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Here are some things I've learned along the way on the economics of shaving: - A DE safety razor is, indeed, cheaper than cartridge shaving: $40 will get you a
by oldandboring 7y ago
Here are some things I've learned along the way on the economics of shaving:
- A DE safety razor is, indeed, cheaper than cartridge shaving: $40 will get you a good Merkur 34c and a 100 pack of Astra blades. A Gillette Mach 3 and 100 blads is about $140.
- Some people who shave with a DE tend to spend the money they saved on other shave gear: a nice brush, some fancy shave soaps and aftershaves. If you make it into a hobby you can spend a LOT of money on gear.
- If you've been shaving with a cartridge your whole life, learning to shave with a DE can take time to learn. It legitimately took me 5 years to get really good and I still sometimes cut myself and fall back on a cartridge for certain tough spots under my jawline where the pivoting head comes in handy.
- Dollar Shave Club and Harry's really are a great way to save money on shaving. Ideally that will continue even with both being owned by big corporations now.
- It's sometimes pointed out that (in the past, at least, cannot confirm this is still true) Dollar Shave Co. is just reselling handles and blades made by a company called Dorco. While true, it turns out that buying the DSC-branded gear is actually cheaper in most cases than buying it straight from Dorco, unless you buy a lot at a time.
- wil421 7y agoI have a beard and only shave a portion of hair below my jawline. Would it be difficult to use a straight razor? Even with cartridges I can cut my Adam’s apple.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- Glyptodon 7y agoSo a straight razor is the old fashioned, flip out single blade, need to sharpen kind. Not sure if you're intending to refer to that or not. Whereas safety razors are the two-sided head cheap disposable blade kind. I can't talk too much about straight razors, I think they're a bit dangerous without a good amount of practice. Safety razors are fine for below jawline shaving, though you will probably nick yourself a bit until used to it. I use a Merkur 25C and have a beard and I think it's excellent. Rarely nick myself. Could never use electrics or modern disposables effectively, they tended to load up and clog badly.
- ska 7y agoFor what it’s worth I did this for years, without issue. It’s perhaps a little slower, but not much when you are just cleaning up. It takes a little practice to get good at maintaining the line, and you do need to care for the blade (not a lot of time, but required). At first you will be slow, as worried about cutting yourself. You probably won’t actually cut yourself until you relax about it after while...
- betterbeehome 7y agoYou won't cut yourself if you keep your razor sharp and use good technique. Short, confident strokes with your other hand adding tension to your skin. Really I rarely cut myself with a straight razor now. And it's usually because the blade starts getting dull, which happens after like 6 months.
- stephenr 7y agoWhat an approach to pulling a literally razor sharp blade across your own neck.. “be confident”.
- mburst 7y agoAstra blades are known for being the sharpest which makes it really easy to cut yourself. I went through a sample pack awhile ago and just logged how each shave was and then picked a blade that worked best for me
- dmix 7y agoThe good thing about (traditional) safety razors is there are plenty of razor options for sharpness and quality, and they are all pretty inexpensive. It's easy to experiment with different ones until you find the one you like.
- germinalphrase 7y agoI initially bought a “mixed” pack containing ~5 blades of different varieties. Tried them out and chose the one that felt best. The difference between the most and least comfortable was significant, so I’d recommend taking the time to figure it out. I settled on the Persona Blue blades, fwiw.
- gen220 7y agoThis! Turns out, counter-intuitively, that you don't always want the "sharpest" (read: thinnest?) blade, especially if you have sensitive skin. I've used a DE with these https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0077LAJT2 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0077LAJT2, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014HJKZ2C https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014HJKZ2C, and https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NL0T1G https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NL0T1G. Amazon tells me the last time I bought them was almost 2 years ago. I shave about every week and a half, with a new blade each time, and I'm just about 2/3 through this one $8 box. It takes some getting used to, but I haven't nicked myself seriously in a year or two. Seriously worth trying it out if you haven't already.
- tdurden 7y agoFeather blades are up there as well; probably not the best blade to use when learning to use a DE razor though
- pkaye 7y agoI used to use the Gillette Mach and Fusion. But they are expensive and tend to clog. I switch to Dorco available at Amazon. They function about the same but are about 1/3 cheaper. Recently I switched to the Costco Kirkland brand. They are half the price as Dorco, last as long and no clogging. The only thing the Costco ones don't have the the edge blade for cleaning under your nose but I keep a few Dorco around for that.
