Good evening, I'm new to head / face wetshaving with 2 months under my belt. I have a WCS Everything Sampler but have been sticking with my Feathers until now. I had a bad experience tonight with a 3 day old Feather that cut the crap out of my head. I went straight for the baddest of the DE razors... the most sharp, etc. I'm looking for something in the middle of the line, sharp and smooth. I've been hearing that Astra SP are nice. Here is a list of the tools at hand (I've also tested Merkur which I enjoyed): Merkur Super Platinum (10 blades) Feather New Hi-Stainless Platinum (10 blades) Crystal or "Israeli" (10 blades) Derby Extra (5 blades) Wilkinson Sword (5 blades) Gillette 7 O'Clock SharpEdge (5 blades) Astra Superior Platinum (5 blades) BIC Chrome Platinum (5 blades) DORCO Platinum ST-300 (10 blades) DORCO Platinum ST-301 (10 blades) Red Pack Israeli (5blades) Lord Platinum (5 blades) Sharp (5 blades) Shark Super Chrome (5 blades) Shark Super Stainless (5 blades) Nacet Stainless (5 blades) Super-Max Stainless (10 blades)
Oh! My vote would be to try Shark Super Chrome. I happened to grab a pack and they were instant favourites; even more so than Astra SP's that I loved so dearly.
I still love Steve's advice when I asked the same question... That being said, Astra SP's have been my go to so far!
Just do it! It feels so good and liberating. No worrying about messy hair and more real estate to shave!! Woohoo!
Those are some fine choices. As others have said, only you will be able to decide what works for you. As far as my opinion goes, of the blades that you have my favorites are Lord Platinums, Shark Super Chromes, Dorco ST-301s, and Sharps.
You've got a bunch of good choices there. Astras should be fine for your next blade to try. For me, comparing blades is easier if I just compare 2 at a time. So I'll use my current favorite blade for a few shaves then switch it for a new one and give it a few shaves. If I like the new one better, it becomes my new favorite blade. This system really only works if you're using the same razor though.
I have found Crystals to be very mild, and my choice anytime I need to follow a rough shave with a ginger one.
I would, but call me vain. My face is long and narrow as it is. If I was to shave my head, I'd look like a shoebox standing on its end. Believe me, I know; they shaved my head in Basic Training. I don't want to look like a shoebox standing on its end.
Ah. I think I look weird at times as a baldy. The picture in my avatar is me. How are you liking that BBS?
Feathers no good? I can't advise anybody for whom Merkurs worked well - I've never even HEARD of anyone for who Merkurs worked well! Thinking something along the Israeli Personna line would be a good place to start...
If the "SuperMax Stainless" blades are the ones packaged as "sunrise," those are pretty good blades. Forgiving but sharp enough to get the job done. The Bic Chrome Platinum are along the same lines; underrated, in my opinion. Not a great blade, but a serviceable blade. If you want to stick with something along the lines of the Feather, go with the Gillette 7 o'clock Yellows (which I'm assuming is what the "SharpEdge" blades are). If they are in the yellow pack, they are quite sharp, but somewhat smoother than the Feather. None of my favorite blades is in your arsenal.
I used a Personna Platinum Chrome today with my Merkur 23c and 1 shim. beautiful bbs head. smooth as Butta. in addition, i used the barbers classic prep and it made a world of difference. hopefully ill get lucky this weekend and find a cheap suribachi bowl.
