End of Acquistion Disorder and Only Using Products I Enjoy

[texcattlerancher]

Like many of us, one of the reasons I started the wetshaving "hobby" was to save money on shaving products. This sounds like a good idea. However, after finding B&B, one reads about all these wonderful soaps, creams, blades, razors, and brushes that one, of course, just has to try. I ended up with a myriad of soaps and creams, three brushes, at least five safety razors, and one of the original B&B Zowada (sp?) straight razors. I sold the Zowada and got most of my money back. I even had two sticks of the Irish Moos that so many here sought, and may still seek, after. I certainly wasn't enjoying any savings, and to boot, I had a bunch of creams and soaps that were not exactly enjoyable either.

I joined B&B nearly eight years ago and have not posted here with any regularity in at least three to four years. The reason for that long absence is that I have been working my way through all the excess soaps, creams, and blades that I had acquired. Some of this was absolute drudgery. I felt like I had to do it so as to not be wasteful. As of yesterday I was down to half a stick of Speick shaving soap and a feather blade. At least I had saved some of the best for last.

Now, I am determined to only use products that I enjoy. Just arrived in the mail today, a tube of Musgo Real, a tub of Castle Forbes Lime, some Feathers, and some Classic Wilky Swords. Musgo is my absolute favorite cream, and I have not had any in years. Puncturing the seal on the Musgo yielded that heady, wonderful Musgo scent not matched by anything else. The CF Lime is perfect for a hot Dallas summer. At least in my experience Feathers and the Classic Swords give by far the best shaves. Never again will I purchase too much product, certainly not years and years worth, and if I happen across product I don't enjoy, it will soon find itself on buy/sell/trade rather than me feeling I have to finish it. It feels wonderful to only have a few superior products in my shave den which I will enjoy using. Also, after having used up all the acquisition disorder purchases from years past, I feel I finally may be coming out ahead again financially with wetshaving.

 

[tonich]

Quite a journey you have had, James!
Welcome back!

 

[DanOK]

I'm glad you are where you want to be going forward. I have also worked my way through a large backlog of purchases in the last few years and am down to only reordering the ones I love the best. Still unsure if I am ahead financially but I am not experimenting with razors, blades, and brushes anymore.

 

[texcattlerancher]

Thank you, but I don't know that I will be back posting on a daily (or even weekly or monthly) basis, but I will be checking in from time to time rather than just being on a forced absence. I do recall my post count being above 2,000, or at least I thought it was. There must be some threads, like The Anything Thread, that no longer count toward total posts.

 

[DanOK]

Well its nice to hear from you again. I lot have faded away over the years.

 

[texcattlerancher]

I'm glad you are where you want to be going forward. I have also worked my way through a large backlog of purchases in the last few years and am down to only reordering the ones I love the best. Still unsure if I am ahead financially but I am not experimenting with razors, blades, and brushes anymore.

I don't remember the model numbers anymore, but I have a heavy Merkur that I use daily and then a smaller travel version that resides in the Dopp kit. I also have a vintage Fat Boy that I can't seem to part with. I have two very old razors that will probably find their way to b/s/t. They don't see any use. They are way too light for my taste. I need to post pictures, and I am sure someone here will identify them and perhaps give a value. I have a Saville Row brush for daily use, and it is wonderful. I even have one of the original B&B brushes. It is much too floppy and that was a complaint of that brush held by many here. However, it is extremely soft on the rare occasions I do use it, and I can't seem to part with it.

 

[texcattlerancher]

Well its nice to hear from you again. I lot have faded away over the years.

True. I hardly recognize any names when I check "New Posts." However, it's good to have new blood enjoying this wetshaving hobby of ours.

 

[DanCPA]

James, your post inspired me to briefly recount my journey into wet shaving any my experience with B&B.

I joined B&B in 2010 while researching shaving-related products. I lurked for a few months, reading product reviews in hopes of making smart purchases and learning from the experiences of others. I was EXTREMELY happy with the minimalist set-up I had at the time, and I enjoyed excellent shaves with virtually the same products day after day.

