dkeester
"TSC's Master of Bourbon"
First off, a couple of pictures (courtesy of the Super Safety Razors web site) so everyone can get a good view of the product.
Overview
The Parker Premium Platinum DE blade is a new product from Parker Safety Razors. According to the Interwebz, the blades are produced at a production facility in Turkey. There is a rumor that the facility is the same one that produces Derby blades, but that is not substantiated. The blades made from Swedish Stainless Steel manufactured by Sandvik. The production equipment is German made. After honing the edges are coated with Platinum Chromium-Ceramic Tungsten & Polymer, which sounds similar to the coating used on Derbys.
This will be a multi-day shave review using a variety of razors from my den. I will update this thread daily until I feel that I have given the blade a thorough review. I might even do some comparison shaves later on, if there is interest.
Packaging
The cardboard sleeve which held the tucks was sturdy and held together well in the bubble mailer that Amazon shipped the blades in. I found the dispenser difficult to open, but that didn't really matter since I am not storing the blades in the cardboard sleeves. The tucks are individually wrapped and are the standard plastic that we are used to when dealing with DE blades. I can see why some people think that they are produced at the same plant as Derbys. The tucks are almost identical to Derby tucks, but that could just be that they have a supplier in common. Overall, the packaging is better than many blades, i.e. no flimsy cardboard tucks. Each blade is singly wrapped in wax paper with the usual glue spots left on the blade. (I did not compare, but it seems like less glue than you would get on an Astra SP.)
Cost
Disclosure: I was able to purchase these blades using a 20% discount code that is no longer available, so my cost on them was ~$9.43 per 100.
The cost from Maggard Razors or Super Safety Razors is $12.95 per 100 count box. The price that I have seen on Amazon is $11.79 for the same 100 count box. For the sake of having a number to start with, let's call the cost $0.13 per blade. At that cost it is not the cheapest blade out there. Astra SP is about $0.09 per blade. Shark Super Chrome is $0.10. GSB is $0.18. Voskhod is $0.13. Derby Premium is $0.09. Gillette 7O'Clock Super Stainless is $0.17. (All of those are Amazon prices. Places like eBay might have some of them for less.) However, it certainly isn't the most expensive either. I would call it a competitive price.
Performance
Here is where we get to the good parts...
Shave #1 - Merkur 34c
Starting off with my favorite DE. The shave was mild, smooth, and efficient. The blade had no problem cutting through the stubble for three passes with no stutters, pulling, or dragging. I did not really notice the blade as I was shaving. I consider this a good thing. There was no irritation from the blade, but I may be sensitive to one of the coatings since my face felt itchy after the shave until I applied ASB. My face is BBS- in three passes and a couple of hours later still feels great. After one shave I would say this is a really great blade. I can't wait to shave with it again.
More tomorrow.
Overview
The Parker Premium Platinum DE blade is a new product from Parker Safety Razors. According to the Interwebz, the blades are produced at a production facility in Turkey. There is a rumor that the facility is the same one that produces Derby blades, but that is not substantiated. The blades made from Swedish Stainless Steel manufactured by Sandvik. The production equipment is German made. After honing the edges are coated with Platinum Chromium-Ceramic Tungsten & Polymer, which sounds similar to the coating used on Derbys.
This will be a multi-day shave review using a variety of razors from my den. I will update this thread daily until I feel that I have given the blade a thorough review. I might even do some comparison shaves later on, if there is interest.
Packaging
The cardboard sleeve which held the tucks was sturdy and held together well in the bubble mailer that Amazon shipped the blades in. I found the dispenser difficult to open, but that didn't really matter since I am not storing the blades in the cardboard sleeves. The tucks are individually wrapped and are the standard plastic that we are used to when dealing with DE blades. I can see why some people think that they are produced at the same plant as Derbys. The tucks are almost identical to Derby tucks, but that could just be that they have a supplier in common. Overall, the packaging is better than many blades, i.e. no flimsy cardboard tucks. Each blade is singly wrapped in wax paper with the usual glue spots left on the blade. (I did not compare, but it seems like less glue than you would get on an Astra SP.)
Cost
Disclosure: I was able to purchase these blades using a 20% discount code that is no longer available, so my cost on them was ~$9.43 per 100.
The cost from Maggard Razors or Super Safety Razors is $12.95 per 100 count box. The price that I have seen on Amazon is $11.79 for the same 100 count box. For the sake of having a number to start with, let's call the cost $0.13 per blade. At that cost it is not the cheapest blade out there. Astra SP is about $0.09 per blade. Shark Super Chrome is $0.10. GSB is $0.18. Voskhod is $0.13. Derby Premium is $0.09. Gillette 7O'Clock Super Stainless is $0.17. (All of those are Amazon prices. Places like eBay might have some of them for less.) However, it certainly isn't the most expensive either. I would call it a competitive price.
Performance
Here is where we get to the good parts...
Shave #1 - Merkur 34c
Starting off with my favorite DE. The shave was mild, smooth, and efficient. The blade had no problem cutting through the stubble for three passes with no stutters, pulling, or dragging. I did not really notice the blade as I was shaving. I consider this a good thing. There was no irritation from the blade, but I may be sensitive to one of the coatings since my face felt itchy after the shave until I applied ASB. My face is BBS- in three passes and a couple of hours later still feels great. After one shave I would say this is a really great blade. I can't wait to shave with it again.
More tomorrow.
