Tried my first "Crystal" blade (made in Israel)..

[xivex]

Hi,

So last night I tried my first "Crystal" razor blade from my WCS Extended sampler pack. So far I've tried Merkurs, Red personnas, Gillette 7 O'Clock yellows, and these Crystals. In my first shave with the Crystal, I did manage to get 1 weeper..haven't had one in a few weeks previously. Wasn't a big deal. The blade seemed alright, but did not seem as sharp as my previous blade (the Gillette 7 O'Clock yellow). I did get a DFS with no irritation other than the 1 weeper area, but it didn't seem as smooth against the grain as the Gillette 7 O'Clock yellow blade did. The blade did seem a bit duller too. Overall it wasn't a bad shave, but I'm not sure these are going to be in my top blade brand choices. I'll have to shave another week or so with them and decide. I'll keep this thread updated if I have a different experience tomorrow.

Whats your opinion of the Crystal Israeli blades?

Thanks,

X

 

[DE Shaver]

I find IP blades to be good and consistent. However, they are not in the top tier of blades in terms of performance but for the money, they do a good job. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to other shavers.

I consider them the standard to measure all other blades. If a blade is noticeably better than an IP, then it's a very good blade. If the blade is noticeably worse than an IP, then it's not a good blade.

 

[moodymick]

I find IP blades to be good and consistent. However, they are not in the top tier of blades in terms of performance but for the money, they do a good job. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to other shavers.

I consider them the standard to measure all other blades. If a blade is noticeably better than an IP, then it's a very good blade. If the blade is noticeably worse than an IP, then it's not a good blade.

+1 can't say fairer than that. you always know where you are with a Crystal, they're a quality blade, if not particularly exciting

 

[beginish]

I found them pretty smooth, but not particularly sharp. When I was trying them out, my experiences with other blades had been pretty rough. I was heartened by the Crystals because I found that at least a smooth shave was possible.

 

[c0ry]

Out of the blades I've tried (Astra, Merkur, Dorco, Derby, Red pack IP, and Crystal IP), the Crystals are the best (for me). I can get 3-4 good, comfortable shaves out of one of these blades.

 

[sjedwardz]

I've only just started and these are the 3rd blades I've tried.
First was red personnas which are good - no nicks or cuts but didn't find them the sharpest - recommended started blade though!

2nd was Iridium which I had a nightmare with nicks, cuts and burn. I'm going to put that down to building my technique and will try them again later, if only to rule them out completley.

So far liking the crystals feel smooth and sharper than the personnas.

have a few more blades to try in the sample pack though

 

[xivex]

So I had my 2nd shave with the crystal last night in my merkur 38c. I found it again to be not near as sharp as the previously used blade (Gillette 7 O'Clock yellow), but it was definitely smoother. Interestingly enough, I was able to go over and over my neck regions more times than usual and while I thought "okay this attempt at BBS shave is just gonna force irritation onto my neck"....nothing happened! I finished my shave irritation, cut/nick, bump, burn free. Still today it looks great. Its not entirely BBS, but its definitely DFS and the smoothness of this blade was very noticeable. Given how many times I went over certain neck regions trying to get BBS, and the fact that I didn't get any irritation from it, I am calling these crystals very smooth (albeit not that sharp).

Thanks,

X

 

[kwbarrett]

My first blade was Crystal. I have 100 of them from westcoastshaving.com. For me these give a serviceable shave. Only the occasional nick or cut or irritation. They are extremely affordable at $12/100 blades. I've never had a bad shave with them. However after I tried 7 O'Clock yellows and Feathers, I can say they Crystal cannot compare. They don't seem as sharp or as smooth as either of these. Of course Feathers and 7 O'Clocks are both a lot more expensive than Crystals but you get what you pay for. I did find them slightly better than Personna Red, which is interesting considering Crystals are Personnas as well.

I plan to keep the Crystals in rotation if for no other reason than the cost.

