Thread: which edge did I use last?

This blade is dull. But have i used only the one side all the time?

I feel silly asking this but i am loosing track of which side of the DE is getting the work. I can see myself using only one side and tossing a "half used" blade away.

I have started laying the last used side down and using the upward facing side the next day.

With a straight there is no choice....

Here's the crazy way I do it.
I take one stroke, the roll it over for the second stroke, rinse, repeat untill the shave is done.
Then I open the razor, remove the blade with my left hand, use a wet Q-tip with my right to wipe the residue for both edges & both sides, then place it back in the same way it came out.

I'm getting 6 good shaves out of a Shark & 7 or 8 out of a feather before I put a new blade in. I could probable get more shaves out of each, but I'm working my way through a sample pack, so I can't wait to test the next brand.

That's the reason I quit using a DE. I could never figure out which side of the blade got the most passes. When the wife found me counting strokes with a magic marker on the bathroom wall, out went the DEs.

I use them however it comes, then take out the blade hand strop on my palm. Blades go for as long s they go and there is no difference in how each side shaves as far as I can tell.

There are much bigger things in life to worry about.

I never remove the blade till the end of her life
In shaving after the first pass from the cork i use both sides
I never turn upside down the blade cause i think will make the cut a little bit different
Practically a shaver must be a Super-Expert to understand the difference if someone turn the blade without to know it so i do it first for psychological reasons and second due to "machinist rules".

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

There are much bigger things in life to worry about.

Not all of us are big spenders! The little bit I have used a DE has been with Walgreen special blades or similar. By accident I ran into a store while looking for another shop for ingredients for an aftershave that had Merkur blades. $8 or so for pack may not have been a deal as the other things in that store where expensive but what the hay. I don't know and didn't care.

To me it is more of a matter of principle. Even if half is only 40 cents why throw something half used away? Using a blade a week for example for me that is about an hours wages after taxes per year. I can waste that money on something else! One 5th of one months truck payment maybe.