Looking for some blade advice...

I have sensitive skin but a very tough beard. What would be good blade for a combination like that?

I have used a couple different blades:

Polsilver - Awesome. However, these can be somewhat hard to get as most places sell out of these quickly.
Feather - Sharp, good but not as forgiving.
Wilkinson - Solid blade. I used to be able to find these at a local store but they stopped carrying them.
Crystal - I got 100 pack of these for dirt cheap. They're nice, solid blades.
Merkur, Gillette 7 O'Clock, Chroma - Ok.
Shark, Astra, most blades found at Rite Aid, CVS, etc. - Cut City USA.

I appreciate any help.

 

All the blades you mentioned that are hard to get are always readily available on eBay, if they work well for you as noted i would just order them there. That's where i get all my blades.

 

I would suggest Gillette 7 O'clock Yellows. Very sharp, smooth, and long lasting.

 

What other variables are in your shave?
Have you considered a preshave oil?
Give cold water a try?

 

1. I shower first and wash my face with Nivea Facial Wash.
2. After the rest of my morning routine, I will rinse my face with cold water.
3. I've been using a synthetic brush. My shaving cream usually varies but I usually rotate between C.O. Bigelow, Arko, and Proraso. I also like Geo F. Trumper.
4. I go up and down on the first pass and across on the second pass. It seems to work for me.
5. I almost always use cold water.

I haven't really considered a pre-shave oil.

I don't know if I've really figured out my grain either.

 

Scientific method is to keep all things same, but change one item. That lets you evaluate the variable. if you change too many things in an instance it's tough to nail down what helped or hurt your results.
Your sensitive skin/tough beard is common enough. That's why I suggested preshave oil. Need to protect the skin while making beard reduction easier.
Other things to adjust? The folks in the 30 focus/rule group do this for each other. The ides is to choose a set up, same razor, blade brush, soap, aftershave and learn to get the best out of them. That the technique triumphing tools approach known as a Rule. The other , a focus, allows more variables like adjusting or sampling blades, going a week with a particular soap, then the next, etc. The idea with a focus is to find your better results by making choices that improve results.
Personally I have found my irritation areas, mostly where my growth isn't straight but swirls. When growing a full beard it's low on my neck. This is the place where I don't go up/down/left/right with abandon. Mapping or learning where your worst problem areas are does help because you figure out where not to do those things that cause irritation.
Use the search box to fund home made preshave oils. You may have many components on hand, or visit Walmart or a well stocked pharmacy and look for Shave Secret brand. I'm halfway thru a $4 bottle and finding it helps. When I finish the bottle, I'll be making my own. The Shave Secret has a bay rum scent that's not my favorite, so I'll be adding essential oils of my choosing to please me.

 

For me the Derby Extra work well. I bought some on eBay $7.99 for 100


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There are two I would recommend: Gillette Silver Blue and Gillette 7 o'clock yellow Sharp Edge. Both would fit your profile: sensitive skin and tough beard. Best of luck!

 

Personna Lab Blue are pretty good.

 

You may think you have sensitive skin because of that first up and down pass you're making. That may be causing a problem making you think your skin is sensitive.

Map your face. That means determining what direction your beard grows on every area of your face you shave. Once you've mapped your face, make your first pass WTG (with the grain) on all areas, make your second pass XTG (across the grain - 90 degrees to direction of growth), then MAYBE a pass ATG (against the grain). If you can't make that ATG, try the second pass at 45 degrees to the grain in one direction, then a third pass at 45 degrees in the other direction (like an X).

I'm no dermatologist and I'm not saying you don't have sensitive skin. I'm saying others have said they have sensitive skin, mapped their face, improved their technique, "sensitive skin" problem solved.

Bottom line, I hope you find what works for you.

 

+1 for face mapping.

 

Perma Sharp Super. Very sharp, but also quite forgiving.

 

I'll be honest with you, when it comes to blades your best bet is trying out samples and not asking people for their advices. This is the most honest truth, don't ask just order samples.

 

Come to think of it, to add to my post above, if you're going up AND down on that first pass, that tells me you're going over the same area twice with NO lather on that second scrape. No wonder it feels sensitive.

I'm more inclined to think you need to improve your technique rather than hunt for new blades.

 

I'm going to make a left field recommendation. Have you ever tried a Schick Injector style razor?

 

Pick up some samples of the following blades. My data is a couple of years old, but at the time, I compiled data from 3 or 4 different forums. These are the top 10 most recommended / used blades (and I throw in number 11 because it's my personal favorite). You can ignore the ones you've already tried.

1. Astra Superior Platinum
2. Feather
3. Polsilver Super Iridium
4. Gillette Silver Blue
5. Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum (Black)
6. Personna Blue (Labs)
7. Personna Platinum (Reds)
8. Personna Med Preps
9. Gillette 7 O'Clock SharpEdge (Yellow)
10. Voskhod
11. Perma-Sharp Super

 

Thats an excellent list.

 

There so many variables to getting a great shave. If you ask 10 people what their favorite blade is, you might get 10 different answers. Most of us will get a good to great shave with any blade (even Derby) if our prep and technique are on point. For me, finding and maintaining the cutting angle has been the single biggest reason why my shaves have been so good lately.

 

Nah. 'Round here ask 10 people what their favorite blade is and you'll get at the least 11 different answers!