intro cost?

[Stone Dude]

I really want to leanr how to shave with a straight razor, but I htink for cost purposes along with knowledge and skill, I will start out with a safety razor setup first.

having nothing already, what is a realistic cost of getting into shaving with a safety razor, including some extra blades, brush, mug etc. ?

nothing fancy or high end, but a quality setup .

 

[Austin]

I would recommend starting at westcoastshaving.com. You can purchase a blade sample pack, omega brush, merkur razor and Col Conk shave soap for less than $50.

 

[82R100]

If your desires run towards the more vintage razors, a fully functional Gillette double edge or Gem single edge razor can generally be picked up for ~$15 on the Buy/Sell/Trade forum. It depends on whether you want shiny and new or shiny and old .

- Chris

 

[gollum83]

You can definitely get setup for less than $50 or thereabouts. Whether you get a new razor or an old vintage one is up to you. Either would serve you just fine.

Now I see no one touched mugs yet, so I'll touch upon that a little. Your best bet is probably just to visit a Target, Walmart or similar establishment and buy yourself a small dip bowl, latte mug or something along those lines. That way you'll have yourself a nice place to lather for minimal cash.

 

[Luc]

+1 on BST section of this forum.

You can get a shaver grade razor for very cheap. As for the rest, I would follow Austin's advice WCS is a good place.

 

[Alacrity59]

I would recommend starting at westcoastshaving.com. You can purchase a blade sample pack, omega brush, merkur razor and Col Conk shave soap for less than $50.

Which is about the cost of a dozen Fusion cartridge blades.

 

[Andrew16v]

I'd say comb your local antique stores during lunch a couple of days in a row. I found one there for $10. I had some simple green for cleaning my bikes so I soaked it in there and used a tooth brush on it after a couple of hours. I picked up some barbicide at the local beauty supply for $5 and let it soak in there for 10 min. Bam - shave ready for $15! You can pick up the Van der Hagen shave kit at Walmart for under $15, their soap is very well reguarded and it has a nifty shave bowl. There's your set up for $30 and I'd be willing to bet you can even do it for less. You can upgrade when ever you want after that!

 

[RazorDingo]

You can definitely get started in wetshaving for less than ~ $50-60 or so.

If you are willing to spend the time searching, you may be able to source an older, used safety razor for little or no cost. Older male relatives (or their widows..) frequently have these tucked away in the back of medicine cabinets. A pack of blades can be bought at most Walgreens for under $10.

The area where you probably will need to spend some money is on the brush. While it is possible to spend a couple hundred dollars or more on a silvertip or "Super" badger brush - this probably isn't necessary. However, you don't want to go too cheap on your brush. Badly made synthetic or boar bristles brushes simply don't work very well, or rapidly fall apart.

As far as soap - you can buy a decent cake of shaving soap for less than $10.

A shaving mug, brush stand, etc. are really not necessary.

 

[joshmpdx]

this is where i would have liked to start

Merkur HD $30
Blade sample pack $20
Rooney Special Pure $40
Puck of Tabac $10
Tub of Proraso SS $9
Stick of Palmolive SS $4
Tube of Musgo Real $9
Speick AS $15
Spanish Floid $15

 

[dpm802]

I would recommend starting at westcoastshaving.com. You can purchase a blade sample pack, omega brush, merkur razor and Col Conk shave soap for less than $50.

+1 ... best to get all your gear at one time and from one vendor.

I was initially thinking about $100 for a starter kit, but it can be done for $50 ... perhaps you might want to upgrade on the razor and soap(s) at the beginning, which of course would cost a little bit more, but not much.

Scour your local supermarket for Aftershave lotions and balms ... just avoid anything in an aerosol can and you should be OK.

 

[richmondesi]

You can definitely get setup for less than $50 or thereabouts. Whether you get a new razor or an old vintage one is up to you. Either would serve you just fine.

Now I see no one touched mugs yet, so I'll touch upon that a little. Your best bet is probably just to visit a Target, Walmart or similar establishment and buy yourself a small dip bowl, latte mug or something along those lines. That way you'll have yourself a nice place to lather for minimal cash.

