Extra Double Edge Razor Blades - 25 Ct

... before I switched to D/E shaving three months ago, I read tons of reviews on both D/E razors and blades, and regarding the latter I found that opinions vary widely: some will swear that Derby blades exemplify perfectly the adage "you get what you pay for"; that Derby blades are only moderately sharp to begin with, dull quickly, and/or drag on the face and cause tons of little nicks. As the first reviewer stated, those new to D/E shaving would be best served by purchasing a blade variety pack, to see which brand works best for them. I myself sampled several different brands, such as: 1) 7 AM -- These came with the 91R Parker Razor I purchased from Amazon, and were the first blades I used as a D/E shaver. At first use, I found them unsatisfactory; they seemed to drag on my face. Such impression was confirmed when, having used some other brands, I again tried a 7 AM blade just to make sure. An unqualified thumbs-down. 2) SHARP -- Not as bad as the 7 AM blades, but unsatisfactory; they did not feel at all comfortable on my face. 3) Feather -- Going by the reviews, Feather blades are the top of the line, super-sharp and long-lasting. However, many reviewers advised that those new to D/E shaving should begin with other, more "forgiving" (i.e., less sharp) blades. I followed this advice, and sampled a Feather blade about two weeks after I'd started D/E shaving, at which point I found them too sharp. Around a week ago, after about two-and-a-half months of D/E shaving, I gave Feather another try and reached the same verdict: Feather blades cut me more than any other blade I tried. I'm not sure I'd say they "nicked" me, rather they gave such a close shave as to shave skin along with hair. 4) Derby -- I only had five of these, and used them when I'd just begun D/E shaving. Thus, while I didn't have a bad impression of them, I didn't really remember if they were good or merely decent. In any event, the last time I used a Feather blade, my face was pretty sore. Having nothing left but Feather, SHARP, and 7 AM blades, I used my old Mach 3. Although the Mach 3 cartridges are prohibitively expensive and quick to dull, they are gentle on my skin. As it happens, it was good that I chose to use it that day, as it provided a close, comfortable shave that served as a perfect baseline for comparison when my new Derby blades arrived two days later. The verdict: for me, Derby blades are as good as, if not better than, Mach 3 blades; they give a nice, clean shave that is close but extremely gentle on the face -- no nicks, and no shaved-off skin.

I decided to give the whole DE-shaving thing a try. After looking around, I ended up buying the Parker 96R razor because it reminded me of my dad's gillette from waayyyy back. I also ordered a 10-pack of Sharks (came with the Razor), a 10-pack of Merkur blades, and a 25-pack of Derby blades. First note - the razor is solid, with a comfortable heft. It also closes up well - though not quite perfectly on both sides - and holds the blades nice and straight while making it trivial to pop a blade in or out. As to the razors, my impressions after trying out (almost) 2 each. This was to ensure that impressions I had weren't just due to being a tyro. Even with the occasional nick, the shaves have been consistently close (except for the Merkur, I'd wake up the NEXT morning with a closer shave than I'd gotten out of some electrics). Sharks - Nice, sharp, and I can get several shaves out of them before I start getting razor bumps, hair tugging, or "slips" due to the blade dulling. Derby - just wow. Nicer, sharper, and not really more expensive. Very happy with them. I almost immediately felt like this blade just glided over my skin effortlessly shaving away my beard. Merkur - perhaps it was just a matter of fit with the razor, but this is the only blade that consistently felt skittish, the one I consistently nicked myself with the easiest, and the only one I got razor bumps on the very. first. shave. I actually ended up mentally rating the razors based on how many shaves before they started feeling like the "new" merkur blades - and were, IMO , unusable since I'd start getting the razor bumps from my cartridge days. The sharks would give me three shaves, the derby blades 4, maybe 5.

This blade is well made and provides a nice smooth shave. I gave it a 4 because even though the shave is nice, smooth and out perform's my Norelco electric shaver, Gillette Mach 3 and any other cheap plastic razor I've ever used. Unfortunately, it still leaves a five o'clock shadow that is visible. It is more visible than slightly-visible, but I would say it is good enough as I can go 2-3 days tops without needing a shave. It probably is as close as I will get without taking the plunge and purchasing a straight blade & strop. I will try another brand of blades just to see if it is indeed the Derby blade or if this is as close as I can get. Because I have a Edwin Jagger Safety razor, Edwin Jagger Badger brush, and Edwin Jagger shaving cream too, I lather up my face well, keep it wet as much as possible and I'm still able to see a gray shadow. I know I can do better though, as some areas have far lesser shadow especially on the sides of my face, but the trouble spots are the goatee area and chin. Maybe I need more practice...time will tell, but it's worth the cash I spent. I wouldn't be surprised that in the future I eventually did end up purchasing a straight blade though.

Obviously razor blades are largely a matter of preference but these Derby blades have been a godsend for me. I formerly used Feather blades, which are rightly considered excellent and incredibly sharp. My problem is that my skin is far from perfect and the Feathers tend to cut me to shreds, particularly in the first couple of shaves. I've used them for quite a while and managed to get my technique as good as I could to minimize the damage but I thought I'd try something else. I read a lot of reviews and decided to try the Derbys. My first shave was less than perfect only because I decided to try the sample packet of Anthony pre shave oil that came with my order. Not impressed. The shave, however, was very good in spite of that. A couple of nicks that I'll call my fault but very close and no bleeding that wasn't immediately staunched by cold water. For my second shave, I went back to my Neutrogena Daily Defense for a pre-shave wash and got a superb shave from the Derby blade: close and smooth; no blood; no razor burn. Simply the best shave I've ever had. While I still recommend the Feathers for those whose face can take them, I've got to heartily recommend the Derby blades.

