No offense but seriously..... if a cartridge is soooo much more economical, and if they last so long for the average user, then why are any of you actually hunting down double edge razors? From my own experience, a week of shaving with a cartridge like the mach 3 or fusion, would cost the same as a tub of trumpers shave cream.
I agree with the short answer of no. If frugality was the goal here; one could pick up a shave ready straight for $50 or under, a strop for $20-$30, a good quality of brush for $20 or under and the total $100 would last a lifetime and longer.
Yes, I save a lot. I haven't bought any shaving supplies for about a year, and that was to restock blades. I did spend some when I went through a collecting phase, but that's out of my system now. Today I have three razors, a favorite blade, and plenty of soaps and creams to last for years. The only thing I purchase now is aftershave and blades, and that's only when I run out.
For me, carts just got so expensive and I only got about five or six good shaves from them, but nowhere near BBS shaves as I do now. A DFS would be the best I could get. For the price of three carts, I can get a hundred DE blades and soaps just last so much longer than gel cans. Also, buying a decent vintage razor can cost less than a pack of cartridges. The only "disposable" that really worked for me is the Bic Hybrid, inexpensive and better shaves. So, yeah, much more cost effective.
On the whole, we do save a lot. I have a few collectibles, but only a few & that's all I want. The blades are super-cheap and I make the soap & PSO we use.
To answer your question, the answer is "no". The answer would be yes if you only purchased one DE and if you purchased your blades by the 100 lot. And to date, I have not come across a single wet shaver on this forum who has only purchased only a single DE...including me.
In part that's true. I do collect razors with a lot of them being used. But if you factor the cost of only using one razor, than it saves money. the rest is just wanting more razors in a collection, which most of us do. But you're right on the total cost as we do like to have more than one. Oh man, this made me wanna look at Ebay again, damn obsession.............
Once you get bit by the collecting bug I have found that "Resistance is futile". Life is short and it give me great pleasure. And I have found that, especially when it comes to straight razors...there is always room for one more in the collection.
The cheapest, quickest, and least fun form of shaving for me was using a $35 Norelco for 5 or 6 years. I shaved with electric razors for 30 years. I don't have much experience with cartridge razors. Some of the fancy ones are named (and look) like tiny space ships, but I digress. Shaving with a stick of Arko, an Omega brush, a vintage Gillette SS loaded with an Astra SP blade will save you a ton of money over time. But for me, DE shaving is a hobby and not something I do to save money. I don't consider myself to be a collector, as I like using what I have. I like trying new stuff when the mood strikes, even though I don't need it. I can enjoy Arko on Monday and MdC on Tuesday and smile the whole time about the difference in cost. I also like sharing my stuff, so I can introduce others to our hobby and make room for new stuff. Someday, one of my heirs will get a 5-gallon bucket full of shaving goodies that hopefully they will enjoy using like I did. I can think of many other hobbies that would be more expensive.
I think I belong to the frugal shavers, and even I have three razors and seven soaps. Where I go overboard a bit is aftershaves and fragrances
It also depends on which razors one owns. I never got into collecting high end razors. I only ever wanted usable razors. I think the most I ever spent was $25. And of the three I now own, one was given to me, another came as part of three razor lot that I remember picking up for $15, and the last I bought new for about $10 (Lord Tech clone). I spent about $100 t0tal on razors during my collecting phase. The one thing I *did* spend on was a brush- and that was a badger brush for $35. So you can save money, even if you're collecting. It all depends on what you want and how far you're willing to go to get it.
You can save a lot of money if you don't become addicted, and most of us become addicted Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
I save money. I have two razors, I bought that I have kept. 3 soaps(one inherited) and two brands of blades, and when one brand is gone, it will be one. Two brushes, I put new knots in myself. Greg W.
I think if you don't get tempted by razor collecting and the plethora of soaps and tinctures out there you definitely save. A good all round razor like a Parker 24C or Edwin Jagger DE89, a decent brush and one soap and set of blades and it is really a no brainer as well as being a nicer shaving experience. The price for cartridges really is scandalous. I think this is why Gilette is frantically trying to fight the DE market particularly in India. It is weird as they are responsible for some great DE blades.
When I used cartridge razors I was shaving because I had to. Now I shave because I want to. Has it become a hobby - yes! As my hobbies go DE shaving is pretty inexpensive. I spend thousands on my other interests - so a few hundred on DE shaving is pretty cheap for a lot of pleasure.
As a non-hobