Lol, I didn't mean to disqualify any responses, I'd like to hear from everyone!

Leighton, that's kind of what I was after. I guess maybe some of it comes down more to quality control or perhaps damage to the razor over time.

How about another question instead.. Have you guys ever had a razor that "should be good", say, a Puma or a Duck, that for the life of you, you just couldn't get right or be happy with? How common is it? I mean, if you buy a Duck or a Puma that, upon inspection, appears to be in good shape, but after a few honing sessions and shaves you are still not that satisfied, are you REALLY confused? Or do you just toss it in the "meh" pile and move on with your life?

Then there's the secondary question that kind of gets back to my original question... How much difference in the shave is there, really, between the different razors that are considered to be of "good" quality? Let's say, for example, a plain-scaled Genco and a plain-scaled Duck, both of the same size and grind, both honed by the same experienced honemeister. Would you expect both to shave you so well that with your eyes closed it would be hard to tell them apart? Or would you expect one to provide an OK "acceptable" shave, and the other to provide a much better/smoother/closer shave?