Why High End?

[blantyre]

The same comments apply to watches, cars, clothes, just about any consumer product. I regularly shave with a Schick Krona and thoroughly enjoy the experience. I also enjoy a lot of other razors. As much as anything it’s about curiosity so to some extent you answered your own question. If you can, buy a high end razor and see for yourself what all the fuss is about. The end result of the shave is basically the same whether you use a tech or a Darwin, Wolfman... it’s the journey!

 

[never-stop-learning]

You will get one some day. It’s inevitable for guys like us that collect these high end razors. When I got mine, I immediately sold my Blackbird. It’s that good. The Karve might be next. The Timeless or Charcoal Goods? never!

My Bride keeps telling me to "just get one" so I stop "agonizing over my options".

Regarding the Blackland Razors: Like them too much to part with any of my Blackland razors. And the Charcoal Goods, and the Timeless, and the Karve, and.....

Not to mention the vintage treasures.

I'm hopeless.

 

[steffenapelz]

I have shaved with...

cheap DEs like:

RR Lupo Al
RR SLOC
Fatip Gentile

mid-range DEs like:

Muehle R89
RR Game Changer
RR Mamba
Karve CB Brass

high-end DEs like:

ATT M1
Tatara Masamune
Wolfman SB95
Karve CB SS

There are several reasons why I have narrowed my den to my high-end acquisitions. I'll explain why...

The really cheap DEs can shave well and make for great travel razors, but I have yet to use one that actually delivers the intersection of comfort and efficiency of my Tatara, Wolfman or Karve. Beyond that, they also tend to be more delicate. The head of my SLOC is Zamak, so won't last forever...the Lupo is aluminum and I dropped one of mine (I own two) a year ago and it misaligned the head ever so slightly...aluminum is a fairly easy metal to damage. The Fatip will eventually show wear on the chrome plating and while the brass is pretty durable, it may need to be replated eventually. And then there is the issue with Fatips being more difficult to align the blade in than in the high precision high-ends.

The mid-range DEs, I just found to be a waste of time. All of the ones I have tried have shaved really well, but again...only the Karve shaved at the same level of my high-end razors. The Muehle shaves fine but is Zamak, and the GC and Mamba shave well, but they just can't quite make the leap to what happens at the next tier. The Karve Brass was awesome, but I hated the patina that formed on the brass.

On the high end, you usually get a stainless DE that requires little maintenance, can take some abuse, shaves really well, and will stand the test of time. Is that worth $100? Maybe not to most, but if spending $100 does not make a huge difference to someone, why not spring for the better DE IF it indeed provides a better shave? I say IF because my ATT M1 for example did not shave as well as my other high-end DEs so I sold it. No need to hang on to a razor you don't love especially if it frees up money for another purchase that may get you closer to what you really want.

 

[Atlantic59]

Is this where we bring up the countless women with a closet full of shoes they seldom wear?

 

[thombrogan]

No. That’s been used to death for high-end pocketknives and outdoors entertainment knives.

 

[FarmerTan]

Is this where we bring up the countless women with a closet full of shoes they seldom wear?

No, in my house this is where my wife brings up all shoes I have that I don't wear! So you are correct in assuming that I hope she never joins our club.

 

[Bakker1964]

If you troll the DE forum you’ll find consistent high praise for the Gillette Tech. Whether paired w a Feather for a more aggressive shave or w a host of other blades for milder shaves, comments indicate a high degree of satisfaction for a majority of those who comment.
A cruise through Etsy or the Bay shows hundreds of these razors available for $15-20 and many antique shops sell them for $5 or less. I found my first Tech in a drawer for nothing.
Given the consensus that it is a great razor, it’s general ubiquity and modest cost, why don’t we all use one, or a SuperSpeed or Schick injector with similar universal approval and low cost?

Because people have different tastes in aesthetics.

I see many comments concerning the Wolfman. If you go to their website you’ll see that the cheapest model costs $200 and is not available. They actually offer for sale a titanium model (also not available) for $650. !!!!
If you’re a high-end fan attracted to such products, can you explain to a rube like me WHY? What makes a product like the Wolfman or other high-end razors desirable?

When you start moving up in price point, you start moving away from mass produced items like the Tech, and into the "artisan" milieu. And yes, these razors ARE produced by CNC machines and whatnot, but the skill of the designer, and the quality of the machining are what you pay for.

For example, your car makes use of gaskets to seal joints in the engine in order to prevent leaks. A Formula one race vehicle either minimizes their use, or eliminates them through the fine tolerances prescribed in their engine designs. That kind of perfection costs money.

I’m not picking on the Wolfman or those who like them. I’m simply trying to understand the attraction. I am equally mystified by consumers who prefer expensive watches, luxury cars, etc

See bolded above. Further, some people are willing to pay for the luxury of a (relatively) rare item, and the beauty that results from the craftsmanship of the artist who made it. The Wolfman looks stunningly beautiful and, if I could have gotten a decent enough shave with it (cost benefit wise . . . it's a GREAT razor), I likely would still have mine. But it was not significantly "better" enough to justify it's cost (FOR ME), and so I sold it on.

