RayClem's Blade Evaluations

The Tatara blade worked splendidly in a Wolfman WR1 OC 0,54

But definitely concur that various DE and SE razors do work better when paired with various blades, skin variances playing a further role

I was using the Rex envoy..had 6 excellent,smooth,sharp irritation free shaves with a persona blade,this must be a bad combo..when I heal up I’ll get out the Karve and try another tatara,but never again in the rex..I’m thinking the rex is a karve e or f maybe ZZZ plate with this blade.With a feather if I take it slow I could live with some weapers…maybe just a bad blade,cuz there’s no way this blade was usable on the second shave,but I persevered and then rolled up into a ball and cried myself to sleep.haha.

I do hope your face heals up soon. Bad shaves are a bummer.

I do not have a Rex Envoy, so I cannot comment on the aggressiveness. However, the head design clamps the blade well back from the edge. That is not something I like in a razor due to my sensitive skin. I much prefer razors like the Karve, Timeless, and Paradigm Salient that clamp the blade very close to the edge. If you can use a Feather blade in the Envoy, you should be able to use most any blade, as long as you exercise care with the shave angle and pressure.

I used the Tatara blade in a Karve C-plate razor. I have not tried one in my D-plate. I do not think I would enjoy using one in a Karve E, F or G plate. I do not think I would enjoy it in an open comb, either. I definitely won't be trying one in a Muhle R41.

Polysporin works great on cuts..I went again with the rex and tatara…yup my neck has 2 cuts,sideburn cut,seems as soon as the blade touches my skin I get cut,if I go quicker with a smoother glide it’s ok,reminds me of a feather blade with a hangover…must be a bad combo,these blades must be for very mild razors.I had enough.my beard is like copper covered in silver wire tough and sensitive skin.not going for a second attempt I feel some major razor burn starting.

Karveme

I would not suggest using a Rex Envoy plus Tatara blade to shave your man parts. Now THAT is a frightening thought. 

I could picture myself doing a peewee herman dance in the ER…mute from razor burn,so had to explain to the attending.

Personna Med Preps are available from Robbins Instruments (Medical Supply)...$40/100 and $78/250 (not incl. shipping). I recently purchased 100, and they were Personna blades. I suspect there is a large inventory still available from vendors that purchase in larger quantities than typical shave shops. I also agree with Dan Law...the Med Preps seem to have a sharper edge than the Lab Blues...even though the manufacturer says they are the same blade. Maybe it is all in our "expectation imagination"!

DanLaw apparently has a friend who has acquired some of the newly rebranded AccuThrive Med Prep blades. If he can make arrangements for me to get a couple of those, I will evaluate them. I do not plan to pay $40 for the Personna Med Preps either. I have never liked the Lab Blues, so the chances of my liking Personna Med Preps well enough to use 100 of them is rather unlikely.

IMHO, from an economic standpoint...The Tatara blades are most likely the Tatra/Tiger blades that are merely rebranded.  Most of the online reviews of the two blades have shown them to be very similar.  I do not believe that the Czech blade manufacturer would re-tool (reset machine tolerances or bevel) to manufacture a relatively low quantity of blades for a single customer.  Marketing hype by Tatara is the most likely situation.  This has nothing to do with the exceptional design and performance of their razors.
Thanks again to Ray, for his time consuming blade evaluations, and creating a companion spreadsheet with the results.

My initial suspicion of the Tatra and Tatara blades was exactly as you indicated...a rebranding. However, after my initial testing of both blades, I suspect that the blades might have a different grind bevel or perhaps a different steel hardness level. When making knives, whether chef knives or utility knives, the knifemaker must decide which is the most important attribute: sharpness or durability. For example, a Katana sword must stand up to a lot of abuse, so the blademaker uses a softer steel and a bevel angle that is more durable, but not super sharp. In contrast, when making a Sashimi knife, the use is a delicate one for which extreme sharpness is more critical than durability as the knife is not expected to see abuse. We see the same thing in single edge razors. A blade designed for shaving and a blade designed for use by a tailor might look the same, but they I suggest you avoid using the tailor's blade for shaving as it will be a painful experience.

