In the Wicked Edge subreddit, the Gillette Platinum blade is frequently held up as a favorite. It’s frequently presented as being very sharp and very efficient. I’ve had a tuck of them since I got my Gillette sample pack back in January, and this was the only blade in that sampler that I hadn’t tried yet.
The Gillette Platinum is rated by Razor Emporium’s aggressiveness rating as a 4.5, which is one of the most aggressive blades in its ratings. But as I’m learning, that aggressiveness rating just helps inform how the shave should perform, it doesn’t necessarily guarantee the results.
As I’ve said many times before, more aggressive blades tend to perform better for me in more mild razors. So while the Platinum, as you’ll hear in detail later, gave me one of my best shaves ever today in the Henson, the Nacet, which has delivered multiple shaves at that same level, has never done it when paired with the Henson. It’s typically come with more aggressive razor setups (the King C Gillette and the Rockwell 6C). One exception being the Rockwell’s plate 1, which feels more mild than the Henson, but the weight and design of that razor probably contributed to some of the difference.
So let’s talk about the shave. I used my traditional Sunday Proraso setup, which worked beautifully as usual. I’ve really got the lathering dialed in with the Proraso soap in it’s tub with the Proraso Omega boar brush. I’ve got the amount of water down to the point where I can produce a very nice, thick, rich lather in about a minute or two of work. Today, I got it applied to my face and even got some additional lathering going on my face, which has been a challenge for me to learn–I blame having a beard which makes the cheek and neck area to be shaved smaller, but today, short circular strokes seemed to build it even more.
My neck required only minimal passes, as I’ve learned that the best technique for me is to take short strokes there. So I started with the against the grain pass, then across the grain and then a final with the grain pass. I know that goes against everything people tell you, but it seems to be the key for me to get a good, close, comfortable, relatively stubble-free shave.
The Rating
Shave #135. I knew the Gillette Platinum is regarded as an aggressive (or sharp) blade, so I paired it this week with the Henson, which always seems to handle sharp blades well. And this combo delivered. There was some irritation, but the shave didn’t feel all that aggressive. In fact, when I applied the alum block, I was surprised at the amount of stinging there was on my neck–it didn’t look that irritated, and didn’t feel like it should have been that irritated–but clearly, the blade did have some contact with my skin.
I am not disappointed, though, and am willing to deal with that because the irritation was minor–the stinging was gone by the time I had finished putting away the razor tool chest and cleaning the brush and sink. And I will always accept a shave this close if there’s just a touch of irritation. So this goes down as one of the best shaves I’ve experienced.
I’m on a roll in terms of great shaves: my last 6 shaves and 7 of the last 8 shaves have all had an overall rating of 4.75 or higher. I’m getting pretty good at estimating the result of a shave if I have accurate information about the razor and blade, but weeks like last week still throw a surprise my way.
Comfort: 4.75 out of 5
Quality/Closeness: 5 out of 5
Overall: 4.88 out of 5
