I splurged on a Schick Krona of eBay. $8 w free shipping. Added 100 Gillette platinums for $10. All set for the year unless the krona craps out. Not sure how that will happen unless I run over it with my truck, which is unlikely.
Lucky you, there is so much excellent shaving products that it can make your head spin. The competition is fierce and there are certain brands that stand out with value & price and others that are excellently manufactured with the latest exotic metal but can be pricy, to some folks price does not really matter I have discovered over the years and they are happy usually with their purchase of a nice expensive product.Does cost matter with razors?
I came across a video of a Scottish man naming his six favorite stainless steel razors. ("My Top 6 Stainless Steel Razors" by Kevy Shaves.) He prefaced it by saying there were a number of very expensive razors on the list, and his No. 6 was something called a Carbon CX which, sure enough, when I looked it up, turned out to cost US$280.
But then his No. 1 choice was the Rockwell 6S. I only have the 2C, but it struck me that his No. 1 was a pretty accessible, mainstream choice.
So my newbie question for today is, is there any correspondence between cost and goodness where razors are concerned? I know there are some that are very finely made, but does that equate to performance?
I'm not saying this is true. I know very little. I have very close to zero experience. But so far I prefer my $5.99* eBay-special Gillette Tech to my $135 Rex Envoy.
I just wonder whether DE razors might be one of those things were higher cost doesn't necessarily correlate with being better. Interested to hear what more experienced wet shavers (and more seasoned razor acquirers--is that a word?) think.
MtB
*A travel kit with the stubby handle. I did add RE's replica ball-end handle for $25. So $31 all in.
Hi Mike, Welcome to B&B! Scanned your various posts and appreciate your thoughtful comments and approach to shaving.Does cost matter with razors?
I came across a video of a Scottish man naming his six favorite stainless steel razors. ("My Top 6 Stainless Steel Razors" by Kevy Shaves.) He prefaced it by saying there were a number of very expensive razors on the list, and his No. 6 was something called a Carbon CX which, sure enough, when I looked it up, turned out to cost US$280.
But then his No. 1 choice was the Rockwell 6S. I only have the 2C, but it struck me that his No. 1 was a pretty accessible, mainstream choice.
So my newbie question for today is, is there any correspondence between cost and goodness where razors are concerned? I know there are some that are very finely made, but does that equate to performance?
I'm not saying this is true. I know very little. I have very close to zero experience. But so far I prefer my $5.99* eBay-special Gillette Tech to my $135 Rex Envoy.
I just wonder whether DE razors might be one of those things were higher cost doesn't necessarily correlate with being better. Interested to hear what more experienced wet shavers (and more seasoned razor acquirers--is that a word?) think.
MtB
*A travel kit with the stubby handle. I did add RE's replica ball-end handle for $25. So $31 all in.
Automobiles have become less differentiated for many manufacturers in recent years due to the need for ever increasing economies of scale. Look at Lexus and Toyota sedans for example. For other than the flagship Lexus the core chassis and drive trains are identical (2.5L4 & 8 speed automatic) with all the differences in added bell and whistle options such as a bigger touch screen (that often has the exact same software). Years ago when I acquired a Honda Accord we looked at the Acura TL sedan. Basically the same car with the main difference, beyond added options, a CVT in the former versus a very problematic 8 speed in the Acura. Glad we got the more reliable car by choosing the lower cost option.When my father worked for Jerry Ford he knew Nelson Rockefeller, and the VP would drive to work in a bog-standard mid-line American sedan of a blah gray-green color, only with tinted back windows in back and a chauffeur dressed in nondescript street clothes up front. If memory serves (which it might not) it was a Chevy Impala, but something similar anyway. There was a Tensor lamp (anyone remember those?) on the back deck behind VP Rockefeller's head, so he could work on his commute. He didn't want to attract any attention in traffic.
My observation of rich people I've known over the years is that some of them don't go for luxury items because they are just not interested in showing off. They don't need to. Bill Gates famously wears a $50 Casio watch ( Amazon.com - https://amzn.to/48XfBYW ). (Are links in posts allowed here?? I'm new.) One couple of my acquaintance that owned many shopping malls all over the world never bought new cars and were scandalized when their daughter bought a brand new car, the original Acura Integra that cost $15k. She bought it out of her own trust fund, too, so they didn't need to contribute. The parents always bought two-year-old Volvos, back when Volvos were made in Sweden and had a reputation for safety. Their net worth was many tens of millions, in the '80s.
I've always considered that the very best cars are mainstream best-sellers, for many reasons, including investment in research and development to repairability, ease of resale, and parts availability. Years ago I heard that Toyota spent many times as much as Ferrari on the development of a new car. That might not be true any more. In my opinion the very best car money can buy right right now might be the Toyota Prius Prime. Lamborghini doesn't have the resources to build that car. And haven't I read that the Gillette Tech had more patents than any other razor? Several engineers made key contributions to its design. One article said that the Tech might have had more patents than any other consumer product, period, once upon a time. So it's the Accord/Camry of razors, maybe. Just musing here, I'm no expert.
