Thread: Review of Blackland Saber v2-(Gem Type Single Edge Razor)

So, we all know about King Gillette and his disposable blade safety razor going back to the first years of the 20th century. Alternatively, the American Safety Razor Co which was a merger with another outfit that went back to the late 1800s produced this funny looking contraption using what appears to be a commercial single edged scraping blade. The Gem came out a dozen or so years after Gillette. I don?t know if the Gem was ever a real competitor to the Gillette. I reckon they ceased production sometime around 1970. However, the blades are still available as stainless steel with coatings designed for shaving.

So Blackland produced v1 of the Saber a few years ago which I have and my main complaint about it is it?s heavy and as a member of the over the hill gang it can be a chore to hold on to when it gets wet or soapy. Recently they came out with v2 which is the one I?m concerned with here. It?s lighter and more comfortable to hold and does not slip like the other.

The original gem was a one-piece design with a flip top which you opened and placed the blade in and pushed the top town (its actually spring loaded and goes down by itself). The blade is held in place by the top and there are two little nibs at the business end that hold the edge in place. I have one of the old gems (the art deco model) and the blade is not clamped in place like modern safety razors and some lateral movement is possible as it?s used. Tiny but it?s there. They made many models and I here tell some are more aggressive than an R-41 or so they say. The one I have gives a good shave but not great.

The Blackland Saber is unique in that it is a three piece unit , well, actually four. The handle and base plate and top come apart and then the base plate leading edge comes off and can be changed with another piece (which comes with the razor) and flips over so you have four adjustments possible. That leading edge is magnetically attached and clamps in place once the razor is put together. The razor gives a very good shave comparable to all but the most aggressive Blackland products like the Blackbird, Osprey and their small single edge razor.

To me the Achilles Heel of the Gem is the blade. They are more prone to rust than standard double and single edge blades and they are not as sharp. I can run a single or double edge razor down my face with a two- or three-day growth and I hear and feel nothing. It?s just silky smooth. The original Gem sounds like you are tearing a sheet of paper in half and you can feel that blade working on your face. It?s not uncomfortable mind you but you can feel it. The Blackland is also noisy but not nearly as much as the original Gem but you can still feel it doing its job.

They say the Gem razor blade will last 10-20 shaves. Good luck with that. I?ve found after five shaves that blade working on your face feeling starts turning into some unpleasantries and by the eighth shave I?m done. Maybe if there were more choices in blades things might be different but there is little choice.

So, the bottom line is, should you buy it? The Blackland is a very nice razor, very well constructed and is something different and on the pricey side. If you shave every day for work, it?s fine and maybe some of the other aggressive razors are too good for everyday shaving. The choice is yours and I?m keeping mine. Oh, that?s right, no pictures. You can see way better pics than I can take at the Blackland site and for pics of the original Gem Razors go to YouTube. Just do a search of gem razors to get the lowdown on those with pics of all the models they made and they made a lot. Also, if you want to buy a Gem pretty much no one wants them, so they are cheap on Eboy. You can find a mint one circa 1930 or earlier for about $30-40.

I have a good size collection of Gem razors and have learned to use them well. This new Blackland Sabor looks very nice and new to the market. One thing that makes me wonder it how flat the head is. It doesn't look to be at much of an angle like the Gem razors are. Almost 90 degrees to the handle like a DE. Almost as it does have some angle to it. If it works then great. But I don't think I will be laying down the cash for one.

It has a totally flat head and like the originals you shave with that flat head pretty much against your skin.

I understand that.
What I mean is the Gems side view with the handle stand up straight, the top of the head is 15 to 20 degrees from parallel to the ground. This new razor looks almost parallel to the ground. Not much difference from 90 degree to the handle. And this would make me think you would have the handle sticking straight out from your face while shaving not angled down at 30 to 45 degrees.

Hope that explains better to what I'm trying to say. Dammit, I'm just a truck driver not a writer.

Well, the one Gem I have, the art deco is at the angle you say. The Blackland isn't straight out maybe half way between straight and the original Gem.

I am awaiting a supply of the Accutec coated blades so we'll see if there is a difference between those and the plain stainless gem Blades.

The SE GEM format is right up there with the SE Injectors in the don't get no respect category. I used the latter in the 60's, but the GEM format never made it to my face until I tried one a decade back. I has a similar reaction to the first try as the OP (may even have been the same razor, a 1912 with a chain handle?) and put it away for a while. Later on I revisited the GEM using a Micromatic and was impressed enough that there's a bunch of models living here. Had to do with the shaving angle I guess. But one thing holds be it GEM or DE, plain carbon steel blades don't last for me. I hope the OP didn't make the mistake of shaving with box cutter blades ..

No box cutter blades for me. They are the packaged stainless blades made for the razors.

Yes the chain handle is the art deco model I have.

Using the wrong angle is an almost universal mistake most new users of Gem type razors make. For me the only blades to use in a Gem type razor are Personna Gem stainless steel PTFE coated blades. They are very smooth and sharp in use even while being long lasting and not rust prone. I get wonderful shaves from this type of razor and blade combination.

Bob

So, I got my cashe of Accuforge blades today. So the blades I was using were the Personna Stainless but uncoated. I suspect these are the coated version but rebranded. They look exactly the same with the same script on them and the specs appear to be the same as the coated Personna but compared to the uncoated the shave was vastly different. Just smooth and quiet like a typical DE blade. I'll have to try these in the original Gem razor and see what happens.

The labelling one my 100 pack of the Personna GEM PTFE coated stainless steel blades also says, 3-Facet .009inch / .23mm. I'm guessing that refers to the bevel profile and may also be another reason these blades are very smooth, sharp and long lasting.

Bob