Thread: Sheffield / solingen steel difference

I tend to concur. The nice thing about Sheffield is that they respond to the strop very well too. I think I can keep my edge there longer with persistent stropping, 60 laps before each shave.

X

Only one of my top few razors is a Solingen blade. It does feel very smooth, though it took some work to get there

While I am a very big fan of smooth feel, and agree that old Sheffields feel smooth, I do not have a single one of them in my top few! (and I have tried several of the best) So much for blanket statements.

Moreover, of the next very close tier rated 10/10, it seems that German (what with Pumas and Ducks, etc.) and US blades have an edge over Sheffields. Sure, there are a few Sheffields representatives but they aren't really shining over and above the rest. Ops, I forgot to include the Swedish steel top shavers...

Cheers
Ivo

Hmm, I kind of wonder about all this. Is this like the difference between coke and pepsi? Many razors do say sheffield or solingen or silver steel on them and many don't so with many razors you don't know where they are from. Also just because it says Solingen doesn't mean the steel was sourced from there. I wonder if we did a blind test with one of each not knowing which was which say one U.S razor, one Swedish, one Silver Steel and one Solingen and a Spanish for good measure how many of us could really tell the difference.

Originally Posted by gratewhitehuntr

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If stainless is more scratchy then do I really want a Friodur??

I agree - Sheffield feels softer both when sharpening and when shaving. And GW - if I may take the liberty - yes, you do want a Friodur - mine's lovely and has stayed sharp for ages. I've found, maybe because it's a bigger (8/8) blade, that it's not as scratchy or "tinny-feeling" as my smaller Solingens.

James.