I've been through my first 5 pack of these blades, and I have to say that I just didn't find them to be effective for me. This is only the third type of blade I've tried, so take that for what it's worth. The main issue I had is that they really tugged on my whiskers rather than cut them. It ended up causing a lot of irritation as I had to make more passes over those areas. They're not too bad in the cuts and nicks department. I have a medium thickness beard, and it seems they just weren't sharp enough. I have been wet shaving for several months so I can't sit here and say my technique was perfect and it was all the blade, but I really do feel that way. The other blades I have are generic ones I got at a drugstore. I just completed a shave with one of those after using the Derby Extras, and I won't be going back. The shave was effortless and the finished product is much smoother. That's why I feel confident blaming the Derby blades for my poor shaves. In fact if I have anything good to say about the Derbys is that they made my technique better as I had to have the blade at the perfect angle to have any chance of trimming my whiskers effectively. I don't discount anybody's experience with these, it seems that you just have to try different blades to find ones that work for your face. With that in mind, try to get some sample packs and don't be like me and just buy a 25 pack of Derby blades if you don't know they'll work for you. I think I'll take my own advice and look around for some blade sample packs now. I still have 20 more Derbys so perhaps I will try one in the future and revise my review.

I recently ordered a new Merkur razor from Amazon, and purchased these blades to use with it. The primary reason for my selection was price. These were a very good deal and seemed to be good quality. The only comparison I can make to these is to the multi-blade plastic cartridge type razors commonly seen on television advertisements. I have gotten a much closer shave, with less irritation, than I ever got using those. They also seem to be fairly durable, as I've gotten several good shaves out of each blade. I don't have experience with safety razors to know how that stacks up to other types of blades, however. These work great for my needs, and I would recommend them. Your mileage, of course, may vary. I have a somewhat thin, soft beard and very sensitive skin.

Not sure I will change anyones buying habits, but I will give my experiences, for what they are worth. Was a little leary starting DE shaving again, as I tried DE shaving about 9 years and scared my wife! I was a bloody mess, and she almost dialed 911!!! But I was unprepared for DE shaving at that time. But being disgusted with high cost of multiblades refill (fusion), a couple of months ago I recently received, from my mom, all my dads old Gillette DE razors from the 50's 60's and 70's. So I cleaned them up, and bought Derby blades due to the good reviews I read for it as a starter blade. I had been using Mitchells Wool Fat shaving soap for over a year, so I also bought some of Geo Trumper pink coral skin food, and decided to try DE shaving again. I was more prepared this time. I started with my dads old cheap 3 piece Gillette tech take apart razor. They made millions of these during the war. Unfortunately it didn't work for me. I am sure my technique was poor. I bled but not too bad. So I moved up and next tried dads black handled superspeed non adjustable, with these Derby blades. Wow, fabulous. So smooth and comfortable, no irritation. And no blood! I am still perfecting my technique, but my face was feeling great, especially after Geo Trumpers pink skin food was put on. May have bled 3 times in 4 months with these Derby blades and the old Gillette superspeed. So I put DE shaving with this Derby blade in rotation with my remaining costly fusion multiblades and some Gillette Good News disposables (which is a nice shaver in itself in my opinion) and have been shaving every day rotating with a different razor. Feeling a little cocky, I decided to (what I thought would be a step up) buy some Feather blades, reading about how sharp and good they are, and put in rotation with the other 3 shaving practices I was using. First shave with the Feather, and I was bleeding. Figured my technique needed to be fine tuned, or my speed slowed down and to become more deliberate. No help. The feather blades scraped and irritated my face, especially the neckline. The Derbys were more forgiving and comfortable for me. I have taken the feather blades out of my rotation, and when my costly fusion multiblades run out, I will be left with the Gillette Good News disposables and the Derby razors. I will next try some of dads adjustable Gillette superspeeds and a Gillette fat boy adjustable, comforted by the knowledge I can always go back to the black handled superspeed non adjustable I have been enjoying. And yes I just bought to add to my stock, the 100 count Derby razor blades at 10 cents a blade.

I recently switched over to a safety razor after being fed up with tossing out absurd amounts of money for replacement cartridges on my Gillette Fusion. I offer this review with a few disclaimers: (1) I'm new to the game, and these are my first razor blades I'm trying, so I can't speak to the quality of Derby blades compared with Feathers, Sharks, etc.; (2) my beard is not overly coarse, though I do need to shave every day -- it seems to me that a person's choice in razors is unique according to what works best for them. That said... The Derby Extra Double Edge razors work great for me! 1. Irritation -- I haven't experienced any irritation from the blades. Shaving with a safety razor is a different game than shaving with a multi-blade razor -- you have to use a good shave cream, you can't press as hard, you have to take your time, and you have to keep an eye on what you're doing. I've followed those rules and I haven't experienced any razor bumps or other irritation, even around the crease of my neck where I usually got irritation from the Fusion. 2. Sharpness -- They seem reasonably sharp to me. Again, I haven't tested out the market for razor blades yet, but by no means would I say the Derbys are dull or even "not sharp." Again, I think it has to do with what kind of beard you have, so you really have to feel it out and do what's best for your own face. The Derbys have done a great job for me with only one pass of the razor, but as I said before, my beard is not as thick and coarse as some others may be. 3. Durability -- I use my blades 4-5 times before I throw away the blade -- not because the blade is dull, but because I don't want to press my luck with a dull blade and these are cheap enough that a work-week's worth of use out of a single blade seems about right. I used to be able to get 8-10 good shaves out of my Gillette Fusion, but those cartridges cost about $4 each, whereas a Derby blade is about $0.21 apiece. Overall, I gave the Derbys a 4 out of 5, not because there is anything wrong with these blades, but because I have nothing to compare it to -- Once I try other blades, I'll update.