RayClem's Blade Evaluations

BIC Chrome Platinum – Greece

BIC Chrome Platinum blades are among my favorite blades. I have found them to be both sharp and smooth. Out of the wrapper, Feather blades are sharper than BIC CP. However, Feather blades tend to become less sharp during use whereas the BIC blades become sharper as the coating wears off. The BIC blades start very sharp and become super sharp. For some shavers, this can be useful. However, for Shavers using aggressive razors or those whose shaving skills are lacking, BIC CP blades might be too sharp. They can easily draw blood or cause irritation to those with sensitive skin.

The BIC blades are made in Greece by the same company famous for BIC disposable lighters and inexpensive BIC ink pens. They also make BIC disposable razors as well as BIC cartridge razors. They produce two DE blades, the BIC Chrome Platinum and the BIC Astor. I have previously evaluated the Astor blades rating them as Sharpness 4/ Smoothness 3. The Chrome Platinum blades should be sharper and smoother than Astor.

Today’s shave began with a Personna lab blue blade in the Karve C-plate razor. I took a few short strokes with the razor before changing to the BIC CP blade. The Personna blades were very sharp, but not as smooth as I would like. The BIC blades were similar in sharpness to the Personna blade, but noticeably smoother, which I appreciate. The BIC blade did seem to become sharper with use, but the change was not as dramatic as I experienced with the Personna lab blue blades.

I did my usual 4 pass shave: WTG, XTG, ATG and then clean-up. The BIC Chrome Platinum blades are efficient enough that I had a DFS after two passes, but I wanted to see how the blade would perform if I tried to get even closer. At no time during the shave did I feel the blade to be rough or about to nick my face. I was easily able to achieve a near BBS shave. When I splashed on the witch hazel after the shave, I got almost no feedback. This is the type of shave that I hope to get every time, but not every blade can deliver it.

Based on this shave, I am rating these blades sharpness 5, smoothness 5. For my tough beard and sensitive skin, it does not get any better than this. Because these blades do get “Feather-sharp” by the 2nd shave, I do not recommend them for those using aggressive razors. I would never choose the BIC Chrome Platinum blade to pair with my Muhle R41 blade as the combination would be too aggressive. I also cannot recommend these blades to new shavers who are still refining their shaving skills. For someone with a razor they think needs a boost in efficiency, BIC CP blades might be just what you are looking for.

Because these blades are currently selling for $18-19 per 100 blades, there are better values available for those who do not need the sharpness of BIC Chrome Platinum blades. As it is one of the best blades made, it is one I will always stock in my shave den.

I have updated the blade evaluation spreadsheet that can be found here:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/71ttt15wy...qo8eb&dl=0


The next blade to be evaluated is the Vidyut Blue Diamond Platinum blade. While they are not as sharp as some blades, they can be obtained for $10 per 100 blades, so they might be a great value for shavers who do not need super sharp blades.

So Ray you mentioned your R41. 

What blades do you like in your aggressive razors like that?

BIC Chrome Platinum – Greece

BIC Chrome Platinum blades are among my favorite blades. I have found them to be both sharp and smooth. Out of the wrapper, Feather blades are sharper than BIC CP. However, Feather blades tend to become less sharp during use whereas the BIC blades become sharper as the coating wears off. The BIC blades start very sharp and become super sharp. For some shavers, this can be useful. However, for Shavers using aggressive razors or those whose shaving skills are lacking, BIC CP blades might be too sharp. They can easily draw blood or cause irritation to those with sensitive skin.

The BIC blades are made in Greece by the same company famous for BIC disposable lighters and inexpensive BIC ink pens. They also make BIC disposable razors as well as BIC cartridge razors. They produce two DE blades, the BIC Chrome Platinum and the BIC Astor. I have previously evaluated the Astor blades rating them as Sharpness 4/ Smoothness 3. The Chrome Platinum blades should be sharper and smoother than Astor.

Today’s shave began with a Personna lab blue blade in the Karve C-plate razor. I took a few short strokes with the razor before changing to the BIC CP blade. The Personna blades were very sharp, but not as smooth as I would like. The BIC blades were similar in sharpness to the Personna blade, but noticeably smoother, which I appreciate. The BIC blade did seem to become sharper with use, but the change was not as dramatic as I experienced with the Personna lab blue blades.

I did my usual 4 pass shave: WTG, XTG, ATG and then clean-up. The BIC Chrome Platinum blades are efficient enough that I had a DFS after two passes, but I wanted to see how the blade would perform if I tried to get even closer. At no time during the shave did I feel the blade to be rough or about to nick my face. I was easily able to achieve a near BBS shave. When I splashed on the witch hazel after the shave, I got almost no feedback. This is the type of shave that I hope to get every time, but not every blade can deliver it.

