Your most pleasant surprise

[StewB]

Have you ever acquired a modestly priced razor for which you didn't have high expectations, and ended up being very pleasantly surprised?

(In general this would exclude more expensive razors, as we tend to have higher expectations of performance for a higher purchase price.)

My example of this right now is the Parker Variant. I was able to acquire this razor at a discount on the BST from a fine B&B member here. I got it because I was interested in trying this style of adjustable. It was a very pleasant surprise indeed--excellent razor for me!

Anybody else very pleasantly surprised by modest razor acquisitions?

 

[Patrice]

Hi!
Yes, the Pearl Blaze is a very good razor at a modest price.
It has an excellent ratio mildnest / performance, is precise and well balanced.
And it's good looking!

 

[Jim99]

I would have to say it was my VDH DE razor. It was my first foray into DE shaving, but I quickly put it aside onto went on a vintage DE, SE, injector and straight razor buying binge.

I recently tried my VDH after many years of it collecting dust under the bathroom sink, and I was pleasantly surprised with the shave it got from it. Is it my best razor? Absolutely not! But, for less than $18, it was a good buy.

 

[ewk]

If still available, the Snmirn, sometimes called a "baby Futur," is a comfortable well-performing adjustable razor for $10. The strong magnets for the topcap are much more user-friendly than the friction snap topcap on the Futur. It is much more gentle than the Futur as well. Did I mention it is $10?

 

[StewB]

I would also say the Pearl Flexi fits into the "pleasant surprise for a modestly priced razor" category, although it's a bit more expensive than the Variant (but not by too much). For me the Flexi is also a fine performing razor.

 

[yellcohawg58]

Mine would be my Gillette D4 super speed I got off the BST for 15 dollars, super smooth and efficient, I've got a dfs the 4 times I've used it with a gillette nacet blade.

 

[nav]

10 years ago, the Merkur Progress was love at first shave for me!

I honestly wasn't expecting that much from it but it instantly became my favorite razor.

Since discovering the blackbird 15 months ago, the progress sits at #2 and will always be in my den!

 

[Lockback]

I would have to say it was my VDH DE razor. It was my first foray into DE shaving, but I quickly put it aside onto went on a vintage DE, SE, injector and straight razor buying binge.

I recently tried my VDH after many years of it collecting dust under the bathroom sink, and I was pleasantly surprised with the shave it got from it. Is it my best razor? Absolutely not! But, for less than $18, it was a good buy.

I second that.
I paid $13 for my VDH TTO last year and although I don't use it all that often, it usually surprises me with a pretty decent shave. Impressive for the price.

 

[romsitsa]

If I understand correctly we look for razors usually going for cheap, which perform better than expected?
40ies Superspeed would be my nominee.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Depending on what ‘modestly priced’ means, I’d say my Karve Overlander and my Merkur Progress were very good surprises indeed. The Overlander is one of my very best shavers and the Progress has an ivory plastic knob. Both top drawer for those reasons.

I might even say my ridiculous PAA plastic toy “The Artifact” razor was a pleasant surprise - my expectations were very low, as anyone’s would be, but there’s something about it that I like and you could even shave with it if you wanted to.

The Overlander and Progress are proper razors that are good to shave with, though, so they’re my real choices.

Old Gillettes are more expensive than new razors these days unless you fish one out of the bin, so I’m excluding those.

 

[jason2]

$2 1908 Single Ring Gillette at an estate sale. Love the old types and really enjoyed the shave. Several other examples of estate sale or antique store finds. That was the cheapest I think.

Vintage April I tried out a Thin Blade and the first shave I got from it was pure bliss. Second shave not so much.

Personna Lab blades I would have never tried if I didn't use that Thin Blade and have someone suggest I try these. First week using these have been great.

 

[StewB]

Depending on what ‘modestly priced’ means, I’d say my Karve Overlander and my Merkur Progress were very good surprises indeed. The Overlander is one of my very best shavers and the Progress has an ivory plastic knob. Both top drawer for those reasons.
...
The Overlander and Progress are proper razors that are good to shave with, though, so they’re my real choices.

My understanding is that the Parker Variant shaves very similarly to the Progress, so that's not a surprise. Perhaps the Overlander might be modestly priced to some (not to me, though).

Old Gillettes are more expensive than new razors these days unless you fish one out of the bin, so I’m excluding those.

As far as vintage Gillettes, I have tried:

• 1961 Fatboy
• 1964 Slim
• 1971 Super Speed

For me, these are pretty good, but don't provide as close of a shave as the Variant. The shave quality is acceptable but not super close.

 

[BigJ]

Yes indeed!!

My Lord L6 ($7 on Amazon) proved to be a comfortable, effective razor and is now my ’travel’ choice!!

 

[know1special]

I would have to say it was my VDH DE razor. It was my first foray into DE shaving, but I quickly put it aside onto went on a vintage DE, SE, injector and straight razor buying binge.

I recently tried my VDH after many years of it collecting dust under the bathroom sink, and I was pleasantly surprised with the shave it got from it. Is it my best razor? Absolutely not! But, for less than $18, it was a good buy.

I second that.
I paid $13 for my VDH TTO last year and although I don't use it all that often, it usually surprises me with a pretty decent shave. Impressive for the price.

I'll throw in with these gents as my VDH knocked my socks off the first time I shaved with it years ago and it has been a steady companion ever since. Mine lives semi-permanently in my travel kit as it is exactly the type of no-fuss shave I want when away from home.

An honorable mention has to go to the humble Bic Metal. Not a match for any of my normal DEs but a fantastic single blade disposable that punches well above it's weight.

 

[Tomo]

Gillette Tech. It may not be CNC machined but it does a fine job.

 

[Dave himself]

I bought a Weishi TTO off Ali Express for £8. Great shaving wee razor loaded with a sharp blade.

 

[Calyshaver]

I purchased a Fatip Piccolo intrigued by its legacy and the controversy concerning blade alignment, poor finish, but full brass construction and made-in-Italy intrigued enough to take a modest monetary risk. I was expecting a sloppy lackluster shaving experience but after that first pass, I was like "...WOW, that was really nice!" This experience spurred me to sell off most of my razors and buy the Grande gold version too.

 

[emwolf]

The best cheap razor for me (although it is vintage) is the Star 100. I find it superior to the Tech and is usually found for around $10 in the wild and on auction sites. The handle is well balanced and grippy, the head is mild yet efficient and the posts don't let the blade play much when loading.

 

[huck1680]

The most surprising (in a good way) razor for me is the Razorine FlatBoy. I'd heard it was very aggressive (R41ish) which held me back for a while...and loud, which is neither here nor there. But I liked the look and some of the reviews were very positive so I bought one and well...it's been an excellent razor.

 

[SharpieB]

I bought an old Gillette Red Tip at an antique store a few years back for $8. Fantastic razor.