Feather blades are more like the Sashimi knife. They are super sharp, but not very durable. Although not as sharp as a Feather blade, the Tatara blade seems to favor sharpness over durability. The Tatra blade seems to balance sharpness and durability; that is the type of blade I prefer as I have a very tough beard that is hard on edges. Someone whose beard is not so tough might have a strong preference for Tatara blades. I must caution that these are merely hypotheses that are unproven. I have only evaluated a single blade from each brand, so no firm conclusions can be reached.

In designing a razor blade, there are many factors that can be considered: the width of the blade (Kai blades, e.g., are slightly wider than standard blades), the type of steel and the hardness of that steel, the bevel angle or angles, and the type and thickness of coatings applied. That is why there are so many different razor blade brands. The challenge for each shaver is finding the specific blades that work best for your beard, your skin, and your razors. I elected to use a mild-mid aggressive razor for this test as I knew I would be evaluating blades ranging from somewhat dull to super sharp. Had I picked a more aggressive razor, the super sharp blade might have been uncomfortable. Had I picked a very mild razor, less sharp blades might have not been sharp enough to shave.

Agreed ...

Tatra and Tatara are for sure not the same blades with just a change in logo /branding.

I did shave with Tatra for almost two weeks on regular basis before ordering Tatara blades.

Tatara is more sharper and a more coarser blade if I may dare use that word. It works great in mid aggressive razors.

I as a general practice only use a blade not more than 4 shaves so never had any issues with either of the blades.

But they are different blades ...to sum it all

Sent from my V2040 using Tapatalk

Next up is the Astra Superior Stainless Blade

I am now beginning to evaluate blades that were made by the Gillette/PPI facility in St. Petersburg, Russia. They are no longer being exported to NATO countries, but many are still available through supply channels. Some blades produced at the PPI plant are already in production elsewhere. We will have to wait and see whether which brands will be produced elsewhere.

The first blade I am evaluating is Astra Superior Stainless, aka Astra blue. When people indicate they are using Astra blades, the chances are that they mean the Astra Superior Stainless (green) blades. The Superior Stainless blades are the much less famous sibling. However, many shavers, including me, find these to be the better option between the two blades.

I started the shave with the Shark Super Chrome blade in the Karve C-plate razor. After a few strokes, I replaced the Shark blade with the Astra Superior Stainless blade. The shark blade still had significant resistance, but not the same tugging as on the first shave. I immediately noted an improvement in sharpness with the Astra blue blade. There was only minimal resistance slicing through my two day beard. The blade feel was also quite smooth. I was able to complete may four-pass shave including buffing strokes to achieve a near-BBS shave. When applying witch hazel after the shave, I got minimal feedback.

Based on the results of this shave and previous experience with the blade, I am rating the Astra SS blade as 4.5 sharpness and 4.5 smoothness. This places the blade in company with a number of other blades that received similar ratings. The nice thing about the Astra SS blades is that they can be purchased for $8 per 100 blades making them a superb value. These blades are similar in performance and value to the Lord Silver Star. The spreadsheet has been updated.

In contrast, the Astra Super Platinum (green) blades rate 3 sharpness and 3.5 smoothness. Thus, for those preferring a sharper, smoother blade, the Super Stainless blades are a much better value. Both blades sell for $8 per 100 blades. I have never understood why the Astra SS blades have not become more popular.

Next for evaluation is the Gillette Platinum. There seem to be several versions of them blade. I have had mine for many years, so I am not certain which version it might be, or if there are really any differences between the versions.

My opinion is the personnas are all the same,good blades all of them,now my opinion of the Rex envoy with a fresh jaguar blade.wow,wow crazy.3 passes WTG,XTG,ATG and no touchups on the neck and the closest irritation free shave I’ve ever had,even forgot about my boo-boo.yes polysporin is that good.this combo feels like I just received a massage!clubman whisky may have been water.amazing.Looking at this blade edge through a 10x loupe the edge of this blade is sharpened at a more downward angle..going to contact the distributor and spend a grand minimum and stockup,$8 canadian for a 10 pack..bargain of the century.

The Personnas are not all the same. The Personna Platinum Chrome and Crystal Personnas have a platinum coated edge. The Lab Blues and Med Preps have a Teflon coating. However, the might PERFORM in a similar manner in your razors. 

I am glad you have found a blade that works for you in the Rex Envoy with your skin and your beard. That is the objective. 

The Jaguar blade might not be ideal for others, but if it is ideal for you, rejoice!