I'm out of D/E blades and I'm looking on eBay to refill. I just used up a 10 pack of Israeli Personna blues, I believe. They had the white and blue paper wrap around them. I went to these from the Merkur Feathers (i think that's what they were) and absolutely loved them. I've seen some pretty good deals on them, but also came across some good deals on the Israeli Personna reds. I haven't heard much about these...what is the difference between the red and the blue? Since I liked the blues, should I keep going or are the reds worth a shot? Thanks for your help and input!
My friend, I do believe you might be a little mixed up here. Merkur blades are German made, and have a bad reputation as being rather dull and causing a lot of tugging and pulling, although they are the blade of choice for some users. Feathers on the other hand are Japanese made, and have the reputation as being some of the sharpest blades going. I cannot help you on the choice of IP blades, since I have never tried the Red IP's myself. Besides, the whole Israeli Personna blade issue is really a little murky. Are you happy with the IP's you just used up, or are you looking to experiment a little? Remember, blades don't work the same on every face, so blade choice is a very personal subject. Have a look at this thread, it lists vendors that offer sample packs, and I see West Coast Shaving offers an economy sampler that offers the red IP's.
Yeah sorry, they were the Feather blades and they were horrible. Never got a good shave w/ them. I was happy w/ the IP blue, but was wondering about the reds as well. What is the murky issue with the IP blades?
I think what Bill was getting at was this: there are a lot of blades out there with the Personna label on them and it's difficult to tell what came from where. There are actually two types of Israeli Personna- the blue pack (also labeled as Crystals and commonly called IP) and the red pack. There's also American Personna blades. These are the blades you can pick up at Walmart or Walgreens. I believe there are also some Southeast Asian made look alike blades that aren't very good. You can see that the Personna line can be a bit complicated. I use the Red Pack and Blue Pack IPs. There's a difference between them but its not very big. If you like the Blue Pack you'll probably like the Red Pack. That said, you should still get yourself a test pack of those blades before you buy in bulk. There are plenty o' places that sell the Blue Pack variety in bulk at good prices, though, so there's no need to try something new.
Thanks Mike, you saved me a lot of typing. The only thing I might add is that there was some question as to whether the 3 types of IP's are really any different, or if they are all made on the same machinery and just labeled different.
good thread on the IP's http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=51858 to me both the Personna Blue and Red are great but to me the Red's seemed just a little bit smoother.
