I'm not trying to be disrespectful, but I'm doing what you and others here have suggested - I'm going through the sampler pack, trying more than one of each blade.

I'm not interested in sticking with the "best of the first 3-4 brands" for a few weeks before moving on. I just want to get this over with so I can get back to my Feathers.

As you, and I think a few others, on this sub are aware, I'm opinionated, and I have a pretty blunt tone, that some take offense to.

But please take this in the spirit in which this is offered [because I've read enough of your stuff, and I respect the fact that you are sincere in your desire to be helpful]:

When people on this sub tell a guy who's been shaving for 35 years that he doesn't know what a decent shave is when he gets one, it is -- at best -- insulting. At a minimum it's condescending - and I see this sort of condescension regarding technique, gear, vendors across this board every day.

The problem with sticking with the same brand if you get a "decent shave" is that, more often than you think, a person does not understand what a decent shave really is until he's tried some variety of brands...

I'm not getting a "decent shave" with the Merkur 39c and the Feathers, I'm getting the best feeling shaves of my life. And frankly, even with these gawd-awful Astras, I'm still pulling "decent shaves." How? I've been shaving for decades. I've shaved this ugly face thousands upon thousands of times. I know how to shave it.

Anyway. Here's the deal: I'll keep plowing through these blades, two at time, at least a 3-4 shaves on a blade, and if I get a really, really great shave from one of them I'll let you know.