I would recommend that you get one of those hard plastic toddler bowls (wally world has them) that have a little bit of a coarse finish inside the bowl. Cheap and builds lather really well

 

[Alacrity59]

I would recommend that you get one of those hard plastic toddler bowls (wally world has them) that have a little bit of a coarse finish inside the bowl. Cheap and builds lather really well
__________________
Paul

I'm using a cereal bowl I got at the Dollar store. It has a black interior. I find shave mugs a little to narrow and deep. I'd actually like the bowl to be a bit narrower but . . . unlike Goldie Locks . . . I've yet to find one that is "just right"

 

[richmondesi]

I would recommend that you get one of those hard plastic toddler bowls (wally world has them) that have a little bit of a coarse finish inside the bowl. Cheap and builds lather really well
__________________
Paul

I'm using a cereal bowl I got at the Dollar store. It has a black interior. I find shave mugs a little to narrow and deep. I'd actually like the bowl to be a bit narrower but . . . unlike Goldie Locks . . . I've yet to find one that is "just right"

That sounds like the little bowl that we bought from my son. It is a little oval shaped bowl that isn't very deep. It actually works quite well. Also, the walls are thin enough that when I float it, it keeps the lather really warm

 

[garyg]

I was going to post a starter kit earlier today, then forgot .. but for $35 shipped I would include a Gillette Ball End Tech razor (good starter) in good condition for a basic shaver, an Omega Boar Brush excellent with a stand, a puck of generic shave soap that I got from my old school barber, & pack of Wilkinson blades. You add a mug. Now that I think of it I will take pictures & if you want you get first dibs.

 

[_JP_]

For starters, you might want to consider a badger brush instead of a boar. Badger is generally easier to build lather with. The cost difference wouldn't be that great.

 

[garyg]

Yes, that is my experience, but I thought the idea was to do the first kit inexpensively. And a good boar brush isn't that far off, maybe better than a real cheap badger

 

[salisburyyates]

I really want to leanr how to shave with a straight razor, but I htink for cost purposes along with knowledge and skill, I will start out with a safety razor setup first.

having nothing already, what is a realistic cost of getting into shaving with a safety razor, including some extra blades, brush, mug etc. ?

Quality and low-cost is attainable with wet shaving. But here are some things to think about.

You may find a boar brush to be your best friend, and they are sold for under 10 dollars at most drug stores. An Omega or Wilkinson brush are actually some of the cheapest, but some of the most seasoned members here prefer them over the 25-100 dollar badger brush.

The cost that goes unnoticed at times is the cost one puts into experimentation. A quality blade like Merkur could be popular as a shaving tool, but may be completely unsuitable for your skin to shave with. The same goes for safety razors. You may purchase something more aggressive like a Merkur HD (still a very good starting razor) and it may not work at all or something cheap that is still a great razor for newbies like a Weishi (if you know how to use it), and it may work better for you, despite the 15 dollar price difference.

Conceivably, you could pick up:

Williams Mug soap for -1.99
Weishi kit from ebay -8.99
Omega boar brush -7.99
Latte mug from home -free
wetshaving joy -priceless

The kit I saw on ebay has a pack of blades included. But this is just one option. You could pick up and refurbish an antique for 5-10 dollars. The options for starting out cheap are as vast as the opportunity for personal modification.

 

[michiganlover]

A quality blade like Merkur could be popular as a shaving tool, but may be completely unsuitable for your skin to shave with.

Merkur blades are not top quality. They are nearly universally hated on this board!! I tried them, and found them to be 100% garbage, not to mention they tend to be far more expensive than other blades. Avoid the Merkur blades at all costs!

The Merkur blade I tried pulled, and skipped on the first use, other blades don't do that until after a weeks worth of use.

 

[DS/B MCS]

As seen above your initial cost should be around $50-$75 for a nice starter kit. What nobody has told you is...your initial cost is not the issue. It's when the numerous AD's kick in that your bank account starts to

Wet shaving is a fun hobby and the cost of entry/building a collection is very reasonable.

 

[Jwolf24601]

Go to Wal-Mart and get the Van Der Haagen Starter set, Mug, soap, and boar brush for $9, and styptic pencil $1

Get a razor on the BST forums $10-20

And order the $5.50 Sampler from West coast Shaving $8 after shipping

Then you're in for about $30-35 for about 2 month of shaving.

Or until the AD's kick in....(addictions)