By my calculations the Derby is wining the race with five votes. Followed closely behind by the Sharp with three and the Crystal and Sputnik with two each.
heres a question... i have some carbon blades (treets) and my biggest concern with them, is leaving them in the bathroom... i have a little jar filled with alchohol... last time i used the treets i swished the razor head in the jar a few times and i figure according to most of you, that was probably enough... BUT, when i think of having the razor sitting on its shelf whilst taking a hot shower... steam eventually settling on the blade creating condensed moisture... isnt that going to rust out the blade?
Perhaps, yes....I'd imagine the condensation "whilst" taking a shower could cause rust. To a certain extent. I don't have problems with rust. I use the blade no more than three times, and have not seen any rust proliferation that was harmful.
Euro Gillettes There's more than one "Euro Gillette". I've been told that the Gillette blade common in Austria is rather poor. It must not be the same one that people refer to as the "Swedish Gillette", which I would choose as best.
That must be the Super Silver (Kronberg/Taunus on the back of packaging). They are poor indeed. I voted Derby because they are consistent, cheap, smooth and sharp. Plus they work well in virtually every razor. Swedes are better, but three times the price.
I say the same thing about the Crystal's. I've tried countless blades and always come back to them. As often said "YMMV".
Currently I have three favorite blades, none of them listed to vote for (in arbitrary order): Dorco - very forgiving and yet sharp enough to get the job done Treet Blue Special - extremely sharp, but still gentle enough Astra Superior Platinum - very sharp, yet gentle enough; lasts twice as long as any other blade I tried, hence very economical. All of those blades are about the same price (~ 11 Cents). Why pay more?
In no particular order as I've been able to get a decent irritation free shave with all of the below listed: Merkur NOS UK made Wilkinson Derby Israeli No Names Dorco Probably gonna buy the large sample pack from Giovanni at razorandbrush.com or try the one from LetterK at westcoastshaving.com Like Micheal (Leisureguy) I may find another that is out of this world. Enjoy your shave...
Well I am currently in the middle of my own private version of the "Blade Wars" and I have completed testing on the Merkurs, Derbys and Crystals. I have eliminated Merkurs from the running, just too rough on the first shave compared to the Derbys and Crystals. My goal is to get it down to 2-3 blades that I am happy with unless there is a true stand out then I will stick to the one. Stay tuned for Episode V of Blade Wars: The European Blades Strike Back!
I think we all would like to narrow it down to 2-3 blades.....sigh.......but then someone would find a new one and we would be off and running. I think I'll set up a section in my shave den called blade exchange, get some trades going. Because as we all know YMMV.
I realize there are many on this forum who have the "lowly" Merkur blades just thrown in a bathroom drawer collecting dust. I know it is a rough thing to do, and someone has to bite the bullet, but if you have some just collecting dust because your inferior skin can't take the unique way this blade shaves... Wellll (sigh!!!) just send them to me and I'll take them off your hands for you. I know, I know, it's hard to believe that a fellow member would sacrifice so much, but someone has to do it... (Chuckle) :rofl Enjoy your shave...
The ones I've tried in the past 90 days (in no particular order) are Schick (American), generic ASR, Sputnik, Super-Max Platinum, 7 AM Platinum Hi Stainless, Dorco ST300, Wilkinson Classic white, Wilkinson Classic black, Israeli Personna (white dispenser), American Personna (red wrapper), Swedish Gillette, Treet Dura Sharp Hi-Tech, Treet Dura Sharp Stainless, Treet Blue Special, Treet Platinum, and Durex. I've found no difference whatever in shave quality with any of these. I still have over a dozen brands on hand left to try but based on my experiences so far I don't expect to find differences. When this test nonsense is over it looks like it'll be the cheapest for me, one of the 11-cent blades. Richard
We don't know for sure about sharpness. I like the forgiving Dorcos, but I read in leisureguy's blog that the Treets are carbon steel and sharp as heck, even sharper than any stainless steel blade. I have started trying my wcs sampler pack, but many blades are praised for their extreme sharpness. I don't think my technique is up to that yet.
I like my 65 Super Speed with the Feather!! Great shaves! With my 62 SlimBoy, I like the Euro Gillette or Walgreens branded Personnas.
