 Lives up to its reputation for sharpness, but the warnings are overstated |
| Review Date: October 20, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Charles Dickens, |
Feathers have a reputation for being the sharpest blade, but also the one that lends itself to the most nicks, the one that requires the most skill to handle. So far I've tried three blades - Merkurs were dull and gave an awful shave as well as a number of nicks (due to me trying to shave closer and applying pressure and taking many passes), Derby's are excellent but do tend to irritate my skin a bit after I've gone against the grain. With Derby's, I have to do a number of passes to get a good shave, so irritation is unavoidable. The Feather I just shaved with gave me a great shave just by going with the grain. I would probably be happy enough with that on most days, but surprised that I had no nicks given that I'm a relative newbie to DE shaving and Feathers are supposed to be like samurai swords, only to be handled by the masters, I then decided to go against the grain for some extra closeness. The only nick was on my neck where I had a big razor bump (or a pimple?) and the blade, true to its reputation, just lopped it off. It's not a total wrecking machine though -- I do have some very little bumps around my chin area but it didn't lop those off.
A good measure of irritation comes from what I do after the shave. I have a problem with ingrown hairs, so to prevent those I recently learned to apply 10% glycolic acid cream immediately after each shave. Applying the acid after shaving with the Derby's leads to an incredible amount of stinging, so ridiculous the pain that I end up laughing like a lunatic in an effort to bear it. I applied the acid after the shave with the Feather, expecting the worst, but surprisingly there was only some mild stinging. Some aloe on top of that and I was a happy man.
They say that every man is different and there will never be a consensus on the best blade, but I'll throw my hat in and say the Feather is the best blade. And you'd think it would have to be, since it is indisputably the sharpest, which implies that it shaves as closely as another blade with less pressure -- and isn't that the formula for less irritation? |
By far my favorite
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| Review Date: July 28, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Andalusi, Redwood City, CA |
I've spent the last few months trying various blades: 7 AM, Derby, Astra, Merkur, Gilette Swedes (these *were* my favorite), Sharp, and several other brands. The Feather blades win hands-down for me. They are the sharpest and best at keeping their edge that I've used.
Though as others have warned, be careful or you'll wind up with your fair share of nicks. But if you pay attention, you'll get a very close and satisfactory shave. |
Smooth as silk
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| Review Date: January 25, 2010 |
| Reviewer: deepclue, New York |
Just switched to DE safety razor a few days ago, though I have years of experience with cartridge-based shaving (Gillette Fusion). The Merkur set I bought came with a Merkur sample blade. It was good but not great. Today I tried the Feather. When shaving with the grain, I thought "this thing is not working, it feels smooth as silk." But boy was it working. It puts the Merkur to shame. I'm not sure I'll try anything else.
Update: I've been trying the Merkur and the Feather for a while now. I can testify to what many say about Feather: it took me a while to get the hang of it and avoid irritation or cuts. The Merkur is far more forgiving in this regard, perhaps because it's just not as sharp. A tough trade-off--I think I'll stock both. |
Sharp as you're going to find
|
| Review Date: June 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: M. Starbuck, |
I switched to the feather blades after using Merkur blades for more than a year. This razors are consistently sharper and of a higher quality than the Merkur blades.
Having said that, as others have pointed out, sharper doesn't necessarily mean better. If you have sensitive skin or suffer from ingrown hairs, you will have to be extremely careful with these blades. Any bumps or irregularities on your face will get cut off if you're not paying attention.
That said, these are my new go to blades. |
Ninja Sharp Blade
|
| Review Date: June 25, 2009 |
| Reviewer: A. Kumar, NJ, USA |
| These are the sharpest blade that I have ever tried. These glide through the hair like ice skates. |
Much sharper than Merkur that's for sure
|
| Review Date: October 16, 2009 |
| Reviewer: J. Fuerte, |
I've never written a review on Amazon, but I just had to for this product. It is very sharp and goes through hairs like a hot knife through butter. I am using a Merkur 180 razor, and used the Merkur blade that came with it. I was somewhat unimpressed with it since I have thick hair on my face, and decided to try out the Feather due to its supposed sharpness. I am very impressed. It cut through the hairs much more easily than the Merkur. We'll see if it lasts longer though since the Merkur blade only lasted for about 2 or 3 shaves before it started pulling. The only issue I have is that I still manage to nick to neck even with this sharp razor, but I'm sure it's still due to my lack of experience using these types of razors.
