Blade Inconsistency?

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Thu Oct 25, 2012 8:37 am

A question for the experts out there ... have you noticed that out of a batch of 5 "identical" blades, 1 will deliver superior performance when compared to the others?

Reason I ask: don't ask me why, but last night while in the bathroom I took my silver Gillette Tech (loaded with a Gillette Yellow that had all of 2 shaves on it) and "tested" it by shaving the hair on the back of my arm. One side of the blade was super sharp and smooth, easily removing the hair. The other side was duller than dirt, unable to remove any hair. I used the razor+blade this morning and had a superior shave.

Earlier this week I loaded a Gillette Yellow in my gold Gillette Tech and proceeded to have 3 fairly unpleasant shaves with it. Both Yellows came from the same box.

Any thoughts on this?

Odio Barbillas · Post by **Odio Barbillas** » Thu Oct 25, 2012 12:30 pm

There will always be potholes along any highway. The brand you're using is well-regarded and the QC at St. Petersburg is satisfactory. They make and sell a hell of a lot of blades.

This once, you could chalk it up to the luck of the draw. If I got stung again, I'd look for another source or switch to another brand.

Of course, this assumes that it wasn't the human factor. If you're unusually tired, or nervous, or whatever, it will make a difference. I mean, you can't attempt meditation with the dog barking, the stove burning, and the baby crying, right?

Good luck!

marsos52 · Post by **marsos52** » Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:48 pm

to me, blades these days are exactly as you have experienced.

since the early 1990's when de blades started getting harder and harder
to find, blades became a worse and worse.

now i hate to sound like a broken record, because i have said this so many times here.

the only blade brand that has remained consistant over the year are the Merkur blades.

and they are porbably the easiest blade to find. to be fair about my statement
recently i pulled a vintage Merkur blade i have stored for years and i found that blade to out perform the modern day merks and the shave also felt better while shaving.

i do try other brands from time to time and always have mixed feeling mainly because after a few blades i find they are not consistant. i want to expect
the same shave from blade to blade with no surprises

marc

gil3591 · Post by **gil3591** » Thu Oct 25, 2012 5:00 pm

guess i'm lucky. i bought 1000 iridiums from connaught a few years ago when they came back on the market. i use them for five shaves and i can say i have never had a bad blade nor have i gotten less than 5 shaves from each one.

bernards66 · Post by **bernards66** » Thu Oct 25, 2012 9:27 pm

Well, I tend to agree with Marc in that, in my experiance, DE blades in general are not as consistant as they once were ( when most of the better ones were still being made in the US, UK, or western Europe ), nor are they as good. Still, some seem to be better than others. I don't think I've ever used a bum IP blade, although admittedly I haven't used a huge number of them. Those blades do seem to be pretty consistant although they are not as sharp or long lasting as the good vintage blades, or even the current Polsilvers.
Regards,
Gordon

harper · Post by **harper** » Sat Oct 27, 2012 4:41 pm

Dosco: one reason that a blade will have an inferior side is that in the manufacturing process the edges do not receive their final buffing, polishing, etc. by the same buffers, etc. Blades come down a line at tremendously high speed and each side is finished simultaneously by a different but supposedly identical part of the machine. If one side is not performing as effectively as the other the edge of the blade will not be at the same processed level as the other edge. Also, stainless steel is not uniform no matter how efficient the process and there will be minute flaws that can affect the end product. Modern blade manufacturing plants have myriad high-tech instruments for detecting product defects but they are not flawless. When you stop to think about it, the fact that it is unusual to get a defective blade indicates that the manufacturing process is quite effective.

fallingwickets · Post by **fallingwickets** » Sun Oct 28, 2012 2:38 am

stainless steel is not uniform no matter how efficient the process and there will be minute flaws

thanks for this factoid.....learn something new every day here

clive

p.s. as much as i luv merkurs, one gets a bad blade every now and then. i chalk it up to a friday afternoon manufacture!