MtB
You are right that at ultra low price points there are some Lemons like my $6 Lord L6 with excessive blade exposure and $5 Ming Shi 3000s where the blade almost always tilts due to reliance on springs in the adjustment mechanism. Most of those can be avoided thanks to the many reviews here. When the razor is newly released, like the Ming Shi, the ultra low cost mitigates almost all of the risk. My four year razor journey has delivered three excellent under $15 razors for a fraction of the cost of many single razors out there even when the price of my two failed experiments are included.In terms of modern razors, I'd say that the price does make a difference, but only at the bottom tier. There are plenty of crappy modern razors in that $20 and under territory. I've tried two of them (though I wouldn't say I was "fair" to the most recent), and they weren't worth what I paid for them.
If you step up to the $30-50 range in modern razors...think the Muhle and Edwin Jagger...you get some really good shavers. I don't think I could have gotten better shaves from a $300 DE as I did from my EJ DE89.
Then it got knocked out of my medicine cabinet, and the head broke off. That's probably (in my opinion) where a more expensive razor may...or may not have...paid off. Stainless or titanium wouldn't have broken the way the Zymak did. But, how many DE89s could I have bought at the price of a stainless or titanium razor?
Isn't there a spectrum here that includes acquiring a quality item at a reasonable price (vs. really cheap or free) that is well engineered to do an excellent job without bells and whistles or exotic materials? One can take pride in that they made an excellent purchase decision even if the item isn't a collectable or luxury item they want to show off.I can't say lf anybody else feels this way, but the for me there have been two ways to feel joy about an object. One is to pay a ton and get a really nice thing that one can take pride in and even show off. The other is to get something really cheap or free and get it to do the same job.
I remember, for example, smiling from ear to ear when driving home from work in my strlpped-down Nissan Versa and seeing people with Mercedes or Range Rovers or whatever. I remember thinking that for the price of their car, I could have bought X number of mine, and taking satisfaction from that.
I think some people can get the same type of satisfaction by having a smooth, comfortable shave with a Baili or a vintage Tech they got for five bucks at an antique store or flea market.
Having said all that, I would enjoy having a nice Beemer, just as i enjoy shaving with a my rhodium-plated Toggle. Human psychology can be pretty complicated.
I'm 70 and have only "owned" one new vehicle. I say "owned" because it was also the only leased vehicle I've had: a full size Dodge van I used for work. All the rest of our cars have been purchased used. We just replaced two Toyota Avalons: a 2002 and a 2004. They had both served us well.... 285K on the 2002 and 176K on the 2004.Automobiles have become less differentiated for many manufacturers in recent years due to the need for ever increasing economies of scale. Look at Lexus and Toyota sedans for example. For other than the flagship Lexus the core chassis and drive trains are identical (2.5L4 & 8 speed automatic) with all the differences in added bell and whistle options such as a bigger touch screen (that often has the exact same software). Years ago when I acquired a Honda Accord we looked at the Acura TL sedan. Basically the same car with the main difference, beyond added options, a CVT in the former versus a very problematic 8 speed in the Acura. Glad we got the more reliable car by choosing the lower cost option.
You hit the nail on the head - there is a spectrum and we each find our preferred sweet spot on it.This brought back memories of selling the huge MB V8 and getting the used Civic (the Green Rocket) with crank windows, basic AM/FM radio, and A/C. I loved the Green Rocket, hated the MB, and really did not miss the snobby MB mechanics. I am with you on nice Beemers. I am on my third. First was best, a 1970 2002. Recently we have had two superb X3s, the current one, a demo car, also having the (highly recommended) M package, basically the M suspension and M interior rather than the additional power (and cost) of an actual M. It is the most sure footed car I have ever owned. So returning to the original question, for me it is about finding the sweet spot where you find exactly what you seek and have no urge to spend more. The X3 and my ATT Windsor mixed metal are two happy outcomes for me. Other examples include a low level Pelikan Souveran pen (cheaper than a Montblanc nib) I like better than the Meisterstuck, my ancient Mizuno MP 29 blades picked up in 1980-something for a couple hundred (what you can pay for a single club today!), and my $29.95 Eagle Claw three weight fly rod. All that said, I may have zero interest in getting an upgrade to my ATT, but that does not mean that slant intrigue may not snare me someday.
Believe that, like Van Der Hagen, these are just rebranded Weishi 9306 razors. Well executed advertisement that compares a butterfly to an old vintage tech style head.That's the one! I'm sure there were guys shaving with vintage razors well before that (in the internet age, I mean), but this is when it sorta went mainstream...
Like you, I have the 2C. I decided that I needed a little more aggression, and so bought the 2/4 plate separately - so I actually have a Rockwell 4C - and those two plates, 4 options, serve me extremely well. The 4C is my favourite razor, hands-down, for comfort, agility and adaptability. I bought a Rockwell T2 and that, too, is an extremely good razor, with the advantage of many degrees of adjustability. It's also the most expensive razor I've bought, at CAD $180 - but I do think it's worth it.I'm brand new at this so my opinion carries little weight, but while I like my Tech best, the Rockwell is the better and more useful razor. Although I only have the 2C, I would say a 6C is probably the best starter razor. There seems to be general agreement that the R3, R4, and R5 plates are the most useful, and even though I find the R3 works fine for me, I'd like to have the R4 and R5 to experience them.
It's just that after using the 2C / R3 plate, I imagined that better razors would be better. So I had to buy some to try them. I found out that I like the Rockwell better than the 3 more expensive razors I bought. But how would I have known that if I didn't try them?
MtB