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The battle of the sharpest: Feather vs Bic Chrome Platinum.

It always seems that when those Youtube shaving guys post a video with a new trial razor, they load it up with a Feather. To me it's just like showing off driving a spendy Cadillac to the corner grocery for a bunch of bananas, when a more affordable car will more than suffice.
The same guys that do the shaving demo without any hair to shave off, the ones that title the video with a name that relates to the razor but showcases the soap above the razor, the same guys that say how great the razor is no matter what!
Ugh!!
 
The same guys that do the shaving demo without any hair to shave off, the ones that title the video with a name that relates to the razor but showcases the soap above the razor, the same guys that say how great the razor is no matter what!
Ugh!!
I thought I was the only one. Maybe it isnt for everyone, but if you're going to review a razor, I want to know about the design choices and how they impact the shave. What angle is the blade clamped at, what is the shaving angle, is it wide or narrow, how gappy does the design feel, does the material choice create drag, what is the exposure, how much blade feel do you get, how well is the edge clamped/is it a rigid design, etc, etc. Half the people that do video reviews on Youtube literally just say it's "smooth" and proceed to talk about the soap...
 
I keep reading here about how expensive Feather's are. American Salon Supplies sells them for $2.75 per 10 pack.
That's where I bought my last 100. Excellent service, genuine blades and fast shipping!
That is still $0.27 per blade or $27.50 per 100. If you have to pay shipping, the cost is even higher.

You can get a 100 blade bulk pack of BICS for $14, Nacets and Gillette for $13 and several brands for under $10.

If I could get as many shaves from Feather as I get from the others, then I might pay extra for them.
 
That is still $0.27 per blade or $27.50 per 100. If you have to pay shipping, the cost is even higher.

You can get a 100 blade bulk pack of BICS for $14, Nacets and Gillette for $13 and several brands for under $10.

If I could get as many shaves from Feather as I get from the others, then I might pay extra for them.
I agree but I'm not comparing Nacet's, Bic's or any other lower priced blades. Plenty of those abound!
Some people really like and want Feather's and the info I posted is for those people.
Plus shipping is free at American Salon supplies + you pay no tax (at least for me here in Florida).
So for Feather's, it's a bargain!
 
Compared to the price of cartridges that I used 6+yrs ago, Feather's aren't expensive at all and has become my go to blade in my Ti Blackbird. I only use a blade, regardless of brand, for 3-4 shaves on average to begin with but as the old saying goes in this hobby, YMMV applies to each and every shaver!! Bic CP's were a 1 and done blade for me very much the same as most Gillette blades have been for me since I started traditional wet shaving 6+yrs ago.... In fact the only Gillette blade I was able to use for multiple shaves were Nacet's and I only used those for 2 shaves max!!

I could really care less what a blade costs as long as its not as costly as the cartridges I used once upon a time and the reason I switched to a DE was to save money and I have done that 10 fold even buying Feather blades today!! If someone can save money and get decent shaves out of a blade that is only $10 /100, more power to them and I wish them luck in their shaving adventures, but don't sling mud on others that choose to continue to use a blade such as Feather or even a Kai...remember what works for you may not work for someone else!!

eta... In my Ti95DC that I recently parted with my best shaves were with Shark SC's and Silver Star's so I agree that not all razors are created equal and is a very important part of the equation... Feather's worked ok but not as well as in my Ti Blackbird!!
 
I must have gotten a bad batch of Bic. They felt so dull and felt like it was epilating when trying them in my ASD2.
The only blade I have found as sharp as feather is personna med prep. Which are even more expensive.
Consistently super sharp is expensive I guess.
I will say feather longevity is variable. Sometimes a few. Sometimes it lasts and lasts.
 
I've gone through at least 30 Bic's in the last couple of months and have yet to have a bad one.
I've put them on hold though since I discovered the Gillette Platinum's smoothness which is superior to Bic. And a couple days ago I've started (again) with German Wilkinsons. That was my first ever blade and I'm revisiting it. And it's a great blade. Smoothness of the Gillette & sharpness of the Bic!
If the Wilkinson keeps giving that consistent result, I think it'll become my go-to blade.
 
I hear these reports of quality issues with BIC blades and am surprised as I've gone through nearly 200 since switching to them as my daily blade, and I haven't experienced a single faulty blade.

They've all been sharp, smooth and absolutely consistent.

The only "issue" I have with them is either they work beautifully in a razor or they don't! There's no in-between!!
I'm the right razor...sublime!
In the wrong razor...Very rough!

My best BIC combos so far:
- Blackbird
- Progress
- Muhle rocca
- Flexi
 

Eric_75

Not made for these times.
I hear these reports of quality issues with BIC blades and am surprised as I've gone through nearly 200 since switching to them as my daily blade, and I haven't experienced a single faulty blade.

They've all been sharp, smooth and absolutely consistent.

The only "issue" I have with them is either they work beautifully in a razor or they don't! There's no in-between!!
I'm the right razor...sublime!
In the wrong razor...Very rough!

My best BIC combos so far:
- Blackbird
- Progress
- Muhle rocca
- Flexi
I get excellent shaves with them in my King C. Gillette. Head and face.
 
I agree but I'm not comparing Nacet's, Bic's or any other lower priced blades. Plenty of those abound!
Some people really like and want Feather's and the info I posted is for those people.
Plus shipping is free at American Salon supplies + you pay no tax (at least for me here in Florida).
So for Feather's, it's a bargain!