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Tue Feb 12, 2013 11:29 am

So I've been shaving away every day using my "sampler pack" mentality. I've used Feathers; Gillette Yellows, Greens, and Blues; and Derbys. I use my trusty Gillette Tech Razors (I have 2, one in Gold Finish, the other in some sort of metallic finish (it could have been Chrome back in the day)). Soap has been Williams Mug soap.

I have noticed that EVERY BLADE has one side that is noticeably much sharper than the other.

Which makes me wonder about the variables at play on my end. Technique (blade angle), the blade itself, and the razor itself.

I tend to think technique wouldn't contribute to this ... why would what is ostensibly supposed to be a symmetrical razor handle yield such noticeably different results (both tactile and audible)?

It seems odd to me that the blades would have this trait although it is certainly possible.

The razor, which is a piece of stamped sheet metal (the base) and what appears to be a die casting (the upper part), seems like it could have all sorts of dimensional mismatches between either side.

Has anyone bothered to take the time and actually measure a Tech head, using precision instruments (think micrometers, height gage, blocks, etc.), to understand this? For example, when I inspect the blade edge after I install the blade in the head, I can see a "kink" or "wave" in the shape of the blade which is the result of bending and compressing the blade. (I'll attempt to take a picture but can't make any promises). This certainly can't lead to a good shave...

Whistler · Post by **Whistler** » Tue Feb 12, 2013 4:31 pm

There should be no kink in the blade, it sounds like you have a bum razor, try it in the other razor you have, and see if it is the same. Also, not all razors are created equal, you can have two identical razors and one will shave better than the other. My razor of choice is a slim adjustable, when I settled on that razor I purchased 5 or 6 until I found three that gave me the same shave. Also, just about every brand of blade will feel different in each razor, sort of like you have to match a balde to a razor, I say this with current production blades, if you try NOS blades from a better time those all work in every razor. Sad I know!

brothers · Post by **brothers** » Tue Feb 12, 2013 6:19 pm

So far there haven't been any stinkers in my first box of 250 Personna hospital use blades. I'll try to remember to come back and let you know if I get one. I've still got about 160 more blades left in this box after using them and giving away some for two years now.

ShadowsDad · Post by **ShadowsDad** » Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:56 pm

I can't say I've never gotten a bad blade compared to others of the same type. It certainly possible when I was testing blades and got a bad one that it was just that one that was terrible.

Of the blades I've chosen to stock I've never gotten a bad blade.

If a number of blade types from different manufacturers all have one bad edge, well the odds of that happening would be astronomically high. A much lower probability would be that the razor is somehow bad.

There's an easy way to find out. Use the razor and mark the bad edge, on the razor. Magic marker would do and it can be made to come off with alcohol. Having determined the bad edge, flip the blade so that the once "bad edge" of the blade is now on the good edge of the razor. Does the bad edge of the razor remain on the marked side? Does the good side of the razor still shave great? If so, it's the razor. If the bad edge flipped along with the blade you'll know it's the blade.

Spenser · Post by **Spenser** » Wed Feb 13, 2013 5:24 am

First: Don't confuse me w/an expert.

Second: Been testing blades for a couple of months now, and am amazed at the number of BAD blades compared to good blades.

Third: So much for my thinking that older is usually better, maybe in some things, but modern blades are just a whole lot better, to me.

jww · Post by **jww** » Wed Feb 13, 2013 8:03 am

From my perspective, blades are so inexpensive, that I dump one as soon as it gives me grief -- and if that means after one or even a partial shave, so be it. The financial loss is negligible. ymmv.

ateace · Post by **ateace** » Wed Feb 13, 2013 8:42 am

No reason to put your face through anything less than a satisfactory shave.

In our world, a sixty cent blade is considered expensive.
If one turns out to be a sixty cent dud, into the blade bank it goes.
And I'm only out sixty cents.

