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Some purchasing restraint at last - but how old will you be when your supplies run out?

EclipseRedRing

I smell like a Christmas pudding
On topic/off topic: how long does it take you to see the bottom of a tub of soap/cream? That’s interesting to get a rough idea of supplies.

- A tub of soap (Cella, Zingari)
- A tub of croap (Stirling, Phoenix, A&E)
- A tub of cream: (TOBS)
- A puck of soap: (DR Harris/SV/Tabac)
I cannot comment on croaps or creams but I would guess a hard puck such as Tabac would last between six months and a year of daily use. A lot will depend on the size of brush you use, how heavy you load the soap, number of passes, etc. Typically I think the harder the soap the longer it will last as, for example, a triple milled soap will have a very low % water content compared to a soft soap or cream. I used 9 months for a hard puck in my calculation which might be on the low side. In my experience the exact same soap in stick form can be very slightly softer than the equivalent puck, plus sticks normally contain less soap so I guesses six months for a stick in my calculations.
 
I only use 2 razors, 4 different creams/soaps, 2 ASB's, and one type of blade. Got a bit out of control years ago (but nothing like what many on here have going on) and seriously paired down.

Tried "branching out" and used a different blade the other day and it sucked, and went right back to my old standby (Astra SP).
 
I'm afraid to run a serious inventory of my various consumables, but off the top of my head, I figure I've got enough soap and blades to outlast me. Only about 7-8 years of balms and 4-5 years worth of WH though, so I can still justify those purchases.
I put all of my gear, ( except razors for some reason ), into a spreadsheet last December. Seeing it all laid out helped with the decision to participate in GRUYERE this year, 😟
 
I've responded to this, and similar questions, before.

If I live my allotted 375 years, I expect that I have enough shaving gear to last me to the end of my days. I expect to be trading my last 1970's William's Mug soaps with Captain Jean Luc Picard.

I've been fortunate to have good stockpiles of Tabac (tallow version, please), D.R. Harris Windsor and Arlington, Palmolive and Arko shave sticks with lesser amounts of La Toja sticks.
 

OkieStubble

Dirty Donuts are so Good.
On topic/off topic: how long does it take you to see the bottom of a tub of soap/cream? That’s interesting to get a rough idea of supplies.

- A tub of soap (Cella, Zingari)
- A tub of croap (Stirling, Phoenix, A&E)
- A tub of cream: (TOBS)
- A puck of soap: (DR Harris/SV/Tabac)

It took me 10 years to kill a puck of Cade? I’ll never understand how some kill a hard puck of soap as fast as I can kill a bottle of Hennessy!

;)
 
I have been reading of the reformulation of Mitchell's Wool Fat shaving soap and read the advice to stock up, and so found myself with a few pucks of tallow MWF in my online shopping basket. Before I finished my purchase I decided to do a stock take of my soaps and estimate how long my current supply would last. I allowed a conservative nine months for a bowl or puck, and six months for a stick in my calculations.

I was astonished to find I have in excess of 40 pucks or bowls of Yardley Black Label, Yardley Lavender, Shulton Old Spice, Cussons Imperial Leather, Goya Cedarwood, Goya Corvette, Roger & Gallet L'Homme, Faberge Brut, and Tabac. Similarly I have almost 50 sticks of Yardley Black Label, Yardley Lavender, Cussons Imperial Leather, Shulton Old Spice, Williams, Tabac, Dubarry Silkashave, Palmolive, and Erasmic; plus a few tubes of Yardley, Shulton Old Spice and Old Spice Burley creams. I am now 56 years of age and have sufficient soap to last me well into my 80s if not my 90s. It suddenly dawned on me that the purchase I was about to make was madness, and to make matters worse I don't even like Mitchell's Wool Fat which is why I do not currently use it 🤣 And don't get me started on vintage aftershave, I have so much I could wash the car with it and I am still buying it 🤪

So, I emptied my online basket and congratulated myself on my frugal restraint 😇 But, I am a realist and I am confident that the next time I see a Yardley Black Label shave soap I will not be able to resist. Nevertheless, I succeeded in not buying some items that I neither like, need, nor want, which is a small victory for common sense. I explained that to my lovely wife expecting to be praised for my good behaviour, but she did not seem to appreciate the magnitude of my achievement 🤣

So, with your current stock, how old will you be before you run out of soap, blades, or aftershave?

I have no idea how long my software will last, but suspect it will outlive me at 66 years young...especially the three jars of MdC. Those are like Willy Wonka's Everlasting Gobstoppers: no matter how often I use them the jars are still filled to the brim.

