#71

Member
Virginia
(10-10-2017, 02:56 PM)Blackland Razors Wrote:
(10-10-2017, 02:46 PM)gregcss Wrote: How does a shave with a GEM blade differ from a DE blade in terms of smoothness, efficiency, blade longevity? Are there many options for gem blades available?

Smoothness and efficiency are a bit debatable, but blade longevity is not. The GEM blades easily last more than ten shaves and some people get as many as 20-25 shaves out of one. I personally find the GEMs to be similarly smooth and efficient like DE blades, but not everyone feels that way. One interesting thing about GEMs is that they seem to get a bit smoother after a couple shaves.

There are not many blade options and they are all made by the same parent company. There are a handful of brands and they can be divided into two groups: stainless steel and carbon steel. Each has its fan base, but a disadvantage for the carbon blades is their tendency to rust very quickly. This can be mitigated with just a little effort, but the ss blades require less attention.

Thanks for the response.

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#72
(This post was last modified: 10-10-2017, 09:55 PM by TheKey.)
(10-10-2017, 02:56 PM)Blackland Razors Wrote:
(10-10-2017, 02:46 PM)gregcss Wrote: How does a shave with a GEM blade differ from a DE blade in terms of smoothness, efficiency, blade longevity? Are there many options for gem blades available?

Smoothness and efficiency are a bit debatable, but blade longevity is not. The GEM blades easily last more than ten shaves and some people get as many as 20-25 shaves out of one. I personally find the GEMs to be similarly smooth and efficient like DE blades, but not everyone feels that way. One interesting thing about GEMs is that they seem to get a bit smoother after a couple shaves.

There are not many blade options and they are all made by the same parent company. There are a handful of brands and they can be divided into two groups: stainless steel and carbon steel. Each has its fan base, but a disadvantage for the carbon blades is their tendency to rust very quickly. This can be mitigated with just a little effort, but the ss blades require less attention.
I had gone from DE to SE in the form of artist Club blades, and I loved them.

Then I found GEM blades. In particular GEM blades used in the Blackland, Sabre. And holy smokes. It is a full-on game changer for me.

I've had over 100 shaves with the Sabre and GEM blades. I'm getting between 10 and 14 shaves per blade with ease. And I mean, really high-quality, BBS shaves. In comparison, I would average three or four shaves per DE blade.

It's interesting, there is really only one blade available (well, you can get carbon blades but due to rust issues, I don't seriously consider them). You can get them under a couple of different names, but they're all Persona PTFE coated blades. And they are terrific. They are also quite inexpensive when you buy them in bulk. I picked up 100 blades. My cost per shave is significantly below what even inexpensive DE blades cost. And this is one incredible blade. I have never found myself wishing I had any other choices. This is beyond good.

The blade gets a bit smoother after a couple of shaves. But it starts off very smooth to begin with, in my opinion.

For me, this is pretty much an unbeatable system. It has ended my RAD for Razer acquisition. I'm just flat-out happy with the results I get, every single day.

Another interesting aspect of these blades are that when they get a bit on the dull side, they don't cut you. They just make you go over the area's a bit more to get the same clean shave. About that point, I'm somewhere between 10 and 14 shaves on the blade and I just switch it out for a new blade.

I hope this helps some.

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#73

Member
Detroit
(10-10-2017, 07:46 PM)TheKey Wrote: It's interesting, there is really only one blade available (well, you can get carbon bladed but due to rust issues, I don't seriously consider them). You can get them under a couple of different names, but they're all Persona coated blades.

There are actually uncoated stainless steel blades available too. They sucked for me so they were relegated to paint scraping duty. I agree with you on the PTFE coated blades though. They are great blades.

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- Jeff
#74

Member
Virginia
(This post was last modified: 10-10-2017, 10:54 PM by gregcss. Edit Reason: I actually have 2 DEs, forgot about the one under the sink :) )
(10-10-2017, 07:46 PM)TheKey Wrote: I had gone from DE to SE in the form of artist Club blades, and I loved them.

Then I found GEM blades. In particular GEM blades in the Blackland razors, Sabre. And holy smokes. It is a full-on game changer for me.

I've had over 100 shaves with the Sabre and GEM blades. I'm getting between 10 and 14 shaves per blade with ease. And I mean, really high-quality, BBS shaves. In comparison, I would average three or four shaves per DE blade.

It's interesting, there is really only one blade available (well, you can get carbon bladed but due to rust issues, I don't seriously consider them). You can get them under a couple of different names, but they're all Persona coated blades. And they are terrific. They are also quite inexpensive when you buy them in bulk. I picked up 100 blades. My cost per shave is significantly below what even SE blades cost. And this is one incredible blade. I have never found myself wishing I had two other choices. This is beyond good.

The blade gets a bit smoother after a couple of shaves. But it starts off very smooth to begin with, in my opinion.

For me, this is pretty much an unbeatable system. It has ended my RAD for Razr acquisition. I'm just flat-out happy with the results I get, every single day.

Another interesting aspect of these blades are that when they get a bit on the dull side, they don't cut you. They just make you go over the area's a bit more to get the same clean shave. About that point, I'm somewhere between 10 and 14 shaves on the blade and I just switch it for the next one.

I hope this helps some.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
Very helpful, thanks. I have 4 razors today SE, 2 DE, and DE Slant. I'm taking a look at the Blackbird and Sabre. Maybe the Sabre could replace the SE, or make it a group of 5.

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#75

Member
Virginia
Are there plans to use other materials like aluminum?

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#76

Merchant
San Diego CA
(11-18-2017, 04:20 PM)gregcss Wrote: Are there plans to use other materials like aluminum?

In the future, yes. The current priority is adding to the line. We have three new razors we are working on alongside several accessories. Once the full razor line is established more materials will definitely be something to play with.

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#77

Member
Spain
L2 is here!

[Image: 7752847f978269db2558d221359c99fc.jpg]

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#78

Member
Spain
[Image: 4f1a0c1a3313861b94712961a8b7978e.jpg]

First shave completed.

Wow! What a shave!
L2 is as smooth as L1 but much more efficient. I achieved a real CDB with 2 days growth in 2 passes (WTG-ATG) without touch ups. No nicks, no weepers and no cuts. L2 is a real improvement. First shave was lovely.

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#79

Merchant
San Diego CA
Polished Blackbirds and Level One Sabres drop tomorrow at 9am PST. See you there!

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#80

Member
Spain
Sabre L2 is awesome!

Normally, I shave every other day because my skin is sensitive and I can’t shave daily. Today I tried to shave with 24h growth and I had a perfect shave with the L2. No nicks, cuts, and the normal irritation that I get when shaving. Shane, you nailed it!

[Image: 21f489b8d9deda5251108bd6d5829db8.jpg]


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