Much better than having to toss a four dollar dud with five micro-tuned, spring-loaded, dew-picked, unicorn-kissed blades.

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Wed Feb 13, 2013 1:27 pm

ShadowsDad wrote: If a number of blade types from different manufacturers all have one bad edge, well the odds of that happening would be astronomically high. A much lower probability would be that the razor is somehow bad.

I should have also mentioned that, as it had occurred to me, however for whatever reason I was unable to elucidate this thought the other day.

Many thanks for concisely stating one of my key thoughts.

There's an easy way to find out. Use the razor and mark the bad edge, on the razor. Magic marker would do and it can be made to come off with alcohol. Having determined the bad edge, flip the blade so that the once "bad edge" of the blade is now on the good edge of the razor. Does the bad edge of the razor remain on the marked side? Does the good side of the razor still shave great? If so, it's the razor. If the bad edge flipped along with the blade you'll know it's the blade.

Yes, this thought had also occurred to me. I'll try it and post results.

I'm not sure if it's a "bad razor" necessarily. Imagine how close the tolerances are for the blade, only to put it into a razor made of stamped sheet metal and die cast pig metal with (at best) questionable tolerances ... LOL.

Another thing that comes to mind is the affect of the center slot upon the blade edge when the blade is deflected. I would guess that the edge deflection is not uniform ... and I suspect this is part of what I see when I notice the "kink" in the edge (when viewed "just right").

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Wed Feb 20, 2013 12:08 pm

I've marked my razor with a red sharpie and am beginning to make observations. Interestingly, I had a Derby blade in the razor when I took it apart to mark it, and when I reassembled it I noted that I had changed the alignment of the upper portion and blade platform ... I then noticed the "inconsistency" between sides had largely gone away. Not sure if this is a valid observation or not, so I will test the alignment of the razor in both configurations.

Also a pic showing the "wobble" in the blade edge.

Three waves are evident in the photo as what appear to be black marks on the blade's edge. Apologies for the image quality as I do not have the setup I once used to ...

To do this at home, hold the razor up to a light. Look along the edge of the blade whilst attempting to reflect the light along the edge of the blade.

Spenser · Post by **Spenser** » Wed Feb 20, 2013 12:46 pm

Since my earlier comments I've decided that Wendell is right, again, and have become one shave Spenser, throw that *#@*^ blade away.

Period.

For three cents ???, are you kidding me ???, gone, I'm not into brain surgery.

Simple is good, real good.

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Wed Feb 20, 2013 12:56 pm

Spenser wrote:Since my earlier comments I've decided that Wendell is right, again, and have become one shave Spenser, throw that *#@*^ blade away.

Period.

For three cents ???, are you kidding me ???, gone, I'm not into brain surgery.

Simple is good, real good.

The "wave" appears in every blade and I am fairly certain it is because of a combination of 2 factors:

1. The blade is"bent" when installed in the Tech head
2. There is a large, unevenly spaced hole in the center of the blade (to locate the blade in the razor)

If you try this at home, note how the "wiggle" appears in the edge when the razor is tightened, and how the "wiggle" disappears when the razor is loosened.

I bet if I could put some strain gages on the blade I could make some entertaining observations.

Spenser · Post by **Spenser** » Wed Feb 20, 2013 1:15 pm

That makes a lot of sense. I've noticed the same thing.

Maybe, I've got way to much time on my hands.

Thanks dosco

dosco · Post by **dosco** » Wed Feb 20, 2013 1:22 pm

Spenser wrote:That makes a lot of sense. I've noticed the same thing.

Maybe, I've got way to much time on my hands.

Thanks dosco

LOL, probably not. I am an engineer, and looking at that sort of thing is similar to a job I had in the not-too-distant-past. I naturally wanted to have a look at the blade edge, and imagine my surprise when I noticed the waves in the blade!

SMF

Blade Inconsistency?

Blade Inconsistency?

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