Gillette Silver Blue Razor Blade Review

The Gillette Silver Blue DE Razor Blade received the most votes requesting to be tested the first week the polls opened. (Continued Razor Blade Sharpness Testing is being performed based on the results of the refined shave poll to select the blade with the highest level of interest each week.)

I was happy the blades were all getting votes and a little surprised about the “GSB’s” taking a decent lead. After some research I realized that this is a very popular blade that had been flying under my radar.

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100 Silver Blue Double Edge Razor Blades Made in Russia by 7 O'clock

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I was very excited when I realized that it is a Teflon coated Russian blade, just like Voskhod which is one of my favorites. Gillette Silver Blue’s seem to have a similar following, but they cost a little more.

Fresh out of the pack the sharpness measured 46. For information on what this means check out Razor Blade Sharpness Testing. This is not the sharpest, but the readings were fairly consistent which is in line with what I have heard about the GSB having a good edge. Being Teflon coated I also had a pretty good feeling that it would sharpen right up after a few strokes. You can click this link to see a Razor Blade Sharpness Comparison Chart with the other blades tested so far.

The first shave with the GSB was great, and I was surprised that I hadn’t heard that much about this blade before. It was definitely sharp enough for me and I got an extremely close 3 pass shave, baby butt smooth all over.

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.

I did notice a couple extremely small nicks which were so small they did not show up until after my post shave routine. One on my chin which was fine and one on my neck which was a bit unusual for me. While it felt extremely smooth, there may have been a little roughness or maybe it just felt so smooth that I got a little too relaxed.

After the first shave, the sharpness increased to 41. To put this in perspective this is about the same as a new Voskhod and a Feather after one full head and face shave. As of right now, most coated blades have increased their sharpness after the first shave, the current hypothesis is that the blade edge becomes more exposed as the coating wears off. This results in a sharper cutting edge, although the smoothness may decrease as the coating disappears.

I was excited for the second shave and it also felt great. The Gillette Silver Blue razor blades are approaching the higher end for pricing, so for me I needed to have a good second shave to acknowledge good value – and I did. I got another extremely smooth 3 pass shave, and was a little more careful due to the nicks from the first round.

The nick on my neck from the first shave ended up as a little bump so I ended up nicking it again, but other than that it was all good. I did notice a slight increase in feedback with my alum block as well, but only a mention and not a complaint.

After the second shave the sharpness increased to 35. This is another substantial increase in sharpness. It is the most movement I have seen in a blade yet, and pretty interesting that it became this sharp. My complaint here would be the lack of consistency with the blade, whether sharp or less sharp I would prefer the blade to keep more of a consistent level of sharpness along the way. That said, I appreciate and would prefer it to be on the sharper end rather than getting dull. The Feather measured 40 after the second shave, so the GSB was sharper than the Feather after 2 full head and face shaves (Feather still holds the sharpest out of the wrapper title).

Based on the retained sharpness after 2 shaves, the Gillette Silver Blue would definitely have at least another shave left. I would be more than comfortable trying another round. This is important as being about 50% more expensive than Voskhod it should get either better performance or more mileage. I do not think it was smoother than Voskhod, but this is where the personal experience of the shaver comes in and Your Mileage May Vary. Sharpness is measured but smoothness is subjective.

Initial Sharpness = 46
Average Sharpness = 41
Edge Retention = 0.76
Smoothness = 4/5

Overall Subjective Rating = 5/5

Teflon Coated. Made in Russia.

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I liked using the Gillette Silver Blue Razor Blade, or “GSB”. I compared to Voskhod a lot as it is another Teflon coated Russian blade that I have a lot of experience with and gives great performance for a great price. This testing isn’t about one blade beating the other but giving some initial data to compare blades to give a starting point searching for blades you might enjoy. I will be returning to the GSB for some endurance testing once I have completed the initial testing for all of the popular blades.

I do recommend picking up some GSB razor blades to try.

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

Have you tried Gillette Silver Blue Razor Blades, or commonly known as GSB’s? Be sure to leave your overall rating, the community appreciates your vote!

Sale

100 Silver Blue Double Edge Razor Blades Made in Russia by 7 O'clock

Buy on Amazon