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Chad Uses BAD blades!

Sounds like Dorco is pulling a bit of marketing tomfoolery if the blades are all that similar.

Just did a count of blades...looks like a grand total of 116? (including those you've used and graded so far)
 
Sounds like Dorco is pulling a bit of marketing tomfoolery if the blades are all that similar.

Just did a count of blades...looks like a grand total of 116? (including those you've used and graded so far)

Yes sir. The series that won't end LOL. I hope people are actually enjoying it.
 
well research has begun for the next blade and it includes 3 sticky notes of notes. This is an interesting one!
 
Yes sir. The series that won't end LOL. I hope people are actually enjoying it.

I can't speak for others, but I'm definitely enjoying the information on the blades, and it's providing something that I don't think the wet shaving community as a whole has seen, which is a comprehensive and comparative list of the majority of the blades out on the market.

I see you're missing a blade up there...Super Max Platinum Max. I've actually had VERY good luck with those...almost as good as my favorite blades (Perma Sharp and Nacet's)
 
I can't speak for others, but I'm definitely enjoying the information on the blades, and it's providing something that I don't think the wet shaving community as a whole has seen, which is a comprehensive and comparative list of the majority of the blades out on the market.

I see you're missing a blade up there...Super Max Platinum Max. I've actually had VERY good luck with those...almost as good as my favorite blades (Perma Sharp and Nacet's)
I like Perma Sharps too Josh and need to restock eventually. Where do you source yours?
 
I picked mine up from WCS (IIRC). Initially I bought a tuck from Pasteurs and was so impressed with the first blade I went out and bought a 100 pack. Blew away my previous favorite, which was the Personna Red.
 
I can't speak for others, but I'm definitely enjoying the information on the blades, and it's providing something that I don't think the wet shaving community as a whole has seen, which is a comprehensive and comparative list of the majority of the blades out on the market.

I see you're missing a blade up there...Super Max Platinum Max. I've actually had VERY good luck with those...almost as good as my favorite blades (Perma Sharp and Nacet's)

Thanks Josh. And that name sounds familiar. Let me check my hoard it is possible I missed it on the list.
 
A lot of people especially here probably don't know this. But for a short period of time I was actually enrolled in Law School, and was interning for the District Attorney, it was after being in school for about 2 months I decided I do not want to be lawyer, and continued pursuing my career that I am in now. Anyways the next blade in this series brought me back to my law school days. I was reading US Patents. Yes the next blade sent me down that path!
 
Chad's alternate reality independant YT Channel: "The Razor's Legal Edge" Combining legal advice with wet shaving. LOL
 
Well, there is a fine edge between good and bad.
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Volume 48 Qball Platinum Plus Use 1

Alright a lot of info to discuss on this blade, I am just going to summarize it here, but I feel like the video is the best place to get the info today so I will just provide talking points here and not go into much detail.

So the blade is made by Personna in the same plant as the Israeli Reds, so obviously this blade is made in Israel. They are platinum coated using a process from Patent # 3071856 but more on that in a moment. This blade is made for a company called Erina and more on that later too.

First pricing:
Not sold at Maggards, WCS, or Italian Barber
Amazon 120 blades for $27.99 so about .23 cents per blade.
On another site you can find them for 100 pack for $14 so .14 cents per blade
On eBay from a trusted seller you can get 100 for $19 so roughly .20 cents per blade.

As you can see these blades are on more of the expensive side of things but that is to be expected.

So the patent:

This patent is from a man named Irwin W. Fischbein and he has a few patents related to razor blades from the 1940s to the 1960s. This particular patent is all about how blades are coated, and it was patented because it proved that it increases sharpness and longevity of the blade. I would recommend reading the patent and some of other patents, pretty interesting stuff. I go into it in more detail the video.

So the company Erina. This is a Japanese company that sells cosmetics and they are primarily geared towards females. They commissioned these blades and it appears for female face shaving. Yes it is a thing. I go into more details on this as well. Take a watch of the video.

Anyways the shave was nice much better than the dorcos. A definite sharper blade but honestly was a little bit rough. I will be curious to see if it smooths out for the next shave.

https://youtu.be/xjNl_gkBEvo
 
Good stuff Chad. I wonder if the roughness comes from the Swedish steel? I noticed a similar effect from the Parkers. I loved the blades performance but I noticed almost a scratching effect that actually felt good and the blade performed exceptionally.
 
Good stuff Chad. I wonder if the roughness comes from the Swedish steel? I noticed a similar effect from the Parkers. I loved the blades performance but I noticed almost a scratching effect that actually felt good and the blade performed exceptionally.
\n\nI never considered that. But I will say the Parkers are so far my #1 for a reason. I LOVE them!
 
Volume 49 Qball Platinum Plus Use 2

Well today was the second use with this blade, and while it did perform better than yesterday, it was smoother and actually more comfortable I just don't think it was enough to warrant the 100 pack rating. The blades that I have there currently FOR ME provide perfect comfortable shaves right out of the gate, there is no break in so to speak.

I discussed a lot about these blades yesterday and to be honest after more consideration I think a knock on them is some of the unknown. Will the company that commissioned Personna pull the plug? Have they already? Plus there is the mark-up these blades are more expensive. Couple all of that in there this blade gets a good rating. But let me tell you it was close to still getting bumped up. Because of all of that it is going to take the top spot in the good category. And if I for some reason ever see these at a good price I might just pick some up. These are really good blades and match that description perfectly.

