I'm very old, but new the the current world of double edged safety razors. I'd like some help in cutting thru the thicket...
I can recall first shaving with my Dad's old butterfly Gillette, and that's what I used until I went away to college in '68. I bought an Atra 2 somewhere around that time, and it's what I used until about 3 weeks ago. I found it increasingly hard to find Atra 2 blades that weren't absolute junk. I was getting very poor shaves after multiple passes. I had seen the ads for "Shave Club!" where they wanted you to pay >$30 per month to shave the "new way", with three, five, SIX blades!
Similarly, I saw multi-blade sets at the grocery store, and this just looked gimmicky as hell to me.
I recalled my Dad's razor, and this seemed the antithesis of all the ads, so I felt that maybe double-edge safety razors were on the outs, keeping a low profile. Boy, was I ever mistaken.
So to just get my feet wet (so to speak) I bought an entry level Vikings Blade butterfly and five blades for $13. Surprisingly, I have enjoyed using it--I actually kinda look forward to shaving now, whereas before it was an unwanted chore. I believe that I like it because you have to THINK a bit; but if you do, I'm convinced that the shave is much closer and much more precise, especially around mustache, etc.
So I've been looking and reading for a solid month, because I intend to indulge myself just a bit. And it's interesting that male shaving is probably the least expensive luxury market you can get into; e.g., it's not like old motorcycles or a gun collection. At the same time I don't want to simply throw money away.
So I'd like to solicit your *opinions* of which brands/distributors seem to be the least inclined to hyperbole, and if you want, which brands/distributors seem the most superficial and inflated.
In case it's not clear what I mean by superficial and inflated, it's what I just saw on a webpage:
It's this sort of dumb pomposity I'm seeking to avoid. There seems to be *A LOT* of it out there. I'd say that Vikings Blade fits into that category, although their entry level kit was good enough to get started.
Thanks for your help!
I can recall first shaving with my Dad's old butterfly Gillette, and that's what I used until I went away to college in '68. I bought an Atra 2 somewhere around that time, and it's what I used until about 3 weeks ago. I found it increasingly hard to find Atra 2 blades that weren't absolute junk. I was getting very poor shaves after multiple passes. I had seen the ads for "Shave Club!" where they wanted you to pay >$30 per month to shave the "new way", with three, five, SIX blades!
Similarly, I saw multi-blade sets at the grocery store, and this just looked gimmicky as hell to me.
I recalled my Dad's razor, and this seemed the antithesis of all the ads, so I felt that maybe double-edge safety razors were on the outs, keeping a low profile. Boy, was I ever mistaken.
So to just get my feet wet (so to speak) I bought an entry level Vikings Blade butterfly and five blades for $13. Surprisingly, I have enjoyed using it--I actually kinda look forward to shaving now, whereas before it was an unwanted chore. I believe that I like it because you have to THINK a bit; but if you do, I'm convinced that the shave is much closer and much more precise, especially around mustache, etc.
So I've been looking and reading for a solid month, because I intend to indulge myself just a bit. And it's interesting that male shaving is probably the least expensive luxury market you can get into; e.g., it's not like old motorcycles or a gun collection. At the same time I don't want to simply throw money away.
So I'd like to solicit your *opinions* of which brands/distributors seem to be the least inclined to hyperbole, and if you want, which brands/distributors seem the most superficial and inflated.
In case it's not clear what I mean by superficial and inflated, it's what I just saw on a webpage:
It's this sort of dumb pomposity I'm seeking to avoid. There seems to be *A LOT* of it out there. I'd say that Vikings Blade fits into that category, although their entry level kit was good enough to get started.
Thanks for your help!