Fast forward a couple years to the purchase of my first Weber razor (DLC). I had found shaving nirvana: Arko (and occasionally Tabac or Prorasso), my Omega boar, and the Weber DLC loaded with Feather blades were consistently delivering absolutely perfect shaves. I had absolutely no desire to try any other products and couldn't comprehend the acquisition disorders that seemed to have infected so many guys on this forum.

The birth of my first son eventually led me to purchase another razor: a Weber PH. The plan was to keep one Weber and save the other for when my son began shaving. I began using the PH as my daily shaver because I preferred the shorter bulldog handle.

Fast forward again to earlier this year… I had recently converted my brother to wet shaving and as he prepared to depart for BUD/S training I gave him my beloved DLC and wished him well. I figured that he would appreciate the razor as much as I had (and as far as I know he still does), and that I could simply purchase another Weber for my son. Well, I had been so satisfied with my minimalist shaving kit that I hadn't read B&B in quite some time, and therefore was completely surprised to learn that Weber was NO LONGER MAKING RAZOR HEADS!!! To make matters worse (although this truly is a blessing), my wife and I shortly thereafter found out that our second child would be another boy! I now needed to purchase TWO Webers!!!

Enter RAD. I began acquiring a variety of current production and vintage razors in hopes of finding something that shaved as well as my Weber so that I could stash a couple away for my sons. I set aside my Weber during this time and began experimenting with different blade and razor combos.

Sure, I acquired some nice shavers during the last several months, but after dusting off my Weber a few days ago I can say with absolute certainty that nothing I own shaves *me* as well as my Weber (YMMV, of course). I've also discovered that I don't really enjoy having a rotation of expensive razors as this is contrary to my minimalist nature. I also don't wish to become a collector, as I strive to eliminate material possessions that aren't utilized on a frequent basis.

I'm not sure where this revelation leads me… Sell everything but the Weber, or stash the other razors in a closet for my sons to experiment with once they start shaving? Either way, I seriously doubt that I will be acquiring any additional razors in the foreseeable future and it is likely that my "rotation" will begin to look a bit repetitive. I suspect that I will end up keeping a couple of my recently acquired razors and part with the rest.

I guess my intent in posting this is to encourage guys who think they've found "the one" to stick with whatever it is that works for them!

 

[williabe]

Great story, thanks for sharing. Welcome back to B&B!!

 

[ackvil]

Welcome back.

I found that after joining B&B I went overboard in buying both hardware and software. I have many unopened or partially used soaps and have vowed not to buy anything new until I use something up.

 

[kansaskyle]

Welcome back to B&B!

I'm on a similar journey to find what really works for me, and I'm happily selling, PIFing, and/or trading things that don't make the grade. I think that is important when you find stuff that just doesn't work for whatever reason rather than throwing it under the counter or just drudging your way through something you don't like. Life is too short to have bad shaves!

I don't necessarily see my hoard of soaps (19) or aftershaves (10) as a problem. It gives me ammunition for trading, and I'm almost to the point where I really like everything I have in my den.

I did join the 2015 annual restraint, which is helping me to cull the herd and not acquire more new stuff.

 

[texcattlerancher]

Good post Dan. I, obviously, am a minimalist now as well.

 

[BRITD]

James (Texcattlerancher), great to see a B&B long-timer checking in. I like your write-up and you explaining your journey. Interesting perspective about acquiring and then being compelled to use up product. From what I have read on B&B, its a common theme.

I have always tried to limit my soap/cream stocks to under 2 years of mileage. Currently, sitting just over 2 years worth. Not easy at times to be so restrained but like where you are today, its more important for me to use products I enjoy, rather than products that I haven't tried, end up not enjoying but now compelled to use up. Plus, I hate clutter and having too many choices when it comes to performing a simple daily task.

Vintage razor AD's are better since you can one day sell off what you don't like and get most or all of your money back. That will be my task for this fall to reduce what I have to 1/2 a drawer full of shaving gear and that all see's regular use.

 

[BRITD]

James, your post inspired me to briefly recount my journey into wet shaving any my experience with B&B.
I guess my intent in posting this is to encourage guys who think they've found "the one" to stick with whatever it is that works for them!

Great Advice.