Astra Superior Stainless Double Edge Razor Blades (100 Blades)

UPDATE: 6/26/2018I'm so happy I decided to buy these blades. I've been shaving with these exclusively for almost 2 years and I love them just as much as the first time I used them. There may be sharper or more expensive blades out there but IMHO these are an ideal balance of sharp, affordable and effective. Perfect for inexperienced shavers or veterans alike. If you're debating I'd recommend getting them.The 100 blades will last you a loooong time. I easily get 5-7 smooth shaves out of each blade before I consider tossing it. That's usually with shaving 2-4 days worth of growth every time. I knew these would last me a while but I had no idea just how long. It's been nearly 2 years since I bought these and I'm honestly only a little over halfway through them. The amount of money I've saved versus what I would have spent buying cartridges or disposable razors is ridiculous! Even if you go nuts and shave daily with a fresh blade you'll be saving tons of money.The lone complaint I've been able to come up with is the lack of old blade disposal integrated into the packaging. It's up to you to safely store and or dispose of your discarded blades. (These are packaged in very lightweight cardboard and not plastic or metal cases with a disposal slot like some double edge blades.)ORIGINAL REVIEW:So far I'm loving these blades. Keep in mind at the moment I've only used a couple of them but they are worlds better than the cheap double edge blades I was using from our local Dollar General store. Those didn't last long and tended to pull on heavier growth more. These blades were as advertised and described and appear to the real deal. You get two cards containing 10 packs of 5 blades each for a total of 100 blades. Each small cardboard box of blades contains 5 double edged blades individually wrapped in wax paper. The blades have a bit of a waxy coating on them and a dab of wax like material to hold the wax paper on that wipes away with a finger. I noticed no thick dabs of glue etc that you need to get off.These blades glide so much better than the garbage I was using before and are much sharper. I feel like I can let the weight of the razor do the work like I should. Oddly enough they seem to be more forgiving as well. I haven't knicked or cut myself once with these and I usually shave very quickly. I've experienced no razor bumps or razor burn even after multiple passes when my first rushed attempt misses spots. (I really should slow down!) Once you factor in what an insane value these are you really can't go wrong. As long as I can keep buying double Edge blades I'll never go back to cartridges, disposables etc.BACKGROUND DETAILS:Since shaving and choosing the best blade are highly personalized and an area where a LOT of people are passionate about things I thought I'd share a bit of background info so you know where I'm coming from. I'm not a shaving snob. I'm not a guy that spends a great deal of time thinking about shaving. I'm not someone who will sit down and debate or discuss the intricacies of shaving with you. For me it's sort of like politics, the perfect cup of coffee, the perfect car or the ideal partner debate. Everyone has their own opinion and what is perfect for one person may not be right for next. There is no one size fits all solution.I'm not new to shaving with a double edge blade. I've been doing it for about 10 years but I honestly never put a ton of thought in it. I like the closeness it offers and when I discovered how much more affordable it was in the long run I switched and never looked back. As a single dad on a budget my primary reason for shaving with a DE razor is the significant cost savings. Buying a year or two worth of blades for the same price I'd pay for 2-4 of the latest cartridge style razors just seems so much smarter.I have the luxury of working for myself at home so I don't need to shave every day. I usually don't shave every day since I don't have. I typically go 2-3 days or sometimes longer between shaves. I prefer wet shaving and I honestly don't put much thought into what I use. I typically go with cheap shaving cream or shaving gels. I use an old Gilette "Black Beauty" long handle adjustable razor. I have pretty coarse hair, especially on my neck. I also tend to get razor burn, bumps and irritation on my neck very easily.For YEARS I've been using the blades I bought down the street at a Dollar General store. I think I paid a couple bucks for 5 blades. This was primarily for affordability and convenience. I started using them when I first switched to DE shaving. I guess my line of thinking was I'd try the easiest and cheapest blades I could get locally. If I liked DE shaving I could then look into better blades. Life got in the in the way and I just stuck in the same old rut. I'd buy a few packs at the beginning of the year and stretch them out MUCH longer than I should. Sure, most people aren't interested in my frugal shopping habits, but I thought it's important to point out I honestly don't have much experience with a higher quality blade.A couple weeks ago I popped my last Dollar General blade into my razor and I honestly will never go back. I grew tired of raking those dulled slabs of steel across my face. Even with a new blade shaving a three day growth involved more pulling than I liked and multiple passes. Even with a brand new blade and shaving every day I'd tend to get irritated on my neck area due to the previous blades. When I decided to finally buy a better blade I turned to Amazon to research my options and read some reviews. That proved to be a blessing and a curse. Being able to read reviews is helpful but also tends to make things even more confusing at times. After spending an hour or two reading many reviews and reading reviewers debating the intricacies and benefits of countless blades I came across the Astra Superior Stainless. This is the blessing.I honestly have no real clue what I'm doing with all of this and trying to figure out which blade is best by reading what other people think really isn't Since I'm a bit hamfisted and always in a rush I figured I didn't want a very aggressive blade. Reviews seemed to indicate these are sharp yet forgiving blades that are high quality and affordable. I figured I could read all day but it would never help me more than just spending $10 or $11 bucks and seeing what I think by using them. So far this has been the best shaving decision I've made. These are sharp, forgiving and after I shave my face feels smooth with absolutely no irritation. THIS is how it's supposed to feel? ;)If my opinion changes as I get further into these blades I'll be sure to update my review. So far I'm VERY satisfied.

