Astra Superior Stainless Razor Blade Review

One of the first razor blades I tried was the Astra Superior Platinum in the green package. I really tried to like the Astra SP based on the user reviews,  wide availability and great price, but I have yet to have a great (or even good) experience and frankly dislike the Astra SP.

Now this review isn’t about how much I don’t like the Astra Superior Platinum, it is the sharpness testing and my user review of the Astra Superior Stainless – the one in the blue package.

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30 Astra Superior Stainless Double Edge Razor Blades

• 6 Packs of 5 Blades -- Total 30 Blades
• Extremely Sharp, Smooth and Comfortable
• Highest quality blades made to fit different double edge safety razors
• Fits all Standard Double Edge Safety Razors

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To be honest I’ve been dreading testing the Astra Superior Stainless since I typed it into the poll, and this is purely based on my experience with Astra SP blades. That said, it is important to go into testing anything with an open mind and no bias, otherwise ones preconceived notions may skew the experience and then what’s the point?

Fresh out of the pack the sharpness measured 43. This is actually a decent amount sharper than the Astra SP at 49 so I was cautiously optimistic. Also to be clear, I did not like the Astra SP as I did not find it sharp or smooth enough to satisfy my requirements for a good shave.

For information on what this means check out Razor Blade Sharpness Testing. You can click this link to see a Razor Blade Sharpness Comparison Chart with the other blades tested so far.

Note that I shave my head as well as my face and have a pretty thick growth – except for the top of my head. This means that one of my shaves might equal two of someone that just shaves their face, or even more if they have a thinner beard.

The first few strokes actually felt pretty good and I even enjoyed the anticipation of wondering which direction this shave would go. I proceeded to have an absolute amazing first 2 passes on my head. When I completed my second rinse, it was actual so close and smooth that I really only needed some clean up.

I continued with my 3 pass shave on my face and it was the same – sharp, smooth, and down right amazing. I also had basically zero feedback with my Osma Alum Block.

Admittedly the bar was set very low (I was expecting a very poor shave) but my expectations were blown out of the water.

After the first shave, the sharpness increased to 38. This is right in the area where I like a blade to be, the high 30’s or low 40’s. The Astra SP was 44 after the first shave, so this Astra SS kept its 6 point lead after each had one shave.

The second shave was also great. Based on the complete surprise from round one I don’t think anything really could have been better than the first shave, but it was fairly consistent although I did need my full third pass on my head this time. Still excellent.

After the second shave the sharpness decreased to 40. The Astra SP measured 44 after the second shave, so while the Astra SP was still sharpening up the Astra SS was starting to decrease after the second shave already – which is fine, I toss my blade after two shaves anyways so I was happy.

Initial Sharpness = 43
Average Sharpness = 40
Edge Retention = 0.93
Smoothness = 5/5

Overall Subjective Rating = 5/5

Stainless Steel. Made in Russia.

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I find quite often that when something is too hyped up it is almost a fault as it is difficult to fully achieve the expectation that has been set in ones mind. On the other side of that coin, having no interest or even expecting the worst can result in an amazing experience when things work out well.

The Astra Superior Stainless Razor Blade exceeded my expectations, and in my opinion is infinitely smoother than the Astra Superior Platinum – and sharper. I also looked online and found them to also be readily available and reasonably priced, I will be ordering another 100 for my reserves and highly suggest you give them a try.

Check out more Razor Blade Reviews or look into how the Razor Blade Sharpness Testing works.

Have you tried Astra Superior Stainless Razor Blades? Be sure to leave your overall rating, the community appreciates your vote!