Your Travel Razor - Frequent Travelers

[Shutterbug57]

This is a question for guys who travel a lot. I have several nice razors and several that I am planning to get replated. I travel quite a lot for work - 50%+ in lean years and 80%+ in good years. I have two razors I travel with (generally one at a time). One is a new Merkur 38HD C and the other is a ragged looking NEW SC. The NEW is in fine working order and the teeth are straight, but it has lost most of its plating, so it looks a bit rough. I have intentionally kept it this way for travel to minimize the temptation on the maid staff.

The Merkur is a bit more expensive, but easily replaced and I only have a few bucks in the NEW. I have never had a razor stolen or broken while on the road, but then I have not left a shinny gold Aristocrat on the counter all week. Admittedly, the Merkur is pretty nice looking, but it has managed to stay where I have left it. I can't imagine anybody wanting to walk off with the NEW. I have left my gear in rooms in big cities like NYC, Chicago & Detroit as well as smaller towns. I know I have been fortunate. Eventually I imagine something is going to walk or get broken.

My questions are :

1. Do any of you who travel a lot, particularly if you stay in one place for multiple days so your gear is unattended while the maids are in your room, travel with expensive/hard to replace shinny razors?

1a. If you do, what has your luck been.

2. Also, regardless of the value of your gear, have you had a razor or brush walk off during a hotel stay?

2a. If so, could you relate the story and the city?

 

[Face Bannon]

I keep my stuff tucked into the shaving kit (left out on the counter), to make it easier for the maid to clean around the sink.

 

[Mandina]

1. I bring my EJ89l and a $25 Muhle HJM black fibre brush.

Never a problem. And it wouldn't be much of an inconvenience to leave such items tucked away in a toiletries bag or travel bag, including in some way so that a brush could be exposed to air.

 

[Ollie4ISU]

I travel semi-regularly for business and pleasure. When flying, I generally take an Atra and leave it out. When driving, I will take any of a multitude of DE razors. Those I tend to put away after use so as not to tempt anyone. My brush stays out to dry. I have had no issues leaving it out. That is anywhere from Italy to Panama, Alaska to Key West. In all kinds of hotels, motels or B&B's. I don't think I would leave an Aristocrat out anywhere. A Super Speed? I would probably be okay doing so because if it wandered off I could find a replacement reasonably easily.

 

[SteveWY]

I have a standard travel set up with a Tech and Omega turnback travel brush that I keep in a large pill bottle. It has permanent residence in my normal travel gear. I have also brought along a Super Speed in a hinged soap container.

I've only been back into the DE thing for two years and travel about a couple days each month on average. I've never put my razor and brush away and haven't had problems. I really doubt the average hotel housekeeper would even know what the heck the razor is much less want to steal it. In larger terms, I've had personal items much more valuable left behind and without any theft. That said, I'm paranoid now that you bring this up so i will probably stash my razor back in my travel kit on inside a sock now!

 

[honeycutt]

I travel year round. There have been times when small stuff has walked off. If I have anything of value I put it away in my luggage, hide it in the dressor draws anything to help housekeeping not to have a temptation. But, if anyone wants to go through your stuff they can. I always carry a razor of lessor value just in case.

 

[dcobranchi]

I travel fairly often, sometimes for a couple of weeks at a time. I've never had a problem with stuff walking off. I have forgotten a shave stick or two. My current Dopp-resident DE razor is a Sodial that I picked up for $2 from Amazon. It's far and away the cheapest razor I own, so losing it would be no hardship.

 

[Shutterbug57]

I travel year round. There have been times when small stuff has walked off. If I have anything of value I put it away in my luggage, hide it in the dressor draws anything to help housekeeping not to have a temptation. But, if anyone wants to go through your stuff they can. I always carry a razor of lessor value just in case.

I always assume that they will do this when I pack. I realize that some do and some don't, but I try to never leave valuable stuff in the room for just that reason. The most secure place is locked in your suitcase, but you have to assume that if they are of a mind to go through people's stuff, they have managed to get a TSA key, ergo, you can't assume that any place in the room is really safe (like a suitcase was really all that safe in the first place). This is why I go with the low value, keep it ratty looking (i.e., don't replate it) NEW or the easily replaced Merkur.

