The Bluebirds of Unhappiness

[maxman]

Well in a previous thread about Bluebirds I said I picked up some to give them a try again.
It didn't work out so well.
Not a happy shave at all.

It's probably better that they have faded into obscurity.

so says I.

 

[Samjax]

That's odd. I tend to get good shaves from them. What razors did you try them in?

 

[crfcom]

In my experiment with them, they give a lot of feedback, aren't as smooth as the plated blades, and gave the impression they just weren't as sharp. I found, however, that was a false impression. They are actually very sharp, and durable as well. I had to put them in my heavier razors to dampen the feedback. In a heavy razor, they work well for me.

 

[Mick]

I get great shaves with all of the blade/razor combination I have tried.

There is only 1 exception and that was the Shanghai Gillette blades and I need to revisit this blade in a few different razors. Always willing to go back to something that did not seem all that great when I first tried it.

 

[427TRI]

I get great shaves with all of the blade/razor combination I have tried.

There is only 1 exception and that was the Shanghai Gillette blades and I need to revisit this blade in a few different razors. Always willing to go back to something that did not seem all that great when I first tried it.

Can you even get Mekur's to work for you too?

 

[Sledgehammer39]

Never really liked the Bluebirds much either!

 

[maxman]

I use a Toggle as my DE.
I have 9 of them left. I'll just wait a bit and give them a try again some other day.

 

[dreadpirate]

"The Bluebirds of Unhappiness" - That is too funny!!

 

[jwilock]

The only "really bad" shave I've ever gotten was from a Bluebird. I think the blade was defective. I just started shaving on my cheek when I felt a sharp pain. Wiped away the soap and found a small patch of a number of little dots of blood. It was almost as if the blade was serrated or had some "points" on it. Threw the blade away half way through the first pass and have never gone back to try another. Maybe I will some day. But with samples of over 40 blades still in hand and about 2000 blades in total I expect it will be quite some time before I give another one a try.

 

[Sqratch]

When I started shaving one of the first blades I used was a bluebird and I had to take it out of my razor mid-shave. I may want to try another now that I have developed a better technique.

 

[heddleston]

i'm a fan, i started putting them in my slim and cranking it down to 1. getting DFS+ with that combo. i will say though, that i've gotten a bad blade before. i wonder if their QC is a bit lacking.

 

[crfcom]

i'm a fan, i started putting them in my slim and cranking it down to 1. getting DFS+ with that combo. i will say though, that i've gotten a bad blade before. i wonder if their QC is a bit lacking.

You hear things like this from several posters here, and I've experienced it myself, with several 2nd tier blades. I work as tech support for a manufacturer in a different industry, who is also a master distributor for other manufacturers, and QC cost's money. When you get away from top-end product, you also get away from stringent QC. Its just part of paying less money and getting less for it. i've already had a Bluebird that seemed a little rougher than others, and I got a pack of Shark SP's that were so terrible they just had to be defective. There is a thread on this forum by another poster who found the same thing with Sharks. Apparently its not an uncommon thing, and you wonder if it doesn't contribute to some of the crazy difference in experiences from different people on the same blade.

 

[maxman]

You hear things like this from several posters here, and I've experienced it myself, with several 2nd tier blades. I work as tech support for a manufacturer in a different industry, who is also a master distributor for other manufacturers, and QC cost's money. When you get away from top-end product, you also get away from stringent QC. Its just part of paying less money and getting less for it. i've already had a Bluebird that seemed a little rougher than others, and I got a pack of Shark SP's that were so terrible they just had to be defective. There is a thread on this forum by another poster who found the same thing with Sharks. Apparently its not an uncommon thing, and you wonder if it doesn't contribute to some of the crazy difference in experiences from different people on the same blade.

You make a good point.
It could be a variety of variables in the shave too I suppose.
Perhaps with a different razor and a different soap things might have ended better.

 

[JimK]

I just received a packet of various blades from 427TRI as a gift for sending him some new Shark blades to try out. One of those blades happened to be a Bluebird... I have several razors, but my old Stahly Live Blade is the closest, and most comfortable of the bunch, so after a complete cleaning and lube, the Bluebird blade replaced the Feather that I had shaved with for the past three days...

I was impressed. The Astra SP in the Stahly razor is an excellent blade. In my Merkur 38C, it's a darn good blade, with very few weepers, and those are infrequent. The Feather blade in the Merkur is a very close shaving blade, but prone to several weepers per shave as a matter of course. In the Stahly, a Feather blade is simply the best shave I have ever had, and more often than not, completely blood free. Just too expensive for the extra BBS feel except for worthy occasions...

The Bluebird in the Stahly (first shave) was between the Astra and Feather in smoothness after three passes, and was very comfortable to use. After all was done, I ended up with two tiny weepers on my neck. Not bad for the overall performance of the blade. I'll see what happens after shave two and three. Both the Feather and Astra blades tend to be weeper free in the Stahly, but the Bluebird felt as good, and delivered a down the middle result compared to the others. Maybe it gets better with shave two, maybe not... I'll report as I go, and might find a second Bluebird to try in my Mekur just to be completely fair within the boundaries of my beard...

By the way, 427TRI, is that a reference to the big block Chevy beast of my youth?

 

[427TRI]

of course it is

 

[smalltank]

try the blades in each razor..for sure you may find a match

 

[El Judio Bravo]

I was comped a tuck of Bluebird last year. They worked fine for me, wherever they come from. In fact when I tried Derby, I expected them to be like these; smooth and a good everyday blade. Alas, I have since acquired enough Sharks, AsSPlats, Israeli Blues, and Lab Blues to see me through the rest of my life.

 

[Snidely]

I'm making my way through the Bluebirds in my sample pack. I'm new to wet shaving, but old in years.
Used drug store Wilkinsons for about four months -- until my technique was good enough for consistently close, comfortable shaves. Then waded into a sample pack. Started with the Bluebirds.
Gone through three blades. They give a nice, close shave. Closer shave than the Wilkinsons. But, they're a bit tougher on the face. A few nicks most days. Mild irritation some days. With Wilkinsons the nicks and irritation were simply not an issue.

In a nutshell, using drugstore Wilkinsons as a standard, the Bluebirds shave me closer but less comfortably.

 

[crfcom]

I read in other posts that Bluebirds are not plated. They are straight SS, and after sharpening the edge is tempered to achieve durability rather than plating with platinum. I don't know if this is true, but it would explain why these blades don't have the smooth glide of plated blades. We sometimes equate "smooth" with "sharp", which is why I was surprised at how close a shave I got with Bluebirds, because they weren't smooth. For me, they definitely were much sharper than they felt, and they were quite durable.
I won't be keeping them in my rotation because I like "smooth" as in Med Preps, Super Iridiums, and 7 o'clock Blacks, but they were surprising performers, especially for the money.
I just tried Polsilver Super Stainless, which is another straight stainless blades, I think. They must really hone the edge, because its as smooth as any plated blade I've used. If anything, sharper than the Bluebirds and at least as durable. Kind of expensive, though.

 

[Kilgore]

Just used one tonight in my Slim cranked down to 2 and a flawless, bloodless BBS soon followed.

To me a BB or a Feather on 2 in my Slim is damn near hard to tell apart. YMMV of course.