Based on this shave, I am rating these blades sharpness 5, smoothness 5. For my tough beard and sensitive skin, it does not get any better than this. Because these blades do get “Feather-sharp” by the 2nd shave, I do not recommend them for those using aggressive razors. I would never choose the BIC Chrome Platinum blade to pair with my Muhle R41 blade as the combination would be too aggressive. I also cannot recommend these blades to new shavers who are still refining their shaving skills. For someone with a razor they think needs a boost in efficiency, BIC CP blades might be just what you are looking for.

Because these blades are currently selling for $18-19 per 100 blades, there are better values available for those who do not need the sharpness of BIC Chrome Platinum blades. As it is one of the best blades made, it is one I will always stock in my shave den.

I have updated the blade evaluation spreadsheet that can be found here:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/71ttt15wy...qo8eb&dl=0


The next blade to be evaluated is the Vidyut Blue Diamond Platinum blade. While they are not as sharp as some blades, they can be obtained for $10 per 100 blades, so they might be a great value for shavers who do not need super sharp blades.

I gotta try these

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So Ray you mentioned your R41. 

What blades do you like in your aggressive razors like that?

I rarely use the R41. While I love the efficiency, it is just too aggressive for my sensitive skin.
I have to stay so focused on my shaving technique to avoid irritation that the shave is not enjoyable.

On those occasions when I do pull out the R41, my blade of choice is the 7 O'Clock SharpEdge yellow.
It is sharper than Astra SP, so it is sharp enough to tackle my beard, especially in an efficient razor. 
It is one of the smoothest blades I have tried, so it is a good match for the R41.

Since the SharpEdge is a PPI blade, it might be a few weeks before I get around to rating it, but based on previous use, 
it is likely to rate a 3.5 sharpness, 5 smoothness. Because I normally shave using a razor that is not as efficient as the R41, 
the SharpEdge is not quite sharp enough for me, but for those who do not need a super sharp blade, it might be perfect.

So Ray you mentioned your R41. 

What blades do you like in your aggressive razors like that?

I rarely use the R41. While I love the efficiency, it is just too aggressive for my sensitive skin.
I have to stay so focused on my shaving technique to avoid irritation that the shave is not enjoyable.

On those occasions when I do pull out the R41, my blade of choice is the 7 O'Clock SharpEdge yellow.
It is sharper than Astra SP, so it is sharp enough to tackle my beard, especially in an efficient razor. 
It is one of the smoothest blades I have tried, so it is a good match for the R41.

Since the SharpEdge is a PPI blade, it might be a few weeks before I get around to rating it, but based on previous use, 
it is likely to rate a 3.5 sharpness, 5 smoothness. Because I normally shave using a razor that is not as efficient as the R41, 
the SharpEdge is not quite sharp enough for me, but for those who do not need a super sharp blade, it might be perfect.

Those SharpEdge are nice blades.
    I seem to to pull away from the sharpest blades with the more aggressive razors too.
    It's fun and helpful to play with different blades in a razor.

How do you fellas like the OC plates for the GameChanger?

So Ray you mentioned your R41. 

What blades do you like in your aggressive razors like that?

I rarely use the R41. While I love the efficiency, it is just too aggressive for my sensitive skin.
I have to stay so focused on my shaving technique to avoid irritation that the shave is not enjoyable.

On those occasions when I do pull out the R41, my blade of choice is the 7 O'Clock SharpEdge yellow.
It is sharper than Astra SP, so it is sharp enough to tackle my beard, especially in an efficient razor. 
It is one of the smoothest blades I have tried, so it is a good match for the R41.

Since the SharpEdge is a PPI blade, it might be a few weeks before I get around to rating it, but based on previous use, 
it is likely to rate a 3.5 sharpness, 5 smoothness. Because I normally shave using a razor that is not as efficient as the R41, 
the SharpEdge is not quite sharp enough for me, but for those who do not need a super sharp blade, it might be perfect.

I felt my first shave with the Sharpedge was the best one. I used it in a Fatip, karve SB-E Copper, and my Blackland Era LVL 5 OC. Good smooth blade no doubt, sharpness and efficiency is solid but I felt I got closest to BBS first time out. The other shaves were good, not quite as close, but smooth and irritation and nick free. Not a bad blade for the $1.80 I paid for 5, but there are others I would likely use first in that price range and some even just a shade cheaper. No regre ts, they just likely won't get replaced.

