An elegant cartridge razor - is there a market?

[Kevin K.]

Realizing full well that almost all who read and post here are DE fans but also knowing that many of us either travel with a cartridge razor or keep one on hand for home use when time is short I thought I'd share this info in case of interest

Personally I'm a huge fan of the Standard Razors brand DE razors, and if like me you appreciate clean design this company. Ockham Razor, seems to have designed the cart. equivalent to Standard's products:

the razor

Unfortunately the barriers to entry here are all-too-obvious: these razors are currently sold in the UK and price in pounds and both are temporarily out of production. I was able to snag one of the black plastic travel razors and it is truly cool: 10 grams of user-friend minimalism. I got in touch with these guys via their Facebook page and asked if they knew about Standard Razors but they did not. They in turn asked me for any ideas for a U.S. distributor and so I'm asking you for any ideas.

IMHO these products are what the likes of Harry's and Dollar Shave Club ought to be selling. Obviously no cartridge razor is ever going to be as elegant as a truly beautiful DE one, but given that cartridges are almost the entire market you'd think there'd be a prominent place sor something that isn't a piece of cheap disposable plastic junk.

 

[RandyC]

There are high dollar handles that take mach 3 cartridges. Woodcraft sells kits for turning handles similar to I think the cigar pen.
IMHO it's another version of polishing a turd, much like spending money on a Dana 30 front axle.

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[Bookworm]

Hey, just because the Dana 30 isn't great for people that like to abuse their cars by putting 35" tires on them is no reason to call it a turd.

 

[demerson]

Elegant cartridge razor seems like a contradiction, to me.

 

[RandyC]

Hey, just because the Dana 30 isn't great for people that like to abuse their cars by putting 35" tires on them is no reason to call it a turd.

Lol, you aren't wrong. Lots of less than happy campers on the Cherokee forums though.

 

[Kevin K.]

While I don't know if anyone would call it "elegant," my current go-to unit for travel is Feather's MR3. It doesn't look anywhere near as nice as my raw aluminum Standard Razor with its Feather blade but it shaves as well or better and I can take it with me in my carry-on.

Feather MR3 Neo Cartridge Razor

 

[ZJ68]

but given that cartridges are almost the entire market you'd think there'd be a prominent place sor something that isn't a piece of cheap disposable plastic junk.

There are more expensive Mach 3 and Fusion handles out there. Art of Shaving sells them. I'm not sure if they're just rebranded Edwin Jagger razors or what. A little surfing from online retailers will turn up more.

If you just want a metal Mach 3 or Fusion handle, Wal-Mart carries them at reasonable prices. The manual ones are metal.

 

[Rory1262]

Bolin Webb makes very stylish high-end handles for Mach 3 and Fusion carts.

 

[DCRIII]

Some may call that razor elegant and others may call it bland with a lack of character. I believe elegant is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[Kevin K.]

Yes, agreed about "elegant." Perhaps I should have said "modern, understated and minimalist." It's certainly the same aesthetic as Standard Razors (or most Apple products, for that matter). By comparison the Edwin Jagger handles are clunky (they're also slippery to hold, which the Ockham and Standard Razors don't suffer from), while the standard Mach 3 razors are all plastic-metal combos. I think if Ockham can get some economies of scale and thus lower their price they'd have a niche. And obviously the clunkier style - and pretty much every DE razor is "clunky" compared to Standard's - is predominant and so popular that Harry's chose to imitate it with their cartridge razor offerings and has apparently done quite well. Thanks for all of the feedback!

 

[AZBronco]

I have one of these brass handles for a Trac II (the picture isn't mine--but mines the exact same and it's worth the $10-$15 they sell for). I got it in an estate sale lot of razors. I like it since it's nice and weighted. I also have an AoS Fusion handle that was a gift. It sells for $90 and feels like inexpensive resin with no real weight. IMO, if you want to sell a nicer cartridge handle, something that has good weight is the way to go--not resin or aluminum.

 

[Kevin K.]