****RATING SYSTEM****
TRASH: Can't get a good shave. This blade is horrible. Never use again.
BAD: A bad blade but technically still got a serviceable shave, but have no desire to use the blade again.
GOOD: It was good enough that if I have another blade I wouldn't hesitate to use it.
100PACK: This blade was good enough to warrant stocking up!

Here are the updated lists and rankings:

**** Blades Used ****
1. Muhle = Bad
2.Van Der Hagen = Good
3. Graham Field = Trash
4. Super Homex = Bad
5. Shark Super Chrome = Bad
6. Shark Stainless Steel = 100 PACK
7. Sputnik = 100 PACK
8. Rockwell = Bad
9. Parker = 100 PACK
10. Bic Platinum = Trash
11. Timor = Good
12. MEM Super Silver Platinum = Trash
13. Blue Bird = Good
14. Gillette 7 O'clock Black = Good
15. Royal Super Stainless = Bad
16. Topaz Platinum = Bad
17. Dorco 300 = Good
18. Dorco 301 = Good
19. Dorco Prime = Good
20. Dorco Titan = Good
21. Qball Platinum Plus = Good

*** 100 Pack Ranking***
1. Parker Premium
2. Sputnik
3. Shark Stainless Steel

***Good Ranking***
1. Qball Platinum Plus
2. Blue Bird Stainless
3. Dorco Prime
4. Gillette 7 O'Clock Black
5. Dorco Titan
6. Dorco 300/301
7. Timor
8. Van Der Hagen

*** Bad Ranking***
1. Topaz Platinum
2. Muhle
3. Royal Super Stainless
4. Super Homex
5. Shark Chrome
6. Rockwell

***Trash Ranking***
1. Bic Platinum
2. MEM Super Silver
3. Graham Field
 
Volume 50 Treet King Use 1

Well today the random # drew the Treet King. Treet blades are about as plentiful as Personna. There are a lot of different types out there for sure.

This blade is basically the entry level blade, and they are made in Pakistan by the Treet company. These are just a standard Stainless Steel blade nothing added to them at all. Usually a regular Stainless Steel blade performs well for me and today was no different. These blades are very sharp and that was an adjustment as I did get a couple of small nics but I think that was due to me not the blade honestly. I got a very nice close shave, with the minor irritation. Not alot of info out there about this blade. But first shave was good.

They can only be found on eBay and Amazon.

Amazon $16.99 per 100 roughly .17 per blade

IF you search you can find them for closer to 12 cents per blade though.

https://youtu.be/djMUt3cG0Q4
 
Volume 51 Treet King Use 2

Well today's shave was NOT fit for a king. The blade is sharp but it just scrapes the face, that is the best way to describe it. I hope the other Treet blades I have fair better. After doing more research on all these blades and after reading those Patents mentioned a few shaves back, I am becoming more of a believer in the blades that are coated. But then I am left wondering how did the Shark SS beat the Shark Chrome? And by a wide margin! Man this stuff is weird. 51 shaves with bad blades and 22 different blades used and only 3 have hit the 100 Pack rating. But a few more are in the good. I think I am proving what I started this whole thing with... my technique is good enough to get a good shave, but I am still noticing the subtle nuances within the blades.

Anyways this blade deserves a BAD rating. Honestly I have no desire to ever let one enter the den again, but still better than the Trash category.

****RATING SYSTEM****
TRASH: Can't get a good shave. This blade is horrible. Never use again.
BAD: A bad blade but technically still got a serviceable shave, but have no desire to use the blade again.
GOOD: It was good enough that if I have another blade I wouldn't hesitate to use it.
100PACK: This blade was good enough to warrant stocking up!

Here are the updated lists and rankings:

**** Blades Used ****
1. Muhle = Bad
2.Van Der Hagen = Good
3. Graham Field = Trash
4. Super Homex = Bad
5. Sha
rk Super Chrome = Bad
6. Shark Stainless Steel = 100 PACK
7. Sputnik = 100 PACK
8. Rockwell = Bad
9. Parker = 100 PACK
10. Bic Platinum = Trash
11. Timor = Good
12. MEM Super Silver Platinum = Trash
13. Blue Bird = Good
14. Gillette 7 O'clock Black = Good
15. Royal Super Stainless = Bad
16. Topaz Platinum = Bad
17. Dorco 300 = Good
18. Dorco 301 = Good
19. Dorco Prime = Good
20. Dorco Titan = Good
21. Qball Platinum Plus = Good
22. Treet King = Bad

*** 100 Pack Ranking***
1. Parker Premium
2. Sputnik
3. Shark Stainless Steel

***Good Ranking***
1. Qball Platinum Plus
2. Blue Bird Stainless
3. Dorco Prime
4. Gillette 7 O'Clock Black
5. Dorco Titan
6. Dorco 300/301
7. Timor
8. Van Der Hagen

*** Bad Ranking***
1. Topaz Platinum
2. Muhle
3. Treet King
4. Royal Super Stainless
5. Super Homex
6. Shark Chrome
7. Rockwell

***Trash Ranking***
1. Bic Platinum
2. MEM Super Silver
3. Graham Field
 
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