To finish up this comparison series, I’ll be putting the Derby Premium blade to the test to see how it compares to the Derby Extra.
You’ll recall that the Derby Extra exceeded my expectations and surprised me with its closeness and comfort. So can its black-clad sibling surpass it? We’ll find out in a bit.
I’m expecting great things because the Premium is priced at about double the Extra ($0.83 versus $1.62 from one source), and we all know that more price equals more better, right? And just from a general consumer sentiment, one expects that Premium would be better than Extra, because that’s what marketing has taught us?
Yeah, I’m filling space because I already talked about Derby last week, so if you’re looking for that information, go back a couple of posts.
For this week, aside from the blade, there is nothing else new. The Tabac cream is back for it’s second shave, but I decided that I wanted to compare it to another uniquely scented lather, so I’ll follow the Tabac Tuesday shave with the Arko Thursday shave. Plus, it’s been four months since I dropped in an Arko shave, so it’s due. This does also set up a Turkish shave on Thursday, as the Arko soap and Derby blade is made in Turkey.
A quick note that this is the 30th blade I’ve used in my shaves. Frankly, that number stuns me more than the number of lathers I’ve used. It hardly seems possible that I’ve used that many different blade brands in just under two years, but my tracking doesn’t lie. And while I’ve got 18 more to try, it’s exciting to look at where I’ve been and what I’ve done in that time.
I’m planning on sticking to the same plan with the Rockwell 6C: plate on Sunday, then plate 2 on Tuesday and Thursday. If the blade needs a little more aggression, I’ll pump one of the shaves up to plate 4, but after the week with the Extra, I’m not expecting that.
So there you go. Nothing too special about this week’s shaves, but important nonetheless: without this comparison, I wouldn’t have found that the Extras are great blades for me, and I’m hoping that will also be proven out with the Premiums with this week’s shaves.
Let’s get into it.
The Ratings
Sunday’s Shave, #294. The Proraso Sunday Derby Premium Shave..
The setup:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C plate 3
- Blade: Derby Premium
- Pre-Shave: Proraso Sensitive pre-shave cream (white)
- Brush: Proraso boar shaving brush
- Soap/Cream/Gel: Proraso Sensitive shaving soap (white)
- Alum Block: Stirling Soap Co. Alum
- After Shave: Proraso Sensitive after shave balm (white)
- Stats:
- 1st shave with the Derby Premium blade
- 16th shave with the Rockwell 6C plate 3 (tied with plate 2 for most)
- 30th blade used in my shaves
- 16th blade used with the Rockwell (2nd to the Henson mild)
- 31st shave with the Proraso white soap
- 1st shave with my second jar of the Proraso white pre-shave cream (45th shave with the white pre-shave cream overall)
- 4th consecutive shave with the Rockwell razor
- 109th almost perfect shave
- 73rd shave with an overall rating of 23 (31.9% of all logged shaves)
Well, if I was looking for a huge difference between the Extra and the Premium, I’m thinking I won’t find it. Today’s shave felt very similar to last Sunday’s shave–smooth, mostly comfortable, and close, but nothing really special. Today’s shave felt slightly more aggressive than the shaves with the Extra, which tells me that it’s probably a slightly more aggressive blade than the extra. But we’ll see how things go with plate 2 on Tuesday.
But none of this is to say that it was a bad shave–certainly not. It was a great shave, but with a little more blade feel. There was a bit more efficiency, and there is more closeness today, but again, just a touch more irritation or razor burn after the shave than last week.
I noted it above, but this was the first shave with my second jar of the Proraso white pre-shave cream, and since it’s been about 15 months since I started using it, I’d forgotten what starting into that first jar was like, so this was exciting in a stupid kind of way. This would also mark the same amount of time since I started using the Proraso white soap and balm, but those don’t show a lot of signs of being used up (they’re probably about half way finished, or maybe a little less). But they certainly have served me well and been a very welcome addition to my shave routine.
So, a great shave today, but I’m looking forward to the rest of the week to see how things turn out!
