Schick Hydro 5 Sense Hydrate Razor Refills for Men, 8 Count (Pack of 1)

I have tried pretty much every shaving bland on the market. Make that almost every shaving product on the market. I should write a book about my experiences! It's been a 20 year journey for the perfect shave. Well maybe not perfect but good, comfortable, affordable shave. I found the Schick Hydro Sense to be super expensive in the retail stores so when I saw it on Amazon at a much more affordable price point, I decided to give it a try. Now, I have a very heavy, tough beard. Definitely a challenge for blades. I try different techniques to soften my beard some to make shaving a little better. Meaning minimize nicks and irritation to my face. This includes a hot shower, washing with a moisturizing face wash or soap, pre-shave lotion, and I've tried a variety of high-end shaving cremes over the years. My real life testing shows that the most important element for a good, close, comfortable shave is a sharp fresh blade. Now using a new blade every day would be best, but expensive. So I change every week or so. With my beard that can be a challenge. Keeping the lade clean and dry between shaves gives them a little life. You can also try a blade cleaner/sharpener. They add a couple shaves to your blades life. Also, buying a bunch when they are on sale can make it easier to toss them more often and give you better quality shaves. The Schick Hydro Shave blade is top quality. And has a lotion strip that adds value to the blade by laying down a slippery lubricant. Many other blades try this and they don't do much. This one works well for 3-4 shaves. The Skin Guard feature I was skeptical about. But it works. It reduces the pressure of the blade on your skin with a sort of shock absorber. You can turn it off if you want, for getting around your nose for example. I thought this feature was a plus and it leads to less nicks. All in all, very good shave and a good value.

Toss up with Gillette Fusion... better than Dorco and Harry's I've also used Dorco/Pace (aka Dollar Shave Club) 4 and 6 blade cartridges and Harry's and "Blade 5" (knock off sold in CVS). I'd rate Gillette and Schick the best. Takes my beard from 3 or 4 or five days growth to smooth in a few passes with nary a nick. For me, Schick wins on price, and I think maybe less clogging since overall head is a little bigger leaving more space between the 5 blades. And maybe less swipes to get to smooth. With grain and then against grain is adequate if I'm in a hurry. But I have to go over some areas an extra couple of times to get "perfectly" smooth. (That's true for me for every razor I've ever used.) The plastic power vibrator handle for the Shick Hydro is bigger than the Gillette Fusion Power - Perhaps its been discontinued -- I only found it here at Amazon... works fine but I'm about to try the sleeker non-powered Hydro handle... I wanted to like Dorco/Pace but they are more prone to clogging, even the 4 blade. And maybe takes a few more swipes to get really close. I also wanted to like Harry's - it was very much like Gillette Fusion in overall feel EXCEPT for me, I almost always got a few nicks (blood!) especially when using starting with a new cartridge. Not painful, just bloody! After a shave or two on a cartridge... okay... The "Blade 5" knock-off I picked up in CVS - total loser and waste of money - hard to get a close shave - and dull and/or clogged after one or two shaves.

Back when I was youger I was shaving with a double bladed disposable razor. I was getting cuts everywhere, and shaving was taking forever. Since I have such a thick beard that grows quickly, I realized I was going to need a real razor. Enter the Hydro 5. I actually tried out the Hydro 5 by chance. It was a kick ass sampler in a package of shaving cream. I tried it once and I was hooked. Smooth shave, the blades were sharp and it even had this cool lubrication built in. Because of this, cuts were minimal. I tried out another shaver, but it was far inferior to the Hydro 5. Recently out of curiosity, I signed up for Dollar Shave Club. You might have heard of them - they made a brilliant viral marketing video on youtube. Naturally, I signed up for the 6 blade razor they offered. As it turns out, their supplier is Dorco USA. Needless to say, I wasn't impressed. The Hydro 5 offers a superior shave. Dorco's razor has 6 blades, but they are spaced out closer. Schick places the blades farther apart, and they are thicker and of higher quality. Furthermore, the Hydro 5's handle is smaller and thinner, allowing you to flip the blade easily in your hand to change the direction of strokes. The Dorco razor's handle is too thick and bulky. Plus, you can order all of these blades in bulk if you really like them and want to stick with them, so DSC is not that great of a deal. The bottom line is that the Hydro 5 is one of the best razor's out there, and reasonably priced as well. If you have a heavy beard like me or just looking for an excellent razor, the Hydro 5 is your best bet.

EXCELLENT QUALITY

Quality has deteriorated with time.

Fantastic blades(Any Hydro 5's). I am on average a 3 times a week shaver and have fairly sensitive skin. I find them easy on the skin even finishing for an extra clean shave with upstrokes. Long lasting as well, I can go months on one cartridge easily. I still use Gillette blades(5's whatever they are called) occasionally because I had them and they work pretty well to get the longer growth down fast, which I then clean up with the Schick upstrokes. I can't see me buying anything else from now on except maybe Gillette on clearance for that occasional 4 to 6 day growth.

Initially (before just 18 months) I had to ask someone to buy n get me these blades from usa. Now because of amazon it's easier. This is the BESTEST blade I have ever come across. Smoothest shave for hardest bearded guy like me.

Excellent product ; you will forget others