I understand.

I checked out the American Salon Supplies web site. The $2.75/10 blade price is listed as a sale price vs the normal price of $4.99. They do not indicate how long the sale price will be effective. The lowest price I have seen anywhere else for Feather blades is $39.95. So the deal you found is indeed a bargain for those for whom Feather Hi-Stainless blades are the best.
 
I understand.

I checked out the American Salon Supplies web site. The $2.75/10 blade price is listed as a sale price vs the normal price of $4.99. They do not indicate how long the sale price will be effective. The lowest price I have seen anywhere else for Feather blades is $39.95. So the deal you found is indeed a bargain for those for whom Feather Hi-Stainless blades are the best.
I have a feeling that they list them as "on sale" but normally just sell them at that price. Last time I bought them was like 3 months ago and that's how much I paid. I never see the price change to the supposed regular price.
 

Iridian

Cool and slimy
I prefer Nacet over BIC and Feather. Feathers are few-shave-wonders, BICs much cheaper and readily available.

This said, the first shave with a Feather seems better to me than a BIC. The BIC gets better 2nd to third shave.

Nacet seem most consistent to me, they feel "thicker" and less flexible to me, in a good way.

Their only drawbacks: They are often so full of glue I have to clean my razors afterwards.

It was a Nacet that glued the head of my Wunderbar together, it took a while to open it...!

I might have to reorder some. My 100 pack is still missing, lost in my home...

I still have a legion of Feathers, BICs, Personnas, Voshkods and lots of other blades, so don't really want to. I just wonder where my Nacets are hiding...

Maybe I should get them and a few KAI blades for trial. 😀
 
I prefer Nacet over BIC and Feather. Feathers are few-shave-wonders, BICs much cheaper and readily available.

This said, the first shave with a Feather seems better to me than a BIC. The BIC gets better 2nd to third shave.

Nacet seem most consistent to me, they feel "thicker" and less flexible to me, in a good way.

Their only drawbacks: They are often so full of glue I have to clean my razors afterwards.

It was a Nacet that glued the head of my Wunderbar together, it took a while to open it...!

I might have to reorder some. My 100 pack is still missing, lost in my home...

I still have a legion of Feathers, BICs, Personnas, Voshkods and lots of other blades, so don't really want to. I just wonder where my Nacets are hiding...

Maybe I should get them and a few KAI blades for trial. 😀
I've never tried Nacet's so I ordered a tuck yesterday when I ordered one of my Fatip's. I've also never tried Kai so I also ordered a tuck of those a few days ago along with the other Fatip that I ordered.
 
I have been a Feather man for a couple of years after trying a few sample packs of blades. I just received 50 Bic Platinum blades and they are close to Feather sharp, but not quite there. The Bic's are a little rougher, but cut close. I am on my third shave and the Bic is still sharp. I replace the Feather blades after 3 shaves max. They are my 3rd favourite blade now behind the Feather and the Gillette Silver Blue. The Bics remind me of Shark blades in terms of feel.
 
Feathers are my standard DE blades, but I also regularly used Astra Stainless Steel and Astra Platinum blades.

I have been sitting on the fence for a while regarding Bic Chrome Platinum blades, but ultimately needed an alternative to Russian-made Astra blades and ordered some Bics.

As I have only used a few Bic Chrome Platinum blades so far, I have not come to a final conclusion yet, but it is safe to say that these Bics surprised me.
Initially they seemed to lag behind Feathers in both sharpness and smoothness and on the first blade I even had the impression that they might not last as long as my Feathers (which goes against common wisdom), but the current blade seems to be approaching the end of its useful life after 12 shaves, which is about 5 more than what I need out of quality blades. (I like the convenience of changing blades on the same day of the week.)

After alternating weekly between Feathers and a few more Bics, my current impression is that Bics start off on a slightly lower plateau than Feathers and may initially also drop off their peak a bit sooner than Feathers (also against common wisdom), but then stabilise and stay in the “up to par” range that gives me close and comfortable shaves for a while longer than Feathers.
Compared to Astra SS and SP blades, Bics seem sharper and - judging from the last blades - seem to have a similarly long useful life.

As mentioned, I have only used a few Bics so far and it would be premature to make a definite statement as to how they work for me, but these Bics from Greece (not a place one normally associates with many shaving products) seem to be a good choice.



B.
 
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I bought the 200 Feathers I have maybe 8-10 years ago (less than 200 now) and paid much less than they seem to sell for now. I also only use them in my AS-D2 or ball end Techs of which I have two, one gold, one silver. For my beard and obsessive shaves, I get an easy 4-5 shaves with them. That's as much as any blade most of the time. The other day, I kept a Personna for 6 shaves but it was one too many.

Don't know a thing about the Bics and I have some Nacets and Perma Sharps coming in over the next few days. Anyway, my experience with Feathers is enjoyable and certainly as long lasting as anything else in my stash (Kais, Super Iridium, Silver Blues, Gillette Platinums, Astra SPs, Wilkinsons, Derbys, Personna Labs, and a few others). I don't find them magic, scary sharp or short lived. Then again, I've said here, with my razors and shaving abilities, I hardly notice a difference between my blades anyway but I'm also not as observant as many of you!
 
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