Comfort: 22 of 25
Quality/Closeness: 24 of 25
Overall: 23 of 25
Tuesday’s Shave, #295. The Tabac Tuesday Derby Derby Shave.
The setup:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C plate 2
- Blade: Derby Premium
- Pre-Shave: Razor Emporium Unscented Pre-Shave
- Brush: Omega 10019 boar
- Soap/Cream/Gel: Tabac Original shaving cream
- Alum Block: Stirling Soap Co. Alum
- After Shave: Dollar Shave Club Post Shave Cream
- Stats:
- 2nd shave with the Tabac shaving cream
- 50th shave with the Omega 10019 boar brush
- 42nd shave with the Dollar Shave Club post shave cream
- 17th shave with the Rockwell 6C plate 2 (regaining the lead in plates used on the Rockwell)
- 110th almost perfect shave
- 74th shave with an overall rating of 23 (32.2% of all logged shaves)
- 9th almost perfect shave with the Rockwell 6C plate 2
I’m really starting to believe that there is no difference between the Derby Extra and Derby Premium blades because they have worked and felt so similar. And both of them work very well for me with the Rockwell plate 2.
Where Sunday’s shave felt a little aggressive and had a little more irritation than I’d like, today’s shave was much more comfortable, with a lot less post shave razor burn. As I ponder Thursday’s shave, I’m actually thinking about trying plate 1, just to see what that feels like.
This was the second shave with the Tabac shaving cream (so you can check out the lather rating here). As noted above, Tabac and Arko are divisive scents, with some loving them and some absolutely hating them (“urinal cake” is the phrase used most often when referring derisively to Arko’s scent). I don’t mind either. They both smell like soap–a very strong soapy fragrance–with no other notes coming through. The Tabac is more earthy than the Arko, but they’re pretty similar. But of the two, the Tabac fragrance is the one that sticks around longer. But in terms of performance, the Tabac is a very nice cream that makes a very nice rich lather. And it’s enough of a classic product that I think everyone needs to use it a few times, just to see what it’s all about.
So, the bottom line on today’s shave: very nice, comfortable, and close. A great shave, but there’s still room for improvement as I’ve had better.
Comfort: 23 out of 25
Quality/Closeness: 23 out of 25
Overall: 23 out of 25
Thursday’s Shave, #296. The Turkish Shave.
The setup:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C plate 2
- Blade: Derby Premium
- Pre-Shave: Stirling Soap Co. Unscented pre-shave soap
- Brush: Yaqi Rainbow synthetic
- Soap/Cream/Gel: Arko Shaving Soap
- Alum Block: Stirling Soap Co. Alum
- After Shave: Nivea Sensitive Soothing post shave balm
- Stats:
- 47th shave with the Nivea Sensitive post shave balm
- 7th shave with the Arko soap
- 18th shave with the Rockwell 6C plate 2
- 15th shave with the Yaqi synthetic brush
- 111th almost perfect shave
- 75th shave with an overall rating of 23 (32.5% of all logged shaves)
- 8th consecutive almost perfect shave
Nope. I’m not seeing a difference. At least no noticeable difference between the Derby Extra and Premium. They’ve performed almost identically, with the exception of some extra irritation on Sunday’s Premium shave, but on plate 2, it’s been a very similar experience.
The other comparison this week has been interesting. I’m talking about the Tabac/Arko comparison. Both have a very soap-forward fragrance and little else, though as I noted above, Tabac is a more earthy or fatty. And while Tabac’s lather was very rich and was slick and provided a smooth shave, the Arko today felt noticeably slicker even though it’s lather isn’t as rich and thick as Tabac. I don’t think one is better than the other, because there are plusses and minuses to each, but this was an interesting comparison.
Overall, today’s shave was another great one and I really can’t complain. But it wasn’t top level outstanding, and as already noted, virtually identical to last week’s Derby Extra shaves.
Next week, I’ll be using a combo I’m very excited about.
Comfort: 23 out of 25
Quality/Closeness: 23 out of 25
Overall: 23 out of 25