Vidyut SuperMax Blue Diamond Platinum – India

Today’s shave is with the Blue Diamond Platinum blade. It is my understanding that blades marketed under the “blue” branding are supposed to be the highest quality blades offered by Vidyut SuperMax. There is a Stainless Steel Blue blade, Blue Diamond Titanium, and Blue Diamond Platinum. There is also a Diamond Edge blade that features a Blue Diamond on the packaging. While I evaluated the less expensive SuperMax Super Stainless blade earlier in the series, the only one of the “blue” blades I have used in the Blue Diamond Platinum. Although I found it to be a good blade, it is not good enough to become one of my favorites. I have also evaluated the Zorrik blades, which I believe made by SuperMax. They were not as sharp as I would have liked.

I started today’s shave with the BIC Chrome Platinum blade in my Karve C-plate razor. That blade is a hard act to follow, so my expectations of the Blue Diamond blade were somewhat diminished. Nevertheless, I expected a nice shave. I took a few strokes with the BIC blade and found it to be super sharp, yet still smooth.

After installing the SuperMax blade in the razor, there was a noticeable decrease in sharpness, yet the blade was still sharp enough to handle my two-day beard growth. There was some blade resistance one the 1st pass WTG, but no tugging. The blade may have gotten slightly sharper during the shave, but the change was not dramatic. There were some times during the shave when I noted a little more blade feel than I would like. That was particularly the case when shaving my neck, whose skin tends to be slightly saggy.
I was able to get a DFS, but the blade was not quite sharp enough for near-BBS.. When applying witch hazel, I got minor feedback.

Based on the results of the shave, I rate these blade 4. 0 in sharpness and 4.0 in smoothness. These results were added to the spreadsheet.

Considering that the Blue Diamond Platinum blades can be purchased for $10 per 100 blades, they represent a good value, however, the SuperMax Super Stainless are an even better value at $8 per 100.

The next blade to be evaluated is the Lord Platinum, which along with Silver Star are some of the better blades produced by Lord.

Lord Platinum Razor Blades - two versions tested.

Most of the blades produced by Lord in Egypt are stainless steel blades with a polymer coating. However, they do produce a few platinum coated blades. There are blades sold as Lord Platinum, Lord Platinum Class or Lord Platinum Diamond Edge blades. There are also blades sold as Shark Platinum. I have both the Lord Platinum Diamond Edge blades and the Shark Platinum blades. The Diamond Edge blades are more expensive than the Shark Platinum blades and do seem to be a tiny bit sharper and smoother. Since the two blades are so close in quality, but not in price, I decided to evaluate both blades at the same time by shaving one side of my face with Lord Platinum Diamond Edge and the other with Lord Platinum.

When I first purchased the Shark Platinum blades, it was with fear and trembling as my experience with Shark Chrome blades a few years ago was awful. They were neither sharp nor smooth. From what I have seen in reviews, the Shark Super Stainless blades are similar in performance. I was quite pleased when I found the Shark Platinum blades to be significantly better than the Super Chrome and quite usable, even with my tough beard and sensitive skin.

I started my shave with the SuperMax Blue Diamond Platinum in the razor. That blade appeared to be slightly sharper than one the first shave and similar in smoothness, which means I would have gotten a nice 2nd shave. I was not expecting the two Lord platinum blades to be much different.

Out of the wrapper, the Lord Platinum Diamond Edge blade used on the right side of my face was slightly sharper and slightly smoother than the Shark Platinum blade. Thus, the higher price of the Lord blade might be justified. However, by the time I got to the 2nd pass, there was little difference in the blades. I was able to get a similar quality, near BBS shave on both sides of my face. When I applied witch hazel, I got minimal feedback.

Since the Shark Platinum blade was slightly less sharp on the 1st pass, I am going to rate it as 4.25 on sharpness and 4.5 on smoothness vs the Lord Platinum Diamond Edged blade which rates as 4.5 on sharpness and 4.5 on smoothness. Considering that the Shark blades sell for $8 per 100 and the Lord Diamond Edge blades sell for $7 per 50 blades, the Shark blades are a better value. The blades sold as Lord Platinum or Platinum Class blades sell for $9- 10 per 100 blades. I presume they will similar to one of the two blades tested, so all of these blades represent a good value.

The Lord Silver Star blade which is polymer coated stainless steel also rated 4.5 on sharpness and 4.5 on smoothness. Since it also costs $8 per 100 blade, it is a good value as well. Supposedly, platinum coatings harden the edge, possibly prolonging the life of the blade. Either of these Lord blades is worth trying if you have never done so. I now have a stash of Silver Star, Sharp Platinum, and Lord Platinum Diamond Blades.