Which is another reason to purchase. Some of these artisan shavers hold their value VERY well. Thus, there is little to no risk in purchasing one. Heck, you might even turn a profit.

 

[pdillon]

PDillon, I think you misinterpreted Veblen’s theory: even though your high-end razor never leaves the privacy of your bathroom, he would argue your desire for that purchase was motivated by the concept of “luxury”; what made it attractive to you was its rarity, exclusivity and unavailability to persons of lesser means, not its intrinsic utility. Or so Veblen might have said.

Applying this argument to the kinds of hobbyist razors discussed here is a stretch.

 

[haggis]

I'm now worried maybe I should take that Wolfman sticker off my Range Rover. Maybe leave the "My other car is a Gulfstream" sticker though, and the stick figure household staff. *

*No Range Rover, no Wolfman, no Gulfstream, no staff. :-(

 

[glm38]

To me the high end DE s I've owned have mostly been a waste of money. I've owned several. The only one I've kept is the feather AS D2. I like that razor. But to me the sweet spot in New razors is razorock's stainless line. To me they are the ultimate razors. But then I like my vintage tech's just about as well.

 

[dangerousrazor]

I've tried about 20 high end razors which cost more than $150 in retail. They shave better in average than vintage razors in general. but my favorite razors are vintage razors which cost around $50 or something. so the cost doesnt matter in terms of shave quality.

 

[r0hanxo]

From what I have experienced in my short time in the hobby, that paying a premium for quality products makes a huge difference,
The CB karve razor is the smoothest razor I have/or ever will use, it's just an absolute joy to use.

Also as other members discussed with change is technology and advancements price for things will tend to rise, for example a razor made using moulding would certainly cost less to make than machining a razor out of solid SS/Brass/Ti.

It all comes down to personal factor as well, for me I cannot use the low quality stuff (mainly soaps) as they mostly react to my skin, I used the "premium" soaps available in my country and had nothing but red rashes and irritation after each shave, as soon as I started using quality soaps like (pdp, mitchell's, osp, Mike's) I started getting wonderful shaves.

 

[Wolfdagon]

I've been wet shaving for about three years now and always thought that I would never pay out the money for one of the high end razors. I used a Merkur 34c for most of that time. Earlier this year, I started collecting vintage Gillettes and some straight razors. I have only used one of the straights a few times because I just haven't had the time that it takes me to use one. However, I have really enjoyed trying out the different Gillettes. My current favorite is a 1911 single ring that I picked up at an antique store for $7.50.

Before reading this thread, I had planned to continue collecting and trying out more of the vintage Gillettes (I probably still will). However, after looking into some of the different razors mentioned in this thread, I have just about talked myself into getting a Timeless. As for the original poster's question of why, for me it about the quality of the shave. By quality, I mean both closeness and lack of irritation. From everything that I have read, I think the Timeless can help me achieve this goal.

I keep thinking that is a lot of money to spend on a razor. But then I remembered the electric razor that I gave $75 for about 16 years ago trying to get away from the cartridge razors. I used it for about a month. Could not stand it. It is still packed away in a box somewhere. At least with the DE safety razor, I know that I will be able to use it, even if it is not as good a s expected. If worst comes to worse and I hate it, I can sell it and get most of my money back.

 

[BigJ]

I keep thinking that is a lot of money to spend on a razor.
...

But then I remembered the electric razor that I gave $75 for about 16 years ago trying to get away from the cartridge razors. I used it for about a month. Could not stand it. It is still packed away in a box somewhere. At least with the DE safety razor, I know that I will be able to use it, even if it is not as good a s expected. If worst comes to worse and I hate it, I can sell it and get most of my money back.

Great point!!

Every time I look at prices of ‘quality’ electric mowers or the newest carts I realize that I may be saving $! I certainly get far better shaves with my kit!

 

[kingfisher]

Here's a story that might help illustrate an important point.

Years ago I was in the Army, stationed at Fort Ord. My wife and I managed to find a little house in nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea that we could rent from a Colonel stationed at my post. Carmel is a very ritzy town. One of my neighbors told me a story about a woman who used to live down the street from the house I rented. She was trying to sell her house. She listed it at a very reasonable price, much less than most houses in the area. After a couple of weeks had gone by, she had no interest in the house whatsoever.

She asked my next-door neighbor why nobody would want her nice house in a nice location for a nice price. My neighbor told her that the reason she wasn't getting any interest is that the house was listed at too LOW a price. If she wanted buyers, she told her, she would have to RAISE the price.

So she did. People came out of the woodwork and she sold the house at the higher price in short order.


What's the lesson? Well, you can draw your own conclusions, but from my perspective, the lesson is that an object gathers some of its value from its price, because there is such a thing as perceived value.

