RayClem's Blade Evaluations

Looking forward to you review of the Usta.  Some say they are a step up from the Premiums.  They are stated to be double honed on new equipment. I have only used the Usta in an SE razor and I felt it more than fine and pretty good. 

https://www.razorus.com/derby-usta-shave...des-100pcs

I will be trying the USTA blades later today. Since I find the Parker and Bluebird private labels to be a slight step down from the Premiums, I would love to see the Ustas be a step up. I will be doing a face-off shave between the two contenders. An extra polishing is something my face might appreciate.

Half blades? Not a full DE.

Half blades? Not a full DE.

The USTAs shown in the photo above were half blades. I purchased full DE blades to use in my Karve razor. The only razor I have that uses half blades is a cheap shavette that is junk. 

Parker just released the SoloEdge razor that uses half DE blades. It is a two piece razor width the base plate and handle combined. I have both a Schick injector razor and a ATT SE1 razor that uses AC blades, but I am not a fan of the wider AC blades. the SoloEdge is brand new and is not yet widely available. I plan to purchase one in the coming months.

Thursday Shave- Derby USTA

When I first began this evaluation series, my opinion of Derby as as blade manufacturer was not very high. That was based primarily upon less than ideal experience with Derby Extra blades. They just were not sharp enough for my beard. However, as I explored other options, my opinion of Derby has changed significantly.

For today's shave, I did a face-off shave between the Derby Premium blade in my Karve brass C-plate and the Derby USTA blade in my Karve stainless C-plate razors. I began the shave with the Bluebird blade from the previous shave in the stainless razor. That blade remained sharp and smooth, but not quite as sharp and smooth as the Derby Premium which was now on its second use (with only half my face shaved with that blade last time. When I first installed the fresh USTA blade in the razor, it felt somewhat rough on my face, as if it might be almost too sharp like a Feather blade. However, the blade soon smoothed out. I must confess that I got two weepers during the shave. One was on my neck from the Derby Premium. The other was on my chin from the USTA. I attribute both weepers to operator error. While uncommon, they do occur from time to time.

I was able to achieve a near-BBS shave with the Derby Premium. The USTA was even closer, bordering on BBS. When applying witch hazel after the shave, I got minimal feedback on both sides of my face. Based on the results of this shave, the Derby Premium retains its rating of 4.5 sharpness and 4.5 smoothness. The USTA receives an even sharper rating of 4.75 and 4.5 on smoothness. That puts it in the same category with Feather, Nacet, 7 O'Clock Super Platinum black. For a blade that sells for about $10 per 100 blades, that is impressive. Thus, for those who like super sharp blades, I recommend you try the USTAs. Blades like the Derby Premium and USTA have completely changed my opinion of Derby.

The spreadsheet has been updated.


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

I will finish off the Derby series on Saturday with comparison of the Derby Extra blue and Derby Extra orange blades. While I suspect the Derby blues to be the same as Derby greens in different packaging, the Derby orange indicate they are Platinum coated blades and do not mention the complex coating seen on most of the other blades. However, we shall see.

Thanks for the review.  Your findings are in line with my experience and what I have read hear and there.  Ustas are good.  Along with Permasharps, they might be the best 1/2 DE for the Soloedge.  There is also a Dorco Prime Japanese Steel Steel 1/2 DE that is intriguing.  Seems it is not platinum coated, but of superior steel on high end new equipment.

Thanks for the review.  Your findings are in line with my experience and what I have read hear and there.  Ustas are good.  Along with Permasharps, they might be the best 1/2 DE for the Soloedge.  There is also a Dorco Prime Japanese Steel Steel 1/2 DE that is intriguing.  Seems it is not platinum coated, but of superior steel on high end new equipment.

I am thinking of ordering a SoloEdge razor. When I first ordered Permasharps, I inadvertently ordered the half DE blades. I still have them tucked away in a drawer. They are definitely one blade I would try in that razor. I have read that the SoloEdge comes with a bulk pack of half DE blades. However, I read that these blades are NOT the same as the Parker DE blades made by Derby. Since I have not tried the half blades, I do not know how they compare to the Parker/Derby blades. I know the Derby blades are thinner than most DE blades. I wonder if Parker decided that using thin blades in the SE razor was not so great an idea as clamping might be an issue. I also wonder if standard injector blades like those made by Personna and Schick will work in the razor. Once I get one, that is one of the first thingss I want to check. I am a fan of the Chinese made Schick injector blades  aka "Chicks".

Update: Parker SoloEdge razor is on order. Stay tuned for a revew in a few weeks.

I have a blade question not related to sharpness, but in regards to effect on performance in general. When screwing the handle back on my Karve CuBr yesterday, and this has happened a few times with different razors, as I tightened it down I could hear what I would describe as "crinkling" when tightening up on the blade. Is this normal? Is it a bad thing in terms of could it be torquing the blade too tight, twisting it, making it crooked, unaligned? Generally affecting the shave and increasing risks of nicks. I generally know not to tighten the crap out of my razors, but this happens from time to time.