On Monday, I plan to evaluate the Durablade Sharp Titanium blade which based on previous experience should be quite similar to the 7 a.m. Hi Platinum blades by the same manufacturer.

At this point in the series, I have evaluated 25 different razor blades. Some were wonderfully sharp and smooth, others barely sharp enough to shave my face. I still have some blades to evaluate. Here are the blades I plan to evaluate next:

Durablade Sharp Titanium - Bangladesh
Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum (black) - India
Wilkinson Sword Classic- Germany
Shark Super Stainless- Egypt

Edit: Sorry, I missed one.
Parker Premium Platinum - I want to answer the question, are these the same as Derby Premium or are they even better?

There are some other blades that I have used in years past, such a Van der Hagen ice tempered and Derby Extra Green, but they were fails for me as they tugged painfully at my beard. They are no longer in my inventory and I have to plans to purchase them as I do not enjoy pain.

I also have some Crystal blades made in the Personna plant in Israel that is now closed. Unlike the Personna Platinum Chrome blades, the Crystals were not transferred to Germany for production. Thus, any remaining inventory has escalated in price. Since they are no longer in production, I do not intend to evaluate them, but can include them if someone requests me to do so. From prior usage, the Crystal blades are excellent blades, but not quite as sharp as the Personna Platinum Chrome blades. Unless you have a penchant for blades made in Israel, I would suggest getting the German blades in current production.

Somewhere during the series, I will take time out to evaluate a pass-around razor, the Paradigm Salient stainless.

After evaluating all the non-Russian blades in my inventory, I plan to evaluate various Russian blades. They include Rapira Platinum Lux and Voskhod from JSC Mostochlegmash in Moscow. The other Russian blades are made in the Petersburg Products International factory in St. Petersburg, Russia. That plant was a joint venture between Russian investors and Gillette/P&G. Most Russian blades are still available internationally, but NATO alliance countries are no longer importing products from Russia. Gillette announced about six months ago that they would no longer produce blades at the PPI facility for export and would be moving production to India, China, and other countries. Most of the blades offered for sale are from the PPI facility. I have already evaluated a several few PPI blades for reference. Others that blades that will be evaluated are: Astra Superior Stainless (blue), 7 O'Clock SharpEdge (yellow), Nacet Stainless, Gillette Platinum, Gillette Silver Blue, and PermaSharp Super.

I also have a few Polsilver and Rubie Plus blades that I can evaluate upon request. The Polsilver blades have been replaced by Wizamet blades, which I find to be significantly sharper. Rubie Plus blades have limited availability. It has been a while since I have used the Rubies as I found them to be similar in performance to the Astra Super Platinum blades, which for me means they are neither sharp enough, nor smooth enough. Like the Astra SP blades, I can use Rubie Plus, but I do not enjoy the shave.

Durablade Sharp Titanium - Bangladesh

These titanium coated blades are produced by the same company that produces 7 a.m Hi Platinum blades, Samah Razor Blades. There are also Sharp Hi Platinum blades. The 7 a.m. blades carry the highest price tag.

I started today's shave with a Lord Platinum blade in the Karve C-plate razor on its second use. As has been the case during these evaluations, I had two days of beard growth. I make a few strokes with the Lord Platinum blades and found them to be both sharp and smooth. When I first put the Sharp Titanium blade into the razor, I noted that the blade resistance increased. The Sharp blade was not as "sharp" as the Lord Platinum. However, it was still sharp enough to give a good shave. The blade seemed to get sharper with use.

I completed my usual 4-pass shave using buffing strokes to achieve a near-BBS shave. However, I did experience minor irritation when applying witch hazel. While the blade was a 4 sharpness on the 1st pass, but the end of the shave, it was a 4.5. Thus, I am rating it 4.25 on sharpness and 4 on smoothness. Since the blade sells for 9 cents per blade when purchased in packs of 100, it is an excellent value. The 7 a.m blade did rate slightly higher on both sharpness and smoothness, but the price is 12 cents per blade. For my face, I prefer the 7 a.m., but for those whose beards are less tough than mine and whose face is less sensitive, the Sharp Titanium blade might be a great purchase.

The evaluation spreadsheet has been updated here:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/71ttt15wy...qo8eb&dl=0

For Wednesday's shave, I plan to pull out a Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum (black) made in India. Based on previous experience with this blade, it is only
mid-sharp out of the wrapper and super smooth. However, as the shave progresses, the coating wears off and the blade becomes as sharp as a Feather blade. Thus, I will have to be careful with my shaving technique to avoid irritation during the ATG and clean-up passes. While I love sharp blades, the inconsistent sharpness is the reason this blade is not one of my favorites. I would not recommend it to inexperienced shavers.