The shave was just about similarly close, but using the Bic took a little longer. There was some razor burn from the Bic, none at all from the Gillette. I really don't think the Gillette is 17 times better than the Bic, and at that price per blade I probably wouldn't replace the Gillettes until they were viciously blunt (I'm fairly bad about that anyway "ooh, blood, again, maybe I should change the blade").
I might try using some other cheap razors to find the best compromise. Any recommendations?