Biggest/ Most expensive purchase that you regretted?

[lordfink]

Over the past 6 months I've developed a pretty severe AD. To date I've acquired 4 shaving brushes, 5 shaving creams, 7 shaving soaps, 3 DE razors, 3 replaceable blade straight razors, 1 traditional straight razor, 1 strop, 1 strop conditioning oil, 5 pre shave treatments, 4 A/S/Bs, 8 mugs, 2 stands, 100s of blades of more than 10 different varieties. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it!


However, along this journey there have been a couple of purchases that I have really regretted. Not the usual… “Geez, I think this blade isn’t as good as that blade but it’ll do anyway”. But more like “I can’t believe I spent all that money on this product and I don’t even use it!” or “I can’t believe how everyone loves this product but it just doesn’t work for me!”


For me it has been the GFT Lime Skin Food… never liked the smell, never liked the feeling of it on my face, it never healed my face, and it gave me in-grown hair! Of course, I completely respect the fact that lots of people love it but it was just a bad purchase for me.


What has your biggest/ most expensive been that you regretted?

 

[rockviper]

Current house; we're finding lots of things "fixed" with quick cover-up jobs, even though this is a brand new house. Removed the set of kitchen pull-out drawers and the wall behind is full of holes.

Oh, you meant razors! Don't really think I've made any big purchases that I've regretted, although SWMBO wishes I hadn't bought MANY things!

 

[TheHammer]

Luckily for me I haven't developed SBAD or soap/cream AD. I do however, have RAD. I have purchased over 80 razors in the last month and a half. Sometimes I've purchased a whole lot just to get 1 razor, then trade/sell/PIF away the others. I haven't necessarily regretted any purchase, however I have regretted not purchasing some items.

 

[YetiDave]

80 razors in a month?!

 

[musicman1951]

I purchased a HIS synthetic brush that I don't use. It's a nice enough synthetic, but I got it to satisfy my curiosity. Regret might be too strong a word as it was only $25, but it now seems like a silly purchase. Still, I am a curious fellow . . .

 

[Foyle]

DR Harris Arlington. Great scent, but I couldn't get a good protective lather from it. I shaved through half the puck and then sold it.

 

[random-hero]

I purchased floid blue and a kilo of p160. Just sitting on a shelf probably never going to be used.

 

[itsmedave]

The AD's hit me hard over the last year. I'm not going to say how many razors I've tried or brushes but it's a lot. For razors I didn't care for any of the slants (and I've had 3 go's with each of them), The R41 (three go's as well), Straights (after trying thrice, it's not happening too many cuts, etc), disposable blade straights (2 go's with a Feather, 1 with a Kai Captain, and 4 tried with a Parker). On a side note I did try with a Futur 3 times and I think my technique is good enough now that I'm going to hold onto this one. I've gotten amazing shaves with it this time and will re-pickup a progress once one shows up on the BST as well.

As for brushes, I've had countless numbers. None of the Simpsons brushes I've kept but I think that is mainly due to knot size. I like a 24-26mm knot with a handle suited for bowl lathering. The Colonel knot is too small but the handle is perfect and the Duke 3's knot is perfect but the handle is small. I'll keep hunting. Short of one Semogue i haven't been disappointed with them at all and of the 7 brushes I've kept around, 5 are Semogues. I've had two Rooney 3/1's and sold both of them and I couldn't be more disappointed with Muhle brushes and I'll leave it at that.

I won't even get into soaps/creams.

At this point, short of a Progress and a Semogue LE #2 Badger, I'm all set. It took a year and an amazing amount of money but I'm thrilled with what I have. I kept a Tradere OC and SB, Schick Type E, Futur, Gillette New, Tech, Schick Krona and for brushes I have kept a Semogue 1800, Semogue LE Badger #1, SOC 2 Band, SOC Boar, Sim Fix 2 Band, 404 Mix, and a TGN Finest set in a Vie Long Handle. 7 brushes and 7 razors. One for each day. From now on, if I want to swap one out, I'll get rid of one first. My postal worker has gone from hating me to merely dislking me over the course of the last year.

 

[BrookR1]

+1 for HIS synthetic brush. It's one of the most awkward shaving shaving tools I've ever used.

 

[Foyle]

I'm changing my answer. I forgot about the Muhle Silver Tip Fibres brush. That's the most expensive purchase that I've regretted.

 

[Slyko]

This is a very good thread. Props to the OP for starting it!