These Astra blades are amazing! For context, I have course hair and sensitive skin, which is a terrible combination to get perfect close shaves without irritation. However, these Astra Superior Stainless blades work the magic for me. I have been shaving with Feathers and the aggressiveness of the Feathers just leave my face a tad bit red and itchy afterwards; which I've been dealing with for the past couple of months. Prior to that, I was shaving with Astra SP's and while don't give me as much irritation, the shaving experience was not as pleasant as I always feel slight tugging even on the very first shave on the blades. I even was super mindful regarding pressure, lather, and whatever I was doing; I just couldn't get anything great out of the Feathers, and SP's.I decided to switch things up and go with these Astra Superior blades and man do they feel smooth on my face without any irritation whatsoever! I pair this up with my R41, Jack Black's Beard Lube for a quick and easy shave, along with Nivea's post shave balm after and I can shave everyday with this setup and not have any itchy, redness, irritation, or bumps whatsoever. They cut as sharp as Feathers (imo) and leave me no tugging (unlike SP's). I would say I can get a good 3-4 clean shaves with this blade per use, but I play it safe and often times replace it after 2 shaves since my hair is that coarse. I also use cold water as well as that helps with tightening up my pores and preserving the blade from deforming, unlike using hot/warm water. Overall, I am super satisfied with these blades; these ones should be called the "Platinum's", unlike the current Superior Platinum ones they have which don't feel nearly as nice as these ones.

These are quality blades at a great price. Smooth enough to use daily but also sharp enough to easily take down a weeks worth of growth. If I shave daily I get 3-4 smooth shaves per half blade. If I skip days between shaves then I get 2-3 smooth shaves per half blade. I use my blades with a Leaf Twig razor which uses half a blade (snap the blade in half while in cover) so 100 blades gives me about 600 shaves, enough to last 2 years! I've also used Gillette 7 O'clock Super Stainless blades. They provide a bit more of a smoother shave and are a bit more forgiving but don't give as close of a shave as the Astra blades. The sharpest blade I've used was the BIC Chrome Platinum. While they provide a bit closer shave than the other two blades they're not smooth on the face and are less forgiving. I have to use next to no pressure or the BIC blade feels like it tugs a bit. It's also best to use the BIC blades when you have 3 days or less of growth. Out of the bunch the Astra blades are the overall best. They provide a smooth close shave and can be had for a great price.

I got these after the last few of my my years old 100 pack of green astra platinums started to tarnish. I figured that these would be similar enough and could weather the humidity of my medicine cabinet a bit better because they're stainless. The packaging is less friendly and self contained than the tower/dispenser style box, and I have to keep these in a Ziploc so they don't slip out. From what Ive read some people swear by these, but for me they snag and irritate my skin a lot more. They get the job done, but I still prefer the non-stainless variety

I’ve tried numerous blades over the past several years before trying these. They work great for me, but of course a product like this may work great for some and poorly for others depending on your skin. My go-to was the Feather brand, but they started to up in price so I gave these a try and will stick with these.