Oh, and I realize people write saying these blades bloody their faces up. I had no issues at all with that. I had two or three small nicks on my neck, and that's it. Maybe they were shaving in the dark or with a vibrating razor? |
Best I've used
|
| Review Date: November 8, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Matthew B. Drennen, |
| I've only tried three razors, Feather, Merkur, and a grocery store brand. Grocery store brand shaved about as well as a spoon. The Merkur razor was better, but still was not as sharp out of the box and didn't last nearly as long. The Feather has been by far the sharpest and longest lasting. I will not buy another brand of razor from now on. |
I have found my DE razor brand.
|
| Review Date: January 30, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Thomas A. Galindo, Bay Area, CA |
Purchased a Merkur razor a while ago and it came with Merkur blades as part of the deal. Merkur blades worked fine for me, but I get an easier and smoother shave with the Feather. I was scared at first to use Feather, because of all of the reviews saying that you can get nicked up pretty bad. Well, not for me. As long as you have your lather correct, you shouldn't run into any problems.
My last 5 shaves have been nick free although I do have to change blades after every second shave (for any brand). |
Feather blades
|
| Review Date: January 30, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Louisville Rater, |
I bought these to try in my Merkur Futur razor. They
are as sharp as reviews have said. I will buy
more when my current main supply of Derby
blades runs out. Great with Proraso shave
cream. |
Don't Fear the Feather!
|
| Review Date: May 9, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Scott N. Pletcher, Sagle, ID |
After trying Merkur and Derby blades, these are my favorite thus far. They give me a very close, smooth shave for 5 or 6 days verus 2-3 days on the other blades I've tried. Even though these are more expensive, I get twice the shaves, a more comfortable shave and less waste.
I use a Merkur Futur at #2 for the first few days on a new blade, then dial it up to #2.5 for the last couple days. I haven't had any more nicks with Feather than my other blades. Other items in my routine are an Omega badger brush and Taylor of Old Bond Street Avocado shaving cream. |
it's a blade, guys.
|
| Review Date: May 18, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Jonathan A. Russell, knoxville, TN |
| Blades -should- be sharp. After I got a DE razor in February, I switched to Feather on my third shave. I never looked back; it's a very sharp blade. This can mean fewer passes and less irritation. On here and some forums, the danger of being sliced open and mercilessly nicked are hyped. Sure, if you shave against the grain the first pass and scrape the blade quickly across your face, you're asking for burns and bumps. But we all know that's not how you shave. |
Insanely sharp, 10000x sharper then merkur blades
|
| Review Date: November 24, 2009 |
| Reviewer: KalEl, KC, MO |
| These are as sharp as you get. If you are clumsy you will will slice your head off. If you shave slow and steady, these will get you the absolutely best shave money can buy |
Amazing Blades
|
| Review Date: January 25, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Greg Vaillancourt, |
I have been a single blade shaver for about 1 year. In that time I've used the Merkur blades and was satisfied with them but these are amazing.
I took the name "Feather" to mean you should use almost zero pressure and this is how I shave with these.
You don't need pressure but you do need good technique. Pay attention and you'll be sold on these. |
Best way to shave
|
| Review Date: August 2, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Domini, |
| I had to shave a full beard after 2 months of shaving-laziness. Usually you gotta trim first, but not with these blades, they're great. They're very sharp so I guess if you don't pay attention you could hurt yourself. I never had that happen, unless you're an idiot you don't have to worry about it. |
I am a convert!
|
| Review Date: August 20, 2010 |
| Reviewer: P. Federici, |
I have been using the standard merk safety blades for about 3 years now, and after seeing the postive feedback and reviews of these feather blades thought I would give them a try. OMG! It was like shaving with butter! It was so soft and smooth! What normally takes a few passes (with the grain) took only 1 pass and I didnt even need to flip over the ravor! It put the merk's to shame! I have curly hair so ingrown hairs come natural if I dont take care while shaving, so I was hesitant that such a close shave would cause issues, but there has been no problems with these blades.