I have however found myself walking away from $10 Gillette razors. Just this week I passed on two black handle Superspeeds, a 40s Superspeed, and a ball-handle Long Comb.
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
I have been reading of the reformulation of Mitchell's Wool Fat shaving soap and read the advice to stock up, and so found myself with a few pucks of tallow MWF in my online shopping basket. Before I finished my purchase I decided to do a stock take of my soaps and estimate how long my current supply would last. I allowed a conservative nine months for a bowl or puck, and six months for a stick in my calculations.

I was astonished to find I have in excess of 40 pucks or bowls of Yardley Black Label, Yardley Lavender, Shulton Old Spice, Cussons Imperial Leather, Goya Cedarwood, Goya Corvette, Roger & Gallet L'Homme, Faberge Brut, and Tabac. Similarly I have almost 50 sticks of Yardley Black Label, Yardley Lavender, Cussons Imperial Leather, Shulton Old Spice, Williams, Tabac, Dubarry Silkashave, Palmolive, and Erasmic; plus a few tubes of Yardley, Shulton Old Spice and Old Spice Burley creams. I am now 56 years of age and have sufficient soap to last me well into my 80s if not my 90s. It suddenly dawned on me that the purchase I was about to make was madness, and to make matters worse I don't even like Mitchell's Wool Fat which is why I do not currently use it 🤣 And don't get me started on vintage aftershave, I have so much I could wash the car with it and I am still buying it 🤪

So, I emptied my online basket and congratulated myself on my frugal restraint 😇 But, I am a realist and I am confident that the next time I see a Yardley Black Label shave soap I will not be able to resist. Nevertheless, I succeeded in not buying some items that I neither like, need, nor want, which is a small victory for common sense. I explained that to my lovely wife expecting to be praised for my good behaviour, but she did not seem to appreciate the magnitude of my achievement 🤣

So, with your current stock, how old will you be before you run out of soap, blades, or aftershave?
I feel so sorry for you my friend! We are much alike.

If live 20 more years I might have to buy blades. But not likely. Not at my current rate of consumption. It's sad, really, because I REALLY like smelling new scents. Sigh...
 
I feel so sorry for you my friend! We are much alike.

If live 20 more years I might have to buy blades. But not likely. Not at my current rate of consumption. It's sad, really, because I REALLY like smelling new scents. Sigh...

I agree 100%. What gets me is that 1 out of every 20 soaps will smell amazing. Then I see a new soap and think "What if this smells amazing too!" So I purchase it when I don't need soap and 95% of the time it's just an average smelling soap to my nose. Why don't I learn? Lol
 

Mike M

...but this one IS cracked.
I came to the same realization in 2021 so I have been trying to reduce my stocks for the last 18 months to 2 years. Started with soap (from 27 down to 18) and I have given away some razors (14 down to 9), aftershaves 8 down to 5 (3017ing an aftershave is incredibly hard). Whittling down my 60 different blades to the ones that serve me best will be quite a chore, but one I have at least started. Brushes is another one I need to start, I have freed myself of 1 so far.
I'm with @FarmerTan on soaps though I do still buy a few each year despite trying to reduce my stocks the trick is to buy them slower than you use them. I bought an MdC last year, love the soap but after 50 uses it is still only 5mm below the top of the jar. Using it once a week I reckon I have til about 2028 left but Iay have to kick my usage up a notch to kill it that quick
 
At 56 also, I have enough blades to outlast me I'm sure. Probably 20 years of Arko sticks vacuum sealed for the apocalypse and 5 to 10 years of Stirling and others. Only a couple years of aftershaves, so I'm restrained there haha. But I keep planning to stock up on Bluice just in case...😜 its a favorite. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it...
 

Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
Good thread. I 59 so decided to take stock of what I've got. I started with blades, around 15 hundred. No problem there. Then soaps, more than enough for for this life time and probably half way through another. Then Mrs Herself asked me, what I was doing so I told her. So then she asked me, well how long will your stash last. So I said, Oh roughly another 2 months. Her reply was, we'll have to get the kids to by you some soaps before you run out.

Man do I love my wife 😍.
 
I started traditional wet shaving in the spring of 2019. I had no idea how long soaps, aftershaves, and blades lasted, so I overbought. I started tracking use and purchases in a spreadsheet in Dec of 2019. It projects I will run out of soap on 8/14/2025, aftershave on 2/8/2027, and blades on 5/3/2030.
 
Great thread and I am pleased to see that I have gents to look up to in terms of stocking up! And I had the same feeling @EclipseRedRing about should I or should I not get more MWF.

I recently did an inventory take and I think I have about 4 years of soaps at the moment (and still thinking of buying more). Aftershaves and balms not that much, maybe 1-2 years (I mainly use Proraso Green. Floïd went out the door almost full because the LOTH had issues with the scent. She likes Proraso Green very much). Now blades is where I excel at - I think with my current rate but depending on the razor I use anywhere from 30-40 years (and still thinking of buying extras). So as long as I can buy soaps and balms I should be good!

Cheers,

Guido
 
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