Best place to find blades? And short story

[georgestruthers]

Okay, I currently do not use a credit or debit card so internet purchases are out. I am a resident of South Carolina near Clemson University and am wondering if there is a good source for quality blades. Independant shop or chain?

Now for the short story.

I recently purchased an old shaving bag which contained 3 Gillette slim adjustables, 1 no date code Super Speed, a gold 3 piece ball tip and a near mint Rolls Razor with all packaging and papers. The razors did come with some Gillette super stainless steel blades in a new spoiler package which I am currently on my last. All my razors cleaned up great and have no brassing or any other problems, love em. Wife thinks I am crazy, disposable is not my thing,. I also have great results with a boar hair brush and Williams contrary to lots of negative reports on this board. Well thanks and sorry for the novel.

 

[amishmotorboat]

Why are internet purchases out?
Some do accept checks and/or money orders. It's just that there is a rather long wait time, since the mail has to get there first, then wait for check or money order to clear, then ship.

 

[dreadpirate]

There is also Paypal. I think you can set up Paypal with a bank account, sort of like a debit card.

 

[Masterblaster]

I read posts about the dollar stores carrying packs of blades for $1.

I haven't looked myself. But that might work for you.

 

[poppi]

Walmart carries US Personnas which have worked pretty well for me. Family Dollar and Dollar General stores usually have DE blades but couldn't say if they're good or not since I haven't tried them yet.

 

[tominabox1]

Second the suggestion for Paypal with a checking account. Secure and no debit/credit cards. While the personnas at walmart and the DE blades at dollar general are available and cheap, I wouldnt reccommend them for an extended period of time. They just aren't as nice as the other options available via mail order.

Good Luck!

 

[ajkimmins]

Maybe get a friend to get you a 100pack of derbys or some other off amazon and you just give him the $20 to cover the $15 + shipping.

 

[dpm802]

Second the suggestion for Paypal with a checking account. Secure and no debit/credit cards. While the personnas at walmart and the DE blades at dollar general are available and cheap, I wouldnt reccommend them for an extended period of time. They just aren't as nice as the other options available via mail order.

Good Luck!

+2 on the PayPal.

If you don't want to go that route, you can get pre-paid VISA cards just about everywhere. There is a small fee (around $5) to buy the card the first time, in amounts from $25 to $100. Once you get the card, you can reload it with additional cash for your next purchase.

This would enable you to shop on the internet or order things by phone.

Unfortunately, when it comes to wet-shaving, you'll find that just about everything has to be ordered in from outside, whether its from across the country or around the world. There's just not enough available in regular retail stores anymore.

 

[Gravy]

Some of the worst blades I ever tried were from local stores. I almost ditched DE shaving. I was asuming brands of blades could not be that different from one another.
They can actually be "night and day" different.

Lucky for me, I stuck w/ it and purchased a sampler pack of blades on the net. If I ever lost my ability to buy them online, I would find someone to do it for me and tip them a few dollars for their trouble. Getting my brand "X" is that important to me.

 

[Telecaster52]

A quick search brought this up:
Hubbard-Young Pharmacy Inc
402 College Avenue, Clemson, SC
29631-2922
(864) 654-1771‎

the description on one of the reviews says "They are a traditional home-town pharmacy. They believe in personalized customer service and home town values." If they don't carry DE blades already, they could probably source some for you. i have a small local pharmacy that still has NOS gillette super stainless blades, their prices aren't anything to write home about ($8 for 10 on the Gillettes) but you may be able to haggle with them, as they aren't a chain store.

 

[Schwert]

I have used a money order with Shoebox Shave Shop several times. Gary has a good line of shave items and is a gem to deal with.

I refuse to use paypal so am always on the lookout for vendors who will take a USPS money order.

 

[40boy]

Agree with seeking out Walmart Personnas or Dollar Store blades.

The Gillette "Super Inox" in the red black packaging you'll find at Walgreens/CVS are really expensive and are terrible to boot.

or you could try the B/S/T
Most of the gents in there are pretty agreeable. I'm sure you'll be able to find someone willing to take a money order. Find someone selling blades, and send them a PM.

You dont have enough posts yet to sell in there, but you can certainly buy

 

[cvac]

+1 on Money Order or getting a paypal account. I'm sure many vendors would be willing to work with a money order as long at it is a reputable one like the ones you get at the US Post Office or from Western Union. All you have to do is email and ask. Shoe Box Shave Shop sounds like a good one to start with.

If you need local blades, I would try Bed Bath and Beyond. They have 5 packs of German Wilkinson blades there for $1.99. I've not tried them, but I would get those over crappy store brand blades or the awful Gillettes, which is probably what most local stores carry.

Sometimes Barber Supply or Beauty Supply stores will carry DE blades as well, but what they have is usually pretty hit or miss...they might only have one crappy brand of blade that is just as bad as the store brand blades et al.

 

[crowdog]

If you want paypal to be even a little more secure. Open up a free checking or savings account, and just put enough in there to pay for you paypal purchase. Same if you sold something, you could transfer it out quick.

Marty

 

[georgestruthers]

Thanks to all for the help and info.

 

[Go West Young Man]

Any blade you can find in a retail will be at least twice as expensive as buying online, and up to 10x in many cases. A great blade can be had for $10-12 per hundred, shipping included, online, while Walmarts and the like can charge as much as 50 cents to a dollar each for a low/mid quality blade.