I do agree that these should be treated like a weapon, and NOT be used when starting out with a tradional ravor. Start with the standard merk's and get use to how to avoid cuts, and holding the ravor properly for your face then step up to feather blades.
|
Great Blades
|
| Review Date: December 16, 2008 |
| Reviewer: J. Dent, |
Great blades, smooth shaves and no irritation. Very sharp, you have to pay attention while using them or you WILL cut yourself!!
I learned to shave with these, much smoother than a Merkur blade. |
Very sharp!
|
| Review Date: August 24, 2010 |
| Reviewer: e-Sparty, |
Everyone who warned that these blades are very sharp was so right. These blades leave NOTHING behind.
I've become a fairly deft straight/safety razor user and I still had a couple of nicks with these blades.
Which is not to say that the blades are bad. On the contrary, they are excellent and require no more than two passes for an ultra-smooth shave.
I was using the Shark blades which came with the straight razor. I think I just need to get used to the Feather blades.
|
Shaving with a Scalpel
|
| Review Date: January 18, 2009 |
| Reviewer: random observer, Monroe County FL |
By far the sharpest of the blades I've tried, the Feather will give a startlingly close shave. As the other users have pointed out, that sharpness is double-edged: you must pay attention to what you are doing, and you cannot hurry too much. Careless dragging of this blade will leave your face looking like a crime scene. A careful shave will produce a delightfully smooth cheek.
If, like me, you are switching from the crud in the drugstore, you may wish to start with a blade that is not quite as sharp, like a Merkur, before you tackle this one.
Five stars reduced to four for the shipping costs (yes you can do better if you look). |
Almost unforgivingly sharp
|
| Review Date: March 16, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Cristian Ioan Tiu, Buffalo, NY USA |
Through Amazon (who seems bent onto getting me shaving related coupons and asking for reviews) I got free Feather blades when I bought my regular Merkur blades. I have never tried Japanese blades before ... for the past years I used only Merkur blades or Gillette disposables (since now you cannot fly with blades).
The Feather blades were a truly new experience - I thought I forgot how to shave. The difference in the right amount of pressure between Merkurs and Feathers is almost as big as the difference in pressure between Merkurs and disposables. You REALLY have to pay attention to how much of your skin you let yourself shade with the Feathers. Grantedly the shave is close and the initial cut impeccable (they become dull quick - dull relative to their initial sharpness). But the level off everything they touch on your face almost regardless of how aggressive your shave/razor is. Since they are so unforgiving yet this sharpness dulls relatively quickly I wanted to continue using Merkur blades.
However, I learned that these blades CAN be used with adjustable razors set at the minimum. I have done so, and there are no more cuts and the shave is close. The dullness is still a problem but the blades are very good the first couple of times, on par with the Merkurs I am used to. |
Sharp
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| Review Date: April 9, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Kirk Haynes, Missouri, USA |
| Be careful, these blades are sharp. I am new to DE shaving and apparently these are not the most forgiving blades (I come to find out later). But after a little practicing now they shave great. Good blades! |
Good, but I think the Merkurs are better
|
| Review Date: January 13, 2009 |
| Reviewer: W. Allen, Colorado |
| Don't get me wrong, these are good blades. I personally like the Merkur blades better. These seem to irritate my neck quite a bit. |
Sharpest blade I've tried, but...
|
| Review Date: August 31, 2009 |
| Reviewer: S. Aftab, |
| ...it's a bit harsh, and it gets a bit volatile after the second or third shave. Still a good blade for the price. |
Haven't seen this much blood since 300
|
| Review Date: October 6, 2009 |
| Reviewer: adangit, Los Angeles |
| Whoever said these blades are unforgiving is completely accurate. These blades will give you the closest shave ever, but at the cost of your skin. They will hunt any bump, and clear it right off your face. Very unforgiving indeed. Great product, if you know how to handle it, and requires a lot of patience. I even re-attempted with pre-shave oil thinking the slickness would help the blade slide. It slid alright, right through my skin. |
Shipping more than product
|
| Review Date: December 12, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Emailharold, |
| The product is great and would rate a 5 star rating if the shipping from this company hadn't doubled the price of the item. |
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