Titanium Nitride : A leap forward,not yet done...

[SCh5]

Wonder why Titanium Nitride
( Aka Tinite ) coating is still not
used by any of the razor blade
manufacturers ?
Just one coating of Tinite would
have been enough to
cancel out the multiple coatings
used (Chromium,Platinum,PTFE,
etc ) .

Titanium nitride - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

(PDF) INSPECTION OF TITANIUM NITRIDE COATINGS BY TRIBOMETER

PDF | Hard composite ceramic coatings deposited by PVD/CVD process are widely used in a variety of machine tooling applications, such as razor blades,... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

www.researchgate.net

https://www.osti.gov/etdeweb/servlets/purl/625579

 

[BigSpender]

Is there some particular reason you believe titanium nitride "is still not used by any of the razor blade manufacturers"? Did you research this and check with blade manufacturers?

I'm curious about this, too. It seems titanium nitride is fairly common on surgical implements, scissors, coffee grinder burrs, etc.

There are, of course, titanium coated blades, including Bolzano and the old SuperMax. I was not impressed by the sharpness or longevity of the Bolzano, and the atrocious old SuperMax coating seemed to wear off after a few shaves.

However, some users have reported remarkable results with the Durablade Sharp Swiss titanium blades, which seem to suggest the use of a titanium nitride coating.

Sharp Titanium Blades - A Nice Surprise

After using the Sharp Titanium blade in a very mild TTO razor, I shaved this morning using another Sharp Titanium blade in my Karve brass with a D plate. That is significantly more aggressive/efficient than my TTO. I found the Karve D plate and Sharp Titanium to be an excellent match. I got a...

www.badgerandblade.com

Extending the life of DE/SE blades.

I put to you that life is too short to miss out on the smoother shaves found after the second use. And the potential improvements in technique that come from even relatively short long-hauls (by Excalibur standards)... I don't imagine many will be able to take a blade to 20+ and tell me they...

www.badgerandblade.com

I used a very sharp, titanium coated SuperMax four-blade disposable in India that lasted for a month. I used some three-blade Apache/Personna cartridges in China that were labeled "ceramic coated" that also lasted for a month. At the time, I strongly suspected they were actually titanium nitride coated, which is a ceramic, but were not labeled titanium because they were a cheap line they didn't want competing with their more expensive blades.

There are a fair number of cartridge razors now labeled titanium coated, presumably nitride.

So perhaps the question should be: Why aren't other DE manufacturers using titanium nitride?

I'll give you two guesses.

 

[BigSpender]

Wonder why Titanium Nitride
( Aka Tinite ) coating is still not
used by any of the razor blade
manufacturers ?
Just one coating of Tinite would
have been enough to
cancel out the multiple coatings
used (Chromium,Platinum,PTFE,
etc ) .

Titanium nitride - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

(PDF) INSPECTION OF TITANIUM NITRIDE COATINGS BY TRIBOMETER

PDF | Hard composite ceramic coatings deposited by PVD/CVD process are widely used in a variety of machine tooling applications, such as razor blades,... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

www.researchgate.net

https://www.osti.gov/etdeweb/servlets/purl/625579

BTW, as to "cancel out the multiple coatings," I'm not sure that's the purpose of titanium sputtering. The manufacturer may still wish to use an outer coating such as PTFE or some sort of light plastic polymer to protect the blade from moisture and oxidation while in storage and transit.

A PTFE outer coating would provide some additional smoothness. One of the mysteries of blades is what is going on as the blade wears with use: Is the change simply due to the wearing off of the PTFE and getting down to the platinum, stainless steel, or titanium? If so, perhaps you should keep shaving through this phase, and the blade might get sharper. But some people have such an abhorrence of "rough" blades that they toss the blade as soon as the protective coating gives way.

I suspect blades are more efficient when you get past the PTFE coating and get down to the metal. And they may be most efficient when you are down to the steel. Titanium nitride has more friction than steel, so this may be a reason these blades seem more efficient, even though they have a different blade feel. Smoothness and efficiency may not be entirely compatible.

I like the distinct feel of titanium coated blades, and do not consider them "rough." Or at least, the titanium blades do not inherently produce a "rough" shave, even if they might feel a tiny bit rough while shaving. When I use Sharp Swiss titanium blades in aggressive razors with a neutral shave cream that does not irritate my skin, I do not get any significant irritation, beyond what little, temporary irritation is inevitable from a close shave.

I suspect most irritation from using very sharp blades such as these is from the shave soap, particularly very alkaline soap, or bad technique, particularly over aggressive shaving.

However, there are bad blades that cause bad shaves, and bad titanium blades, such as the SuperMax, certainly can do this. But well made titanium blades, such as the Sharp, are so smooth and efficient that I don't see how they can be blamed for irritation.

So, yes, I do see a future for more titanium nitride coated blades. But some people might not prefer the feel. And some manufacturers might not want to sell razor blades that can last for two months, each.

 

[Abz88]

Wonder why Titanium Nitride
( Aka Tinite ) coating is still not
used by any of the razor blade
manufacturers ?
Just one coating of Tinite would
have been enough to
cancel out the multiple coatings
used (Chromium,Platinum,PTFE,
etc ) .

Titanium nitride - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

(PDF) INSPECTION OF TITANIUM NITRIDE COATINGS BY TRIBOMETER

PDF | Hard composite ceramic coatings deposited by PVD/CVD process are widely used in a variety of machine tooling applications, such as razor blades,... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

www.researchgate.net

https://www.osti.gov/etdeweb/servlets/purl/625579

Possibly the same reason that Personna don't make tungsten blades anymore, if blades last longer, people don't buy them as often and so profits go down. That would be my guess anyway.

 

[BigSpender]

Possibly the same reason that Personna don't make tungsten blades anymore, if blades last longer, people don't buy them as often and so profits go down. That would be my guess anyway.

FYI:

In case the text is difficult to read:

 

[abm0]

If blades were coated in titanium nitride they'd have a visible golden tint. If TiN is not used like that it's probably because the alternatives offer a better balance of properties specifically for maintaining the blade's sharp edge for as long as possible. "Titanium coated blades" I think are coated in just-titanium, not nitride.

Where TiN PVD coating is used in the razors realm I suspect is in some of the higher-quality gold or rose-gold colored razors that usually get marketed to women. Lower-quality ones maybe use resins or lacquers to achieve the same tint but with worse durability. So if you want the benefits of TiN PVD coatings you should give the ladies' razors isle a look-see.

 

[ackvil]

I wish they still made these blades. I bought some about five years ago and when I ran out realized they were no longer available. I then switched to Personna Medical Prep blades.

 

[haiti222]

Read the entire ad above. The P74s had a titanium coating. I believe it provided much of the longevity.

 

[ShavingPrimate]

Better yet, Titanium CarboNitride or Carbo-Nitride (TiCN) is a thin film coating that was developed from Titanium Nitride.