- splordack 7y agoOf course, it's also possible to spend zero dollars on shaving. I think it really comes down to whether or not you're married. Unmarried men will readily skip a thousand trappings of consumer life. Eating with silverware and plates. Cleaning any part of the house besides, maybe occasionally, the toilet. Entertaining the very idea of clothing that requires dry cleaning. The list goes on...
- beepboopbeep 7y agoJust want to point out that the prosthelytizers of DE shaving tend to be a self selecting group of those who happend to have great success with their particular beards and that razor. There are many, many, different beards though. I tried DE and it simply did not shave as well as gilette, no matter what the blade. I had a permanent 5'oclock shadow because of how thick and dark my beard is where as gilette was a clean shave with zero effort. Point is, whatever razor works for you, works for you. End of story.
- bunderbunder 7y agoIt can also depend on the razor you get. Some DEs are specifically designed to give you a less close shave, in order to limit ingrown hair. The same models are often recommended to first-time buyers, too, because it's not so easy to nick yourself with them.
- Zak 7y agoYet more cost-effective is a straight razor. A new one you'd actually want to use runs around $100, and antiques in shave-ready condition can often be had for much less. A straight razor will typically outlast its owner. Like DE, it takes some practice, and in addition, requires maintenance. I use a leather strop on a rigid surface with 0.5 micron diamond paste, but the traditional method is a hanging strop and occasional honing on stones. It's not a hobby for me, but it is a considerably more comfortable shave than cartridges. On the rare occasions I've used cartridges after getting used to the straight, I've noticed irritation, which I hadn't when I was used to cartridges.
- tomcam 7y agoTotally don’t understand the downvotes? Anyway, how did you learn to use one? I understand they’re supposed to be kept sharp, I’m absent-minded, and I’m afraid I’d damage the blade while trying to sharpen it.
- Zak 7y agoA bit of reading online. A bit of trial and error. Only one error leading to a deep cut, and I think there was wine and jet lag involved. With a hollow-ground razor, the most popular style, the blade is held flat against the strop or hone and the width of the spine holds the edge at the proper angle. This makes serious mis-sharpening less likely. It probably does help to have some knife sharpening experience though. My method using a bench strop and diamond compound is not traditional, but I've found that as long as there's no actual damage to the edge, it always restores proper sharpness while more traditional methods with a hanging strop require sharpening on a stone every few months.
- sneak 7y agoMy first deep cut was the last time I ever used a straight razor. I’m not interested in learning curves that leave scars on my face. I use a oneblade now, and ignore what it costs. It’s fast, convenient, safe, and has never once cut me.
- metamet 7y ago
- PascLeRasc 7y agoDE shaving is great because it's nicer to use, an objectively better shave, better for the environment, and cheaper (or at least, can be cheaper). A pack of 100 Astra blades is <$8 on Amazon and they've all been great in my experience.
- tomcam 7y agoHelp me! I find the safety razor handles to be way too small. To me they feel like they were made for children. I would like them to be about 40% longer than they are. Can you point me to any safety razors with handles at least as big as the Gillette Mach 3’s, preferably even bigger? I purchased a Merkur because it had awesome reviews, then got their “large” size but they’re both laughably small IMHO. P.S. I claim I’m older and boringer, but I wasn’t smart enough to snag that username ;)
- mikelward 7y agoMerkur makes the 23C which has a long handle. https://www.amazon.com/Merkur-Long-Handled-Safety-Razor/dp/B00374F5CY https://www.amazon.com/Merkur-Long-Handled-Safety-Razor/dp/B...
- tomcam 7y agoThanks. That’s the second one I purchased. It seems like I’m an outlier. They’re all incredibly short by my standards, yet modern cartridge razors often have handles that work well for me.
- mikelward 7y agoI have the shorter 34C. It's certainly shorter than a current cartridge razor, but it's just long enough for me to fit all four fingers side-by-side.
- canada_dry 7y agoOr... print your own: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2702518 https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2702518
- tomcam 7y agoMan, I love the 21st century. Thank you.