 

[xivex]

So just finished my 3rd shave with my first "Crystal" blade. This was the definitely the worst of the 3 shaves and it was time to change the blade after the shave. I gave myself 2 weepers and a couple other little nicks/red bumps. My worst shave in several weeks. Had to break out the Pacific Nick Stick and roll it around several patches on my face.

I'm not that big of a fan of these blades after that shabby 3rd performance. I'd be willing to accept some blame for the poor performance, but the Gillette 7 O'Clock Yellows and the Red Pack Personnas seemed better than the Crystals to me...at least so far.

Comments? Thoughts?

XiveX

 

[kwk285]

I tried a lot of blades when I started a couple of years ago. For me Crystals are the best blades. You need to find the blade(s) that work best for you. There is no right or wrong answer here. Everybody has their preferences. However, if you don't agree with me you are wrong.

 

[Go West Young Man]

Come back to them in 6 months, I'll bet you'll be surprised by how different they feel by then.

 

[Chester]

I'm not that big of a fan of these blades after that shabby 3rd performance. I'd be willing to accept some blame for the poor performance, but the Gillette 7 O'Clock Yellows and the Red Pack Personnas seemed better than the Crystals to me...at least so far.
Comments? Thoughts?XiveX

For my part, I don't use a blade for more than 2 shaves. They're so cheap, and why would I want to risk having a bad shave, anyway?
My $.02
-- Chet

 

[A-Man]

I like the Crystals a lot. My 2nd favorite blade behind the Astras. Super smooth, and sharper than a lot (though certainly not the sharpest) of other blades. Being how I can go over areas w/o irritation, I usually end up w/ a nice shave everytime.

On the issue of sharpness, true other blades like the Feathers may be sharper, but what's the point of getting all the hair removed to the skin, to have the skin look red and irritated? Much rather have a DFS and healthy looking skin.

 

[TheMang]

I'm currently working my way through a west coast shaving sampler and I've found that the crystals just don't cut it for me. Same thing with the red personnas (although they are better then the crystals). I do enjoy the astra superior platinums, though - smoothest blade I've found.

 

[Stubblefield]

Come back to them in 6 months, I'll bet you'll be surprised by how different they feel by then.

Agree. I hated them at first, but find they give a great shave now.

 

[Optionyout]

I'm a fan of the crystals. I have a tough beard and these things cut through it. I use a blade for four or five shaves. I'd say they are among the best of the cheap varieties.

 

[BRuhling]

Yesterday I had my first shave with a Crystal. Compared to the Merkurs that I started using, I got a DFS (though I did wind up with a few cuts and a few weepers). As a newbie, most of my problem was probably technique, but I won't knock the Crystals at this point...

 

[Omnichron]

Hi,

Whats your opinion of the Crystal Israeli blades?

Thanks,

X

my one and only DE blade to use. I get excellent shaves from them.

 

[gordolindsay]

I was just coming in here to post a thread about my first shave with this blade (the Crystal). I had read how many people really liked this blade and was thinking I got a bad one when I used it today, but after reading all of the responses in this thread, it seems my experience is in line with a lot of people.

I am also going through the WCS sampler that has everything, plus I got the 3 packs they carry that aren't in their sampler, so I have lots of blades to get through. I have tried the Derby's, Astra's, these Crystals and then the Wal-Mart Personna's and some Gillette Super Stainless (red & black packaging). So far my favorite are the Astra's good blend of sharp and smooth.

The crystals felt super dull to me, very smooth after the first pass...lots of tugging on that one. It took my 6-7 passes to get the same smoothness that I'm use to getting in 3-4. I will say there was no razor burn afterwords but why do I have to go over the same spot twice as many times?

I will try them again later, but as of right now, they are not for me. As has been said...YMMV!

 

[miamimoe]

I think that the major aspect of this blade is that it is comfortable. Not the sharpest, but comfortable, and for this reason it appeals to me. I find it similar to the Astra platinum, which may be a wee bit sharper. They are both priced right. I still want to try Iridiums, Gillette 7'o clock yellows and greens, Derbys, and the Lord chromes.

Having read a lot of blade postings, it seems that blades are the epitome of the statement that: "one man's meat is another man's poison".