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Post by mjclark on Apr 23, 2015 14:47:31 GMT -6
Round 22: NOS Valet (3) vs Feather Seikan (3) On its third shave the Feather Seikan was unusably rough and I binned it. Both the Valet and the Feather Seikan perform very nicely when stropped in a Valet razor but unstropped in a GEM the Valet is initially awesome but drops of quickly whilst the Feather Seikan has nothing to commend it. And would a Japanese speaker please explain what "Seikan" means? So here's the Phase Three results, blades ranked on their THIRD shave: 1) CVS 2) Blue Star 2008 3) PAL Blue Blue Star 2014 5) Treet Didn't place - NOS Valet Feather Seikan Very different results from those of the previous shaves. Is it the coating, is it the grind? And only four blades left for Phase Four!
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Post by mjclark on Apr 27, 2015 13:35:09 GMT -6
Phase Four: ER 1924, Very Nice Artisan Badger and Boar Brush, Fabulous Wilkinson Shave Stick Round 23: PAL Blue (4) vs Blue Star 2014 (4) - For the first three shaves the PAL and the Blue Star 2014 behaved in a very similar fashion but on their fourth shave they could not have behaved more differently. The PAL has become unusably harsh and tuggy. It's over and done. But the Blue Star 2014 has become absolutely magnificent, perhaps the best performance of this entire shave off (!), beautifully smooth and somehow it has become sharper, almost as sharp as the CVS. It's definitely got another shave left in it after this. This has got to be something to do with the coatings right?
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Post by drumzalot on Apr 27, 2015 16:41:41 GMT -6
Well, at least the Blue Star 2014 is still a good quality blade in your tests. As soon as I run out of my 2009 Blue Stars I have to try the newer stock. If the new Blues are notably inferior to the older stock the Treets will become my go to blades. The Treets I am using are of the exact same packaging as yours manufactured in 2008.
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Post by mjclark on Apr 28, 2015 13:28:00 GMT -6
Round 24: Blue Star 2014 (4) vs CVS (4) Although it gave a decent fourth shave, the CVS blade is nowhere near as good as the consistently great Blue Star 2014. The CVS blade shone on its second and third shaves. Now on the fourth shave it is still sharp but on the way back down and becoming rougher. It might push to a fifth shave but I suspect that would be mediocre.
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Post by mjclark on May 4, 2015 9:40:51 GMT -6
Round 25: CVS (4) vs Blue Star 2008 (4) On its fourth shave the Blue Star 2008 is beautiful, very smooth and very sharp. And it's now indistinguishable from the Blue Star 2014, so.maybe they are the same blade with different coatings. In any case, the CVS blade is on its way out but both Blue Stars are superb on their fourth shave and definitely have a fifth shave left on them.
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Post by mjclark on Aug 5, 2015 10:40:23 GMT -6
Round 26: Blue Star 2014 (5) vs Blue Star 2008 (5) Both these blades are tired now, the 08 has become a bit too harsh and the 14 had become a bit too dull. But the Blue Stars have gone the distance for longevity and quality. So here's the results: Smoothest on first shave are the vintage blades Valet, Micromatic and also Blue Star 2008 Sharpest is the CVS and the Blue Stars. And the longevity crown goes to the Blue Stars. Worst of the bunch was the Feather Seikan which was almost unusable. So the PALs and Treets are OK, CVS is supersharp but the all round best carbon SE blades are the Blue Stars!
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