I'm just a newbie so I have yet to make any big mistakes. B&B reviews make sure I don't buy anything but the best! My shortcoming is the soaps & creams. I love all the variety & with B&B's help I have some that literally jump out of the bowl. My wife complains I have more doodads than she does!

I trip on some of the dens I've seen here! Some folks have a lot of disposable income!

My 1 regret is my 1st brush. It was a synthetic that was suggested elsewhere. I was even a victim of false advertising! A floppy ***, but for $9 I should be thankful. I wish all of my mistakes were that cheap.

But big kudos to the B&B crew! You guys are the best!

 

[PugslyCat]

Current house; we're finding lots of things "fixed" with quick cover-up jobs, even though this is a brand new house. Removed the set of kitchen pull-out drawers and the wall behind is full of holes.

My first thought was the house my ex-wife got in the divorce.

If we are limiting it to shaving stuff, I would have to say that the vintage scuttles that I purchased have been the biggest waste of money. I have maybe half a dozen of the old scuttles that look like a tea cup or mug but have a shelf at the top to hold a bit of soap. Right after I got them I switched to Mama Bear soaps in the big plastic tubs and haven't used any of them. My Aged Spice is about kaput, so maybe I'll cut a puck of Colonel Conk bay rum in half and try that. Maybe not.

 

[JeffOlson]

Automobiles.

They are MUCH more expensive than shaving gear...

Also, for the 10 years after, law school. (Things are great now, but I've been at it for 20 years.) There is not only the direct, out-of-pocket cost, there are also the opportunity cost (lost income) and the damage done to one's family.

No, shaving gear is relatively inexpensive and harmless good fun.

 

[isaac d.]

My first thought was the house my ex-wife got in the divorce.

If we are limiting it to shaving stuff, I would have to say that the vintage scuttles that I purchased have been the biggest waste of money. I have maybe half a dozen of the old scuttles that look like a tea cup or mug but have a shelf at the top to hold a bit of soap. Right after I got them I switched to Mama Bear soaps in the big plastic tubs and haven't used any of them. My Aged Spice is about kaput, so maybe I'll cut a puck of Colonel Conk bay rum in half and try that. Maybe not.

Are you sure they're not mustache cups? I see loads of them in antique shops but from my understanding, they were meant to be a drinking cup that kept your mustaches out of the way of your beverage. But that's just the story I heard.. maybe they did have something to do with shaving and I'm just unaware of it.

 

[gangaskan]

my worst purchase going to AOS and buying a straight, and strop :/ that was an expensive mistake! and chewed up a nice dovo strop in the process :/

 

[Axebreaker]

A minty "Razor'n Blades" Travel Tech in box- paid too much for it at an antique store by about half, then didn't like it. A close second was buying a nice rolls shy of a handle for the blade, doh. I had to buy a crappy one with a handle to make it whole. I ended up paying 50$ for both when I coulda got 1 good one ebay for a lot less.

 

[Alejandro1969]

Merkur 11C, but as they are discontinued now, in 10 years time I will make a fortune out of it on 'the bay'!!!

 

[inspiringK]

Merkur 11C, but as they are discontinued now, in 10 years time I will make a fortune out of it on 'the bay'!!!

Uhm, yeah, I doubt you will have any trouble getting your money back on that even if you sell it today.

 

[celestino]

Possibly, my Iwasaki Kamisori. Let me get back to you....

 

[PugslyCat]

Are you sure they're not mustache cups? I see loads of them in antique shops but from my understanding, they were meant to be a drinking cup that kept your mustaches out of the way of your beverage. But that's just the story I heard.. maybe they did have something to do with shaving and I'm just unaware of it.

Yea, there are subtle differences between the vintage scuttles and a mustache cup. Not all vendors understand that. The mustache cup usually has a flat ledge across one side of the cup with a single fairly large hole next to the wall of the cup to allow the beverage to flow through, but dams it up enough that it doesn't wind up all over your mustache. It's basically a sippy cup for adults.

Some vintage scuttles are mugs or cups that have half of the mouth of the mug filled with a compartment to hold half a puck of soap. That compartment has depth that is missing from the ledge of the mustache cup and a vertical wall preventing the soap from sliding into the water below. Typically the soap compartment will have 1-3 very small drain wholes in the middle instead of the one large opening near the wall of the cup. My guess is that the manufacturers were leveraging designs they already had on hand from regular cups and mugs.

Other vintage scuttles had a soap compartment that would accomadate a full puck of soap and a spout on the side to fill and access the hot water in the bottom compartment.