- fotbr 7y ago
- ebg13 7y ago> A Gillette Mach 3 and 100 blads is about $140 That doesn't seem like a proper comparison. Nobody replaces their Mach 3 cartridge after every other shave but that's a common recommendation for DE blades. > It legitimately took me 5 years to get really good and I still sometimes cut myself Wow, if that isn't a strong indictment of saving pennies, I don't know what is.
- kevin_thibedeau 7y agoMach 3 is also not the cheapest cartridge.
- elipsey 7y agoI didn't think it was that hard. I cut myself exactly once, and then I learned to pay more attention to the knife I was dragging across my throat :p
- egometry 7y agoImagine the savings on having a beard! A $30 Wahl Peanut with a few guides, and 5-10 less minutes wasted in the morning per trim... and you get a beard!
- js2 7y agoAlso, Wahl trimmers last forever. I still have my plugin model that I've had since the 90s and my rechargeable that I've had over a decade.
- 0xffff2 7y agoNot all of them unfortunately. I've owned two of these [1], and both had the on/off switch fail within a year of use. I now have a corded Wahl trimmer that has a more old-fashioned switch that I expect will last quite a lot longer. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Wahl-Stainless-Rechargeable-Professionals-9818/dp/B0058SY1XQ/ https://www.amazon.com/Wahl-Stainless-Rechargeable-Professio...
- 7y ago
- travisporter 7y agoDE= double-edged I assume?
- russh 7y agoI think so, I had to google it.
- m463 7y agoI think in this case it's used in kind of an "I'm a member of an exclusive club" with a (possibly subconscious) emphasis on "exclude". I am reminded of "Acronyms Seriously Suck" (Elon Musk memo)
- oldandboring 7y agoI didn't mean to communicate that, but your point is fair nonetheless. In my defense I think I was inclined to use the acronym "DE" because I had already read through the existing comments and had seen other discussions already taking place about double-edged safety razors and referring to them as "DE" so I kinda switched to that "in the club" mindset without thinking. My apologies if you'll have them :)
- chipotle_coyote 7y agoI used to be a dedicated DE shaver; once I grew a beard, I started shaving only to clean my neck and cheeks, and decided to try cartridges again. So I tried Harry's. And man, I wanted to like them, but a Mach 3 blade is just so much better it's kind of dismaying. The Mach 3 (i.e., three-blade head) is smaller and more maneuverable; the blades seem sharper, or at least certainly glide more smoothly with less irritation; and there's actually a bit of an ecosystem around them -- I'm using a Parker handle with mine, about $30 but better than (the admittedly good) Harry's handles. I'm glad Harry's found a nice exit, I guess, although on general principle I wish they'd been more invested in staying independent than they evidently were.
- m463 7y agoI should also mention I have a challenging face with a few moles. The gilette 5-blade head is the best. The three-blade is a definite step down. The Harry's is a good price/capability compromise. That said, I thin the price has gone up since they came out. Saw 12 refills for $25.99 at Target and I could swear they were lots cheaper when I first tried them.
- nradov 7y agoI was forever cutting a mole on my jaw line while shaving. Finally I had a dermatologist remove it. It was painless and took only a few minutes. Totally worth it.
- astura 7y ago>While true, it turns out that buying the DSC-branded gear is actually cheaper in most cases than buying it straight from Dorco, unless you buy a lot at a time. Or you buy during a sale. I got so many Dorco razors I bought for not much, I think less than $1/each... Put an alert on Slickdeals.
- oldandboring 7y agoThanks for the tip!
- thesausageking 7y ago> - Dollar Shave Club and Harry's really are a great way to save money on shaving. Ideally that will continue even with both being owned by big corporations now. Dorco razors are the best option. They make the razors for Dollar Shave Club, but are cheaper. They've been in business a long time and make a great product.
- oldandboring 7y agoIf you read the rest of my post you'll notice I did mention Dorco with context: > It's sometimes pointed out that (in the past, at least, cannot confirm this is still true) Dollar Shave Co. is just reselling handles and blades made by a company called Dorco. While true, it turns out that buying the DSC-branded gear is actually cheaper in most cases than buying it straight from Dorco, unless you buy a lot at a time.