SMF

I've been wondering lately about how often it makes sense to change a DE blade.

A few random reference points:

1) My Dad (who passed away this winter) apparently used a blade for up to a month before changing. (I always felt -- and still feel -- guilty and inadequate that I couldn't come even close to that degree of frugality!)

2) Gillette is now claiming that you can get a month's worth of shaves out of a Fusion cartridge (caveat emptor!!).

3) I don't think I've ever found a blade where I didn't notice some qualitative drop off after shave #4.

4) DE blades, at (say) 15-to-50 cents each, are an incredible value, compared to cartridges that are priced 10x-to-20x.

Putting all that together, I think I'm coming to the idea of simply pitching DE blades after 3 shaves. It goes against my upbringing (see #1), but -- in a world of $5 cartridges that Gillette tells us we are supposed to suffer through for an entire month -- I sort of feel justified in having a shave with a razor blade that is ALWAYS at peak-sharpness.

I mean, at pennies a blade, why NOT treat myself to that? I think it amounts to (perhaps) $15/year extra or something, as compared to changing weekly. A couple of trips to Starbucks . . .

So, based on this rather rambling disquisition, here's (I guess) what I'm asking:

A) Anybody see any reason to "stretch" a DE blade past its absolute performance zenith and into its decline?

B) For those of you who change blades weekly, do you notice some drop-off in shaves #6 and #7?

C) If so, why do you not change earlier?

D) Anybody out there ever go "crazy long" (the way my father did), say 3 weeks or a month on a single blade? If so, are you satisfied -- or suffering! -- towards the end?

Anyhow, I feel that I'm coming around to a philosophy that says that one reason to use DE is to be liberal in blade-changing, because we've already been frugal by not using cartridges.

Thoughts on all this? Should a guy push a blade past its prime, or is that a false economy? Is there anything wrong with insisting on a blade that's absolutely at the top of its game?

A very timely topic for me just now. I've been tossing my blade after two shaves because, several months ago, I thought I started to detect a slight decrease in shave quality on shave number three.

Then, a day or two ago, I'm reading posts from this guy who's getting a dozen or more shaves with Astra SPs. Hey, wait a minute, that's my blade too!

So, the upshot is that, beginning now, I'm gonna see how far I can push it. I doubt that I will go past six shaves before giving up, but as my technique improves, and I'm trying to keep my shaving angle in mind, I expect to get a better idea of what I can realistically expect from a blade.

I agree that the blades themselves are quite cheap, so I don't feel like I'm cheating myself if I only get a couple of shaves from a blade, but my thrifty side is intrigued by the possibilities.

With the same prep that I use for for straight shaves, I usually get 6-7 comfortable shaves from my Feather and Astra go-to blades; rarely less than that and I no longer try to stretch it past 7.

I had gone as high as 8-9, maybe more shaves in the past, but after that many shaves blade performance progressively deteriorates to the extent that I found it sometimes necessary to change a blade between passes, which became unnecessary when I stopped trying to squeeze the last bit out of every blade.

Nowadays, I just realize at the end of a shave that the time for a blade change has come, clean the razor and put a new blade in.


B.

I tested many blades, at least over 30, I forget how many now since it's been a while. I rejected blades that didn't give me at least 7 comfortable shaves. To this day I can remember the one blade that I thought should be canned before that 7th shave (of the ones that made the cut). It's happened just once. If you detect any dullness or tugging in a DE blade just get rid of it.

SE blades I can push for far more shaves, but not DE blades. SE blades have given me over 30 comfortable shaves. Unlike DE blades that bite when asked to do more, SE blades just lose cutting efficiency. If they gave me an uncomfortable shave I wouldn't use them for that long.

Oh, just because someone else can get x number of shaves with a blade doesn't mean that you will. You need to change the blade when YOU need to change it.

Blades come and go it is said. So whenever one thinks that their blade has had enough shaves on it is the time to change it.

