Astra Platinum

Astra Superior Platinum (green) has become my favorite all-around blade. I find them to be sufficiently sharp, but not so sharp that I get weepers (as is the case with Feathers). The shave is smooth and is consistent across razors. I used to be a big fan of Derbys, which are nice, but not as nice as the Astras IMO. They are also cheap -- you get 100 for around $9 on Amazon. What experiences have others had with these blades? Do you have another favorite go-to blade?

(01-04-2023, 10:42 PM)bokaba Wrote: Astra Superior Platinum (green) has become my favorite all-around blade. I find them to be sufficiently sharp, but not so sharp that I get weepers (as is the case with Feathers). The shave is smooth and is consistent across razors. I used to be a big fan of Derbys, which are nice, but not as nice as the Astras IMO. They are also cheap -- you get 100 for around $9 on Amazon. What experiences have others had with these blades? Do you have another favorite go-to blade?

It is amazing how cheap they are. I see them favored quite well in most cases. My experiences so far is a used one twice and it bit me both times. I still have some here and I will likely try them again. Gillette Nacet it has been a favorite of mine for a long time and most recently the Israeli Persona Reds made in Germany have become my favorite right now. I started off using Shark and Derby blades. Recently I tried a Shark blade and found it to be on the duller side. I still have some Derby blades lying around and and soon as I can find them, I will likely try them again.

An all-round, dependable, pretty good shave. Can’t argue with the price, either. They last, too, unlike Feathers which are also very overrated, in my opinion.

When I'm not using a straight razor the Astra is my usual choice.

The Astras are a good, inexpensive, all around blade and know they are very popular.  I can use them but they tend to be a bit dull for me except in my Twig.  Any blade I use in my Twig tends to feel much smoother I think because of its' shave angle.  Feathers seemed to chatter for me and did not last very long.  My current favorites in no particular order are Personna-Crystal, Wilkinson Sword from India, and Voskhod.  I still retry some previous blades or try new ones on occasion and will add a tuck or two in my online orders.

I have yet to try Nacet or Voskhod, but will try to get some samples.

I've used plenty of the SP's and the SS's, I can't really tell them apart, they both seem ok but not very sharp. I won't buy any more even though they are cheap.

Feather or German Wilkinson Sword for me. (although the Personna Platinum and the various 7o'clock blades are worth a mention)

(01-04-2023, 11:05 PM)Mike Distress Wrote: It is amazing how cheap they are. I see them favored quite well in most cases. My experiences so far is a used one twice and it bit me both times. I still have some here and I will likely try them again. Gillette Nacet it has been a favorite of mine for a long time and most recently the Israeli Persona Reds made in Germany have become my favorite right now. I started off using Shark and Derby blades. Recently I tried a Shark blade and found it to be on the duller side. I still have some Derby blades lying around and and soon as I can find them, I will likely try them again.

And then they’re shipped to Mexico for packaging

I tested a number of different blades to see what works best for me.  Finally settled on the Astra SP as my blade of choice and bought a ton of them.  They are super cheap, and I figured they won't spoil.  A couple of months ago I decided to try the Personna Blue blade (one I hadn't tried before).  I use a blade 4 times before changing to a new one, so I alternated between the Astra and Personna.  I've found the two to be close, with the Personna a little smoother and giving me a slightly closer shave.  Not much, but enough to notice.  The Personna is about twice the price, but still cheap at only $0.17 per blade.  That's $0.04 per use.  A big benefit for me with the Personna is that it is made in the good old USA, while the Astra is made in Russia which I'm not a fan of supporting.  Still, I like the Astra SP blades and with my stash of them, I'll be using Astra blades for a long time.

The Astra SP’s are all that I use. I even turned my barber on to them, who uses them in shavettes.