The other thing that comes into play is that people are very likely to value something that cost them a lot of money; in other words, they are likely to (perhaps subconsciously) think more highly of a thing if it was more expensive. Once you've dropped $400 on that Wolfman, you are PREDISPOSED to enjoying the shave it gives, even if it is not intrinsically any better than the shave you get with you $10 Tech.

 

[Chandu]

No, in my house this is where my wife brings up all shoes I have that I don't wear! So you are correct in assuming that I hope she never joins our club.

LOL. I had a co-worker like that. He had some shipped to work so he could wear them there to break them in awhile and then wear them home so they wouldn't be so obviously new.

 

[Matux]

... but from my perspective, the lesson is that an object gathers some of its value from its price, because there is such a thing as perceived value.

The other thing that comes into play is that people are very likely to value something that cost them a lot of money; in other words, they are likely to (perhaps subconsciously) think more highly of a thing if it was more expensive. Once you've dropped $400 on that Wolfman, you are PREDISPOSED to enjoying the shave it gives, even if it is not intrinsically any better than the shave you get with you $10 Tech.

In Marketing terms, price is the value assigned to a good expressed through a mean of exchange (a fancy term for money). So yes, expensive razors justify their price on the value assigned to them for whatever reason: craftsmanship, material used, unique feature, e.e., any attribute buyers consider relevant; the more exclusive, the more unique the attribute, the higher the price. Next come other considerations, beyond the question asked by the OP, to which I refer in the last part of this reply.

Are these high prices justified? To answer that we would have to conduct a double blind market test based in perceptions during and after shaving, I do not doubt Gillette has its protocols, as to us... that is not the case.

As to my preferences, I do not justify spending USD 600 on a razor without having it tested before - the point is, cognitive dissonance runs heavy in my case because the price is quite high vis-a-vis my earnings. Plus, I am a "reversed snob" when it comes to spending patterns: I feel thrilled finding the occasion to spend in value-for-money goods.

So there you get it, these are the reasons for me to reply "because of personal preferences."

 

[Avi]

Here's a story that might help illustrate an important point.

Years ago I was in the Army, stationed at Fort Ord. My wife and I managed to find a little house in nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea that we could rent from a Colonel stationed at my post. Carmel is a very ritzy town. One of my neighbors told me a story about a woman who used to live down the street from the house I rented. She was trying to sell her house. She listed it at a very reasonable price, much less than most houses in the area. After a couple of weeks had gone by, she had no interest in the house whatsoever.

She asked my next-door neighbor why nobody would want her nice house in a nice location for a nice price. My neighbor told her that the reason she wasn't getting any interest is that the house was listed at too LOW a price. If she wanted buyers, she told her, she would have to RAISE the price.

So she did. People came out of the woodwork and she sold the house at the higher price in short order.


What's the lesson? Well, you can draw your own conclusions, but from my perspective, the lesson is that an object gathers some of its value from its price, because there is such a thing as perceived value.

The other thing that comes into play is that people are very likely to value something that cost them a lot of money; in other words, they are likely to (perhaps subconsciously) think more highly of a thing if it was more expensive. Once you've dropped $400 on that Wolfman, you are PREDISPOSED to enjoying the shave it gives, even if it is not intrinsically any better than the shave you get with you $10 Tech.

Our marketing department would like your CV

 

[JCarr]

Isn't the issue here that the OP can't comprehend how expensive modern razors are far better than vintage Gillette Tech razors? Isn't that ultimately what's being asked? You could buy a Ford Focus or you could buy a Chevrolet Corvette...no question why you're paying more for the Corvette in that example, right? But, according to the OP, the same analogy doesn't apply to: buy a vintage Gillette Tech razor or buy a Stainless Steel Timeless razor, right?

My advice...buy a Timeless and find out. If you find the Timeless shaves much better, keep it. If you find that it's not worth it, sell it on B&B and recoup your money.

 

[Zwiehander]

The economist Thorstein Veblen attempted to explain this over one hundred years ago in his book The Theory of the Leisure Class.

The prices for most goods follow a curve of diminishing returns. As one pays more, better quality is obtained, but only to a point. Each additional increment of improved quality becomes progressively more expensive. So, the question is, why would someone pay more for something than it is actually worth, in factual terms?

Veblen explains this behavior using the terms conspicuous consumption and conspicuous leisure. Consumption of expensive goods and activities becomes a marker of social class and prestige. IOW, these goods have social value in demonstrating that the owner belongs to a higher class that others admire, but can only aspire to.

Producers of luxury goods and services exploit this tendency by marketing them as exclusive, which allows them to make large profits. Veblen was critical of this behavior because, in his view, it resulted in a society that becomes focused on the wasting of time and money on abstract symbols of little actual worth.

I wouldnt consider even a wolfman razor a Veblen good because demand for it would have to increase the more the price is increased and I am not convinced that is the case - at least not yet.