cheap initial setup

[sidendle]

Hello again.
I was taking a wander round the shops yesterday - the UK doesnt seem to have a huge amount of DE shaving kit around that I could see, but I have seen the following, and for simply trying out wetshaving with a bare minimal cost what are you thoughts (take into account I can buy this on the doorstep to simply try, with the view to upgrading if I like it)

Boots sell Wilkinson Sword 'classic' blades, and they also sell a very cheap DE butterfly razor - plastic looking but super cheap at £4.69
Wilko's sell Wilkinson sword Shave soap again a bargain at the moment at £2
and also sell a (i imagine a nasty synathetic) brush for next to nothing.

My thoughts are that this would just allow me to try the process, and get a feel for this new shaving process.

Is there anything else that you can think of - I await your thoughts
Cheers gents

Simon

 

[elverdiblanco]

Boots own brand blades are Israeli Personnas and very good.
The Wilkinson Sword shave soap is not very good, better off with Palmolive shaving cream for £1.80
Tesco sell a Wilkinson Sword bristle brush for £4.29 but I have no idea how good that one is. Tesco also sell the same Israeli Personna blades for £1.90 for a pack of 10.

 

[Sabre]

I would order an inexpensive Omega boar brush from online/eBay, and pick up a refill shaving soap and an inexpensive quality cream. You may find you prefer soaps over creams (and vice versa). The UK has two to three good online suppliers, and if you buy in bulk the USA is good value too (only way to source Prè de Provence shaving soap)

 

[Cristobal]

My cheap setup would be:

Rimei razor from China, £2.69
http://dx.com/p/rimei-stainless-steel-double-edge-blade-razor-silver-116281

Disco Shaving Brush from India (maybe it's available in Indian grocery stores), £1.99
http://www.pakcosmetics.com/brand/Paks/Best-Sellers/Disco-Shaving-Brush.html

Palmolive Shave Stick, £0.50 at Tesco
http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=256534448

Personna blades from Tesco as said before, £1.90
http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=258863798

Boots aftershave balm freshwood, £2.59
http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-aftershave-balm-freshwood_985664/

Total is more or less 10 pounds

 

[jpakstis]

Palmolive Shave Stick, £0.50 at Tesco
http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=256534448

This! Cheap, nice fresh scent, and tallow to boot. If we had Palmolive sticks here in the US available locally, I would be buying them by the pallet.

 

[Ashley Rosser]

Hello again.
I was taking a wander round the shops yesterday - the UK doesnt seem to have a huge amount of DE shaving kit around that I could see, but I have seen the following, and for simply trying out wetshaving with a bare minimal cost what are you thoughts (take into account I can buy this on the doorstep to simply try, with the view to upgrading if I like it)

Boots sell Wilkinson Sword 'classic' blades, and they also sell a very cheap DE butterfly razor - plastic looking but super cheap at £4.69
Wilko's sell Wilkinson sword Shave soap again a bargain at the moment at £2
and also sell a (i imagine a nasty synathetic) brush for next to nothing.

My thoughts are that this would just allow me to try the process, and get a feel for this new shaving process.

Is there anything else that you can think of - I await your thoughts
Cheers gents

Simon

As stated the Boots/Tescos/Asda blades are pretty decent, Boots sell a boar hair brush and stand for a tenner that is actually by Men-U, not the best but not bad for dipping your toes into the DE shaving waters. If we knew which town you're in maybe a UK member here could point you in the right direction. My first/starter kit is a Merkur 38c, Boots boar hair brush and some tailor of old bond street lemon & lime that cost me less than £100 retail. It all depends on your budget and where you're at in the UK.

 

[Sabre]

Omega brush on eBay from 8.00 GBP with free shipping. Provence Santè is 5.00/4.30 GBP or more shipped from the US. Blades available locally. The best aftershaves are also generally available online. Edwin Jagger/Harris/TOBS are all good entry points. I just scored some T&H No 10 from Creighton's for around 4.00 GBP.

 

[sidendle]

Cheers guys. I'm in Derby.

Is this a stupid question. The aftershaves you refer to, are they simply aftershave such as the likes of diesel/ck etc?

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[Sabre]

Cheers guys. I'm in Derby.

Is this a stupid question. The aftershaves you refer to, are they simply aftershave such as the likes of diesel/ck etc?

Thanks for the suggestions!

Speick, Proraso, Floid etc are generally only available online. I would avoid most Designer fragrance aftershaves, I currently use the Ted Baker aftershave cologne from Boots. However Speick is my favourite.

 

[cheesepiece]

My budget setup recommendation, all obtainable in UK via delivery or locally, would be:
This brush http://shop.bestshave.net/wooden-handled-shaving-brushes-no6-p-67.html approximately £2.00 delivered.
The Astra SP or Shark Super Stainless blades http://www.nkdman.co.uk/shaving/razor-blades/ £1.25 delivered (pack of five) or £5.95 for a sampler pack of 25 blades.
This Palmolive cream http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=255355258 £1.80 at Tesco or delivered with your weekly shop (I don't like the 50p stick but it's worth a punt, I suppose)
The razor, as with the blades, is not something which ideally you would be scrimping on... It will only be something you end up buying twice if you buy cheap. You could go for the cheapest Wilko Sword DE which Boots sells which has already been mentioned, £4.69

That is a low-cost setup for under-£10 however, with the razor, like the blades, I would recommend investing the money higher quality. The Merkur 34C is my recommendation at £29.95 http://www.nkdman.co.uk/merkur-34c-heavy-duty-safety-razor
Slightly cheaper though I hear comparable are the Muhle R89s http://www.nkdman.co.uk/muhle-r89-double-edge-safety-razor £24.95 and even cheaper the Edwin Jagger DE89 http://www.nkdman.co.uk/edwin-jagger-de89-safety-razor at £20 dead, though beware of the lack of knurling and hence grip on that one!