 

[Loganpass]

Slowing down now but I used to travel 180 plus days a year and I've never had a problem. On the contrary I've had hotels mail forgotten items back home. I think your odds are pretty good if you're staying with reputable firms and in my case, I was traveling so much that I didn't/don't short change myself by only taking crappy stuff on the road. I probably wouldn't take Grandpa's WWII irreplaceable razor with but most everything really can be replaced if the worst happened. Can't fret over everything all the time, it's only stuff.

 

[Aristeros]

Most of the time while traveling, I trust my companions pretty well, and there are no staff.

When I am in a hotel as you describe, I use my regular travel razor, a cheap Weishi TTO. It looks like it is worth more than it is ($10), to the uninitiated, because of snazzy gold plating et al. Never had a problem. I have never had a problem with cash or electronics, either, however. When I have left beer or whisky in the past, it has not been helpfully mailed, nor would I expect it to be.

Consider what you would do if you, as a hotel manager, received a complaint about a stolen X. Would staff take that risk? Not often.

 

[danpass]

Gillette Fusion brings the concerns to zero and I don't have to check baggage.

Face prep stays the same. Shave stick and travel Edwin jagger brush.

 

[Hunter]

I travel with my Canadian Army Gillette khaki set without the blades in my carry on or pocket. I either mail the blades ahead of time or pack them in my checked.

 

[accunlmtd]

Just heading home from two months inFinland. I use a travel tech, and leave it out every day. Nary an issue. I have had many more items snatched by the airlines staff and TSA than in any hotel.

 

[dieselfuel79]

I use my slant 37c for travel. It used to be my feather portable, but then I foolishly sold it off.

 

[Shutterbug57]

Just heading home from two months inFinland. I use a travel tech, and leave it out every day. Nary an issue. I have had many more items snatched by the airlines staff and TSA than in any hotel.

That is very true for me too. Not only do they steal stuff, the destroy it then put it back in your case. I had a polo shirt that was run through the gearing for the conveyor which destroyed the shirt. OK, stuff happens. But they took the grease-laden shirt and put it in on top of my clean dress shirts for the week - 2 of those were destroyed by the grease.

 

[Guest111]

I travel constantly for 4 to 5 days per trip. I bring whichever DE I'm into on a given week (this week was my 39C) and my Muhle Silvertip Fibre 2.0 travel brush (awesome brush, btw). I leave it all out in plain view, and I've never had anything walk. However, I only let the maids in my room once a week, and I leave the "do not disturb" tag out the other days. I don't get daily maid service at home, so I see no need for it on the road. No point exposing your belongings to strangers on a daily basis, IMO.

Having said all that, I wouldn't travel with super expensive shave gear like a higher end Simpsons brush or a $150+ DE, or anything great sentimental value. I bring what I could replace if I absolutely had to.

 

[StubbleTrouble]

I've taken my super speed as well as a Merkur travel alongside an EJ travel brush. I leave the brush out on the stand to dry, but put the razor back in my bag and store the blade in a safe place. This isn't to stop any temptation, but to stop anyone from knocking over the razor, getting cut or somehow dinging the blade on something. My thoughts are that housekeeping in any major chain aren't going to risk their jobs over a petty item, but I would always use common sense.

 

[Face Bannon]

I was shopping in CVS today (pretty big drug store chain), and noticed they sell a store brand of DE razor blades. So this could be a solution for those of us who don't want to pack blades on airline travel. Glad to see they have them in any event.

 

[SantoSubito]

I don't travel by air very often but the one time I have since having a DE I just took the razor and bought the CVS blades above when I arrived to simplify it and took the razor in my carry on bag. Before the DE I would just pack a 5 pack of Good News razors.

Traveling by car I have shaved with a DE with a cup of water and Edge gel while going down the interstate. Not a pleasant experience, but it worked.

 

[Mick]

When I travel I travel for extended periods of time so I take a Lot....