I have a blade question not related to sharpness, but in regards to effect on performance in general. When screwing the handle back on my Karve CuBr yesterday, and this has happened a few times with different razors, as I tightened it down I could hear what I would describe as "crinkling" when tightening up on the blade. Is this normal? Is it a bad thing in terms of could it be torquing the blade too tight, twisting it, making it crooked, unaligned? Generally affecting the shave and increasing risks of nicks. I generally know not to tighten the crap out of my razors, but this happens from time to time.

It could either be the blade settling into final position or it could be metal to metal contact as the metal handle contacts the base plate. Some razors come with nylon washers to precent this contact. I would suggest that you order some inexpensive M5 nylon washers similar to these. These will work with both metric and ANSI thread sizes. 

https://www.amazon.com/Qjaiune-Washers-T...09TZSZN3J/

You want the handle to be snug, but not overtightened. The washer might help you judge the right torque. If you over tighten the handle, you are also putting stress on the threads. While that might not be important on a stainless or titanium razor, razors made of copper, brass, bronze, and ZAMAC do not have as much strength. The threads are often the first thing to deteriorate, especially with ZAMAC razors.

I have a blade question not related to sharpness, but in regards to effect on performance in general. When screwing the handle back on my Karve CuBr yesterday, and this has happened a few times with different razors, as I tightened it down I could hear what I would describe as "crinkling" when tightening up on the blade. Is this normal? Is it a bad thing in terms of could it be torquing the blade too tight, twisting it, making it crooked, unaligned? Generally affecting the shave and increasing risks of nicks. I generally know not to tighten the crap out of my razors, but this happens from time to time.

It could either be the blade settling into final position or it could be metal to metal contact as the metal handle contacts the base plate. Some razors come with nylon washers to precent this contact. I would suggest that you order some inexpensive M5 nylon washers similar to these. These will work with both metric and ANSI thread sizes. 

https://www.amazon.com/Qjaiune-Washers-T...09TZSZN3J/

You want the handle to be snug, but not overtightened. The washer might help you judge the right torque. If you over tighten the handle, you are also putting stress on the threads. While that might not be important on a stainless or titanium razor, razors made of copper, brass, bronze, and ZAMAC do not have as much strength. The threads are often the first thing to deteriorate, especially with ZAMAC razors.

I do have washers already. I just never really thought about it until yesterday. I always assumed it was just everything settling in/clamping down. I'm generally aware to to tighten but not over tighten. I also switched my preshave routine a bit. More so product then actual procedure. Just wondering if maybe that is possibly contributing to getting nicked. I don't think I have been nicked as much in the last 13 years as in the last 2 weeks or so. Frustrating. I'm going back to my usual preshave next shave. I don't really think that should be it but it's more of a "superstitious" kind of thing.

I do have washers already. I just never really thought about it until yesterday. I always assumed it was just everything settling in/clamping down. I'm generally aware to to tighten but not over tighten. I also switched my preshave routine a bit. More so product then actual procedure. Just wondering if maybe that is possibly contributing to getting nicked. I don't think I have been nicked as much in the last 13 years as in the last 2 weeks or so. Frustrating. I'm going back to my usual preshave next shave. I don't really think that should be it but it's more of  a "superstitious" kind of thing.

I have gotten nicks if a blade had a damaged edge, but with that exception, I always blame my own shaving technique (operator error) anytime I get a nick. It your blade is at the right angle, at light pressure, and moving perpendicular to the edge of the blade, the changes of nicks are slim. If you have a blemish, you need to work around it. If I get a nick, it will usually be at the end of a stroke when the blade is no longer moving perpendicular to the edge. If the blade stops, even momentarily, it is easy for the blade movement to become parallel to the blade edge. That slicing stroke, no matter how short, is likely to cause a nick. That is how I got a nick on my chin the a few days ago. The solution to that issue is lifting the razor away from the skin as you decelerate the speed of the stroke just before stopping.

That is the same process you learn when stropping straight razors. When you first start learning to strop, you generally end up nicking both ends of the strop surface because you start to reverse the direction of the stroke before you flip the razor to strop the other side. If you flip too early, you will also nick the strop. Once you master the timing of the flip and stroke reversal, you decelerate the movement of the stroke and flip the blade just in time to start the stroke in the opposite direction. It is built into muscle memory. In stropping a straight razor, the spine of the razor should never leave the surface of the strop. In shaving with a razor, whether straight razor or safety razor, you have to learn to lift the razor from the skin just as you are decelerating the stoke. This process needs to be built into muscle memory so you do not have to think about it every time.