hundred Astra SP blades shipped cost about $18.50. Thats a lot of awesome blades for very little money spent... Even if Feather floats your boat higher (Astras are perfection for me, as Feathers like to bite a bit too often), it is wise to have a two year supply of good shaving backup blades on the shelf! They don't go bad over time, and you know what to expect if you need to put them in action....

Thats what I did with my 50 or so Feathers. Not bad blades, but a bit bloody in most razors I own. I use one every now and then to have fun, and keep the rest in reserve if I ever live long enough to run out of the current Astra SP blades. After all, just because Feathers are not my favorite blades, they are still very good blades, and worth of a place in my stash.... Good blades are never a burden to keep on hand, even if they are not your favorite blades....

 

[Rodeodave]

...
Good blades are never a burden to keep on hand, even if they are not your favorite blades....

Very true.
I shall try them with a higher setting on my Fatboy, maybe their performance can be tweaked further.

I just had a shave with a Gillette Silver Blue, and I think I can concur to what is being said about them, they are very, very sharp and exceedingly smooth. If they turn out to last longer than the Feathers I would have already found the first contender.

 

[oakeshott]

3 shaves out of the Feather for me also. It's my only blade, but a friend recently PIF'ed an assortment of good alternatives and I'll try them. Previously, I haven't really been able to tell any difference between the high end blades.

 

[kmiller0193]

I just tried the Feathers that came with my blade sampler for the first time this morning on a pretty thick 3 day weekend hangover growth. It cut like butter with no pulling, grabbing, or dragging. It provided the most comfortable shave I have ever had. I will say though that if they don't last any longer than a Derby or Personna Red then there will be no room for them in my cabinet.

 

[boatwright]

Feathers are hands down the best, sharpest, smoothest, closest, most comfortable shave. No pressure, one pass, with a bit of touch up on the neck and under the nose, two against the grain passes on the sides of the chin and I'm smilin' all day long.

Three perfect shaves per blade. They will go for four or five with a slight bit of tugging -- comparable to the feel of the first shave with other blades.

I've tested them blind in two identical Gillette Slims set to #3 against new Astras, Derbys, 7 o'Clocks, Personnas, Wilkinsons, etc. -- on opposite sides of the face. I can ALWAYS tell which is the Feather.

With good lubrication (I use a squirt of cocoa-butter hand cream into the mug before I whip up the lather) and a LIGHT touch, you will not cut yourself either. When I first started using Feathers, I was in the habit of using choppy, short strokes, and lots of pressure to get good closeness, and I did nick myself too often. Lighten up and you will find peace, harmony, and beautiful women will want to rub your face.

 

[menghai]

I've been struggling with my headshaves recently. One problem is my lather, but another problem is taking so many passes to get BBS. I loaded up my slant with a Feather for the first time, and didn't have any issues. Nice and smooth, no nicks. Think I'll be sticking with these until they do me wrong.

 

[awa54]

It feels like current production Personna Lab Blues are *almost* the same sharpness and feel as the Feather, but can be found for $13/100 on ebay and not much more from your favorite "real" vendor.

Like you, I get three shaves from a Feather in most razors, but in my Merkur OC head (11c and 15c) razors I get at least five and usually six before feeling like I need to trash the blade.... on average I get one more shave from the Lab Blues.

I no longer have any patience with blades that feel less sharp and smooth than the Feather, I still use other blades from time to time, but keep coming back to the Feather and Lab Blue; why get good shaves when using one of these blades means getting great shaves?

Of course the Labs may not work for you like they do for me, so if you're interested I'd suggest a sample before going all in... and of course there are vendors who have much more attractive prices on Feather blades if you can wait a week for shipping from outside the US.

 

[Wildalaska]

Feathers are used one week a month in my rotation. I shave 6 days a week, using two razors, so basically Im get three shaves per blade.

I dont care what they cost. I use Kais too.