I'd say the budget setup should cost ~£5 with what I've given but a good razor is always going to set you back £20-30.00 Go with the Merkur is my advice.

Sorry I missed AfterShave http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=258842149 £5.00 delivered with weekly shop or collected from Tesco.

To answer your question about aftershave....
Aftershave is the caring stuff you put on your face post-shave. Moisturisers such as that I just linked from Tesco. Alum blocks, bay rums, etc.
Aftershave that we call aftershave here in England is the stuff the Americans would refer to as cologne. That's totally irrelevant.

 

[parapaul]

Welcome aboard to another UK member.

For a cheap starter kit you can buy on the high street I'd go with the Boots £4 razor and a pack of Wilkinson Sword blades - the ones that come with the razor are nasty in comparison. I'll second the comments on the Palmolive - you can pick up the stick or the cream in most supermarkets (and probably Boots too, although I've never looked).

For the love of god don't buy the Wilkinson Sword brush though! It looks pretty but you'd make better lather with a toothbrush, seriously. It's terrible. Get something made of boar or badger hair - Boots do indeed sell a Men-U 'Pure Bristle' brush for about £8, which will be more than twice as good.

Aftershave as mentioned on this forum is probably more along the lines of what your father or grandfather wore - a bottle of it, poured into cupped hands and applied to the shaven face. Like Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone If you're in a big Boots - and I'm sure there is one in Derby - they sell Tabac and Pinaud Clubman aftershaves. I don't like the smell of them personally, but the majority here do.

Oh, and an absolute MUST is a styptic pencil. You will nick and cut yourself when you start out, and it's so much better than trying to stop the bleeding with pieces of tissue paper!

 

[Sabre]

I imagine most new traditional shaving start as I did, and how I encouraged my friends. Head off to Boots or Tesco/Asda/Sainsbury's etc. and grab a Wilkinson Sword DE razor and blades, maybe some own brand Personna's and Dorco blades. It appears we all pick up the ubiquitous Wilkinson Sword boar brush and blue bowl soap, and the Palmolive stick and cream. That brush will be relegated to a box/bin/friend and you will probably never finish the soaps. Many enjoy the Palmolive products, but they are lost on me, other products are more expensive but are generally better performers. I can not use a product that contains any moisturising component. Read the reviews, and discover Shea Butter soaps, brushes from Italy, Spain and Portugal. Aftershaves from all over Europe. Have fun, enjoy but skip the inexpensive stuff which you will just relegate to the back of the cabinet/cupboard ....

 

[sidendle]

Thanks again everyone- fantastic help as always!

appreciate the comments on likely hood of the cheap stuff getting relagated to the bin in the future. Just a case of justifying the cost- I dread to think what I have spent on the likes of mach3s etc in the past to find out it just doesn't work!

Judging by the posts on this site I have a feeling this wont be the case!

 

[Ducati Scotty]

Having gone with very inexpensive stuff to start I'd say don't bother. Get some good gear instead. I ended up ditching all my cheap stuff once I got rolling. It doesn't have to be top of the line but don't make low price the overriding factor in your decisions. Good gear that performs well makes it easier to learn and easier to shave well.

An Omega boar brush is inexpensive, durable, and a great first choice. Lots of blades to choose from and none are terribly expensive, I like Israeli Personna Reds and Astra SP. Same with soaps and creams, Proraso is inexpensive and works very well. I would say it's worth spending a bit on a good razor. They're generally reasonably priced and much better than the least expensive ones. An Edwin Jagger DE89 model is a solid razor and good choice for a beginner.

If you like wet shaving you won't outgrow or want to replace this stuff any time soon, it's all good enough to serve you for years. If it's not your thing you didn't really spend too much more to start with and you should easily be able to sell the razor here and get some of it back.

Good luck and welcome to the board!

Scott

 

[elverdiblanco]

If you're looking for a quality setup without breaking the bank try a starter kit from http://www.traditionalshaving.co.uk

Edwin Jagger DE89 razor
Pure badger brush
TOBS shaving cream
Personna Super Stainless Blades

all for £45.85 including UK delivery, a saving of £5.10 compared with buying items individually

 

[Ducati Scotty]

If you're looking for a quality setup without breaking the bank try a starter kit from http://www.traditionalshaving.co.uk

Edwin Jagger DE89 razor
Pure badger brush
TOBS shaving cream
Personna Super Stainless Blades

all for £45.85 including UK delivery, a saving of £5.10 compared with buying items individually

Tough to beat that.

Scott

 

[cheesepiece]

http://www.hotukdeals.com/visit?m=37215&q=1601787 My pick of the razors for £22.45 Merkur 34C with code TSR

 

[elverdiblanco]

http://www.hotukdeals.com/visit?m=37215&q=1601787 My pick of the razors for £22.45 Merkur 34C with code TSR

Heresy! Code bandb gives a 10% Badger & Blade discount

 

[cheesepiece]

My apologies. I know of a vendor or two that revoked B&B discounts because they're private and for members only as the public without membership can read these posts. I always just go with what's working and I've tried.

 

[elverdiblanco]

My apologies. I know of a vendor or two that revoked B&B discounts because they're private and for members only as the public without membership can read these posts. I always just go with what's working and I've tried.

Yeah, nkdman.co.uk B&B discount no longer works.