I know what you mean, but the Standard Razors are made from aluminum and the head is well weighted and (to my surprise) the matte surface isn't at all slippery when wet. Obviously getting the weight right is a lot harder with a cartridge razor but Feather's cart. model certainly is hefty. If they (Feather) would just offer that razor without the black plastic that gets discolored with minerals and shave cream over time they'd have a world-beater. I'm a little surprised that one of the giants (Gillette in particular) hasn't come out with a "premium" handle in response to Harry's and these upstarts. I suspect it will happen eventually.

 

[HoneyBadgerDontCare]

Realizing full well that almost all who read and post here are DE fans but also knowing that many of us either travel with a cartridge razor or keep one on hand for home use when time is short I thought I'd share this info in case of interest

Personally I'm a huge fan of the Standard Razors brand DE razors, and if like me you appreciate clean design this company. Ockham Razor, seems to have designed the cart. equivalent to Standard's products:

the razor

Unfortunately the barriers to entry here are all-too-obvious: these razors are currently sold in the UK and price in pounds and both are temporarily out of production. I was able to snag one of the black plastic travel razors and it is truly cool: 10 grams of user-friend minimalism. I got in touch with these guys via their Facebook page and asked if they knew about Standard Razors but they did not. They in turn asked me for any ideas for a U.S. distributor and so I'm asking you for any ideas.

IMHO these products are what the likes of Harry's and Dollar Shave Club ought to be selling. Obviously no cartridge razor is ever going to be as elegant as a truly beautiful DE one, but given that cartridges are almost the entire market you'd think there'd be a prominent place sor something that isn't a piece of cheap disposable plastic junk.

Like putting $10,000 wheels and tires on a $500 car. You can dress a cartridge up as nice as you want but at the end of the day, it's still a cartridge.

 

[Egmont]

Kind of like a $200 stainless steel handle to drag a $.07 blade across one's face...


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[Antony]

Kind of like a $200 stainless steel handle to drag a $.07 blade across one's face...
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Absolutely!... BTW, love your Avatar! Love Beethoven myself. Come to think of it, these expensive handles for cartridges are like listening to Bethoven whilst eating a Big Mac.

 

[Bookie]

It's just a razor, same thing with DE razors, in rest of the world 3$ DE razors do the job, well my 3$ DE razor did the job without any real effort.
Cartridge razors and stainless steel DE razors are like a cars with too much horse power, do we really need 500 HP? It depends who you ask.

I do not see problem with these elegnat handles, do you think CEO's of big companies use DE?Probably not, could they buy this handle, sure if they think they need it.

 

[Egmont]

Exactly. It's just shaving. People use whatever they use. Enjoy what you use and assume others prefer what they use for a good reason.


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[Bookie]

Exactly. It's just shaving. People use whatever they use. Enjoy what you use and assume others prefer what they use for a good reason.


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Actually if I continued on my previous job I would probably just use mach3, I was working night shifts and if needed afternoon shifts. I was so devastated (and my whole life I've been doing sports and some wood working) that shaving was my least thing to do and I do enjoy shaving. And I have to be honest I would probably search for something more "luxurious" just so I can have that DE feeling.

 

[G.W.]

Have you ever considered the labor and time involved with polishing a turd? You'd have to wait for it to dry out, obviously. Then I'm thinking that impregnating it with resin would be good, as it would stabilize it and allow a polish to be given. From there I guess you could go in different directions. Depending on style desired, I guess one method would probably be to turn it in a lathe, then apply a good coat of wax to provide sheen and moisture resistance.
Of course, you'll have your artisan turd polishers, and that's a whole other field.

There's probably a forum somewhere.

 

[August West]

Have you ever considered the labor and time involved with polishing a turd? You'd have to wait for it to dry out, obviously. Then I'm thinking that impregnating it with resin would be good, as it would stabilize it and allow a polish to be given. From there I guess you could go in different directions. Depending on style desired, I guess one method would probably be to turn it in a lathe, then apply a good coat of wax to provide sheen and moisture resistance.
Of course, you'll have your artisan turd polishers, and that's a whole other field.

There's probably a forum somewhere.

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