Loading a blade is the part of safety-razor shaving that makes beginners nervous — and it's genuinely the easiest step once you've done it twice. Our Double Edge Safety Razor is a butterfly design: the head opens like two little doors, the blade drops in, and you twist it shut. No disassembly, no lining up three pieces with wet hands. Here's the whole process, safely.
Before you touch the blade
- Handle blades by the short edges only. The long edges are the sharp ones. Every blade comes in a paper wrapper — open it, and hold the blade by its dull short ends.
- Work over a dry counter, not over a wet sink. A dropped blade is a hazard; a dry surface keeps your grip sure.
- Never wipe a blade. Not to clean it, not to dry it. Blot the razor, never the edge.
Loading, step by step
- Twist the handle. Turn the knob at the base of the handle — the butterfly doors on the head swing open.
- Drop the blade in. Holding the short edges, lower the blade flat onto the head so it sits centered on the posts. Let gravity do the work; don't slide it around with your fingertips.
- Twist it closed — snug, not forced. The doors close over the blade and the head curves it to the right angle. Firm finger-tight is perfect. Overtightening helps nothing.
- Check the alignment. Look down at the head: the blade edge should peek out evenly on both sides. If it's crooked, open, lift by the short edges, re-seat it, and close again.
- Rinse and shave. A quick rinse under the tap and you're ready. New to this? Our beginner's guide to safety razor shaving walks the first shave itself.
Changing and disposing of blades
Most men get 3–5 shaves per blade. When it tugs instead of gliding, swap it: twist open over a counter, lift the old blade out by the short edges, and put it straight into a blade bank (a wrapped tin with a slot works too). Used blades never go loose into the trash — wrap or bank them, every time. Then load the fresh blade exactly as above.
Keep the razor itself in shape with our guide on how to clean and store a safety razor, and browse the full Razors & Shaving collection for the soaps and aftershave that complete the ritual.
Watch: changing a blade
How to change a safety razor blade, by mantic59 (Sharpologist) on YouTube — he covers the twist-to-open (butterfly) style, which is the mechanism our razor uses.