It may be two shaves or 20 for all that matters. ... Personally I use a blade for as long as it is cutting fairly well.

My Med prep blades (Personna) can give me over 20 shaves if I am really observant about technique and prep.

The Perma Sharp Supers can give me the same amount of shaves but I change them much earlier as they become rough after about 8 or 9 shaves...

The Astras and Rapiras give me less with the Astras being the better of the two. (8 or 9 shaves)

In short, I take my blades almost to the limit. Might sound weird to some and perhaps I am being somewhat of a cheapskate, but it's not so much about frugality as it is a welcome challenge, to see how far a blade will go.

That is also a good indicator of the level of someone's shaving skill.... and it's fun doing it too.....

Aside from considerations of price, I don't like the idea of just throwing things away. So, I want to get all the useful life out of a blade before disposing of it. Of course, the duration of a blade will depend tremendously on the individual's beard. I believe in using a blade until it shows signs of deterioration.

I have a coarse, but not very dense, beard. I only shave my neck, two and a half passes, three times a week (very sensitive skin). This amounts to 12 - 13 neck shaves a month, which is about what I usually get out of a blade. If it's a Personna 74, I can go at least twice that long.

- Murray

Life is short, blades are cheap.

I've learned that I'm getting about 8 shaves or thereabouts from the Kai/Personna hospital use/Gillette Swede/Gillette Super Stainless blades. I'm not pushing them, but I'm also not keeping a blade that starts to pull or tug.

Squire wrote:Life is short, blades are cheap.

I'm in Squire's camp. I change blades after two shaves regardless of the brand of blade. This may be wasteful but blades are inexpensive and a sharp blade is a luxury that I feel I can afford.

These days I always try for a bbs shave. When I was a working stiff I used disposable plastic razors because I always got more comfortable shaves from them. Not bbs but fast and easy. I once bought a bunch of Schicks that were about a dimel apiece during an introductory sale. One of those lasted me for 6 months before it got bad enough to toss. Still have a couple but have to toss them after a few shaves because I can't get to bbs.

I've hunted and found a small handful of razors that seem to deliver the close and smooth finished product I enjoy just about every day, and have also identified the small handful of blades that work best in these razors. This is a far cry from the years when I had the one DE razor (Schick Krona) and blades that I bought at the grocery/drug store whenever my blades were all used up. I only changed my blades when they just wouldn't cut any more.

I should probably just post this in shave of the day, but my experience with DE razors has been all over the map and I just want to vent about today. I was using a Gillette Thin Adjustable (with the black handle) and a Polsilver blade that I had previously used once. I never could achieve bbs. Even tried a final polish with just water lubricant and set the razor to 7. Still have stubble on the jaw line. I really don't like this razor. It seems to get the least out of any blade. Vent over.

Alas, well, there's always tomorrow. The morning presents a chance to use another razor.

I get a kick out of stretching blades but the most I ever drove a DE to was 29 with a Derby.

alcx77 wrote:I get a kick out of stretching blades but the most I ever drove a DE to was 29 with a Derby.

Amazing!

I like Derby but not that much.

Squire wrote:I like Derby but not that much.

Used to like them too, but switched almost exclusively to Feathers and Astras a few years back.

I find Feathers hard to beat, but Astras come close at a price point that is not far from Derbys.
Hence no need to buy Derbys again once my old 2008 stock is used up.


B.

Am I the only one who finds that the first shave with a new blade is rarely up to snuff? It seems like it takes at least one shave to break a blade in. If I tossed a blade after the second shave, I might not even hit the sweet spot for that blade. I go at least five, sometimes 10.

I find that the GEM SS ptfe SE blades require 3-4 shaves before they reach their stride. Lots of folks find that.

I have never experienced that with DE blades though.

ShadowsDad wrote:I find that the GEM SS ptfe SE blades require 3-4 shaves before they reach their stride. Lots of folks find that.

Brian, it took me a while to reach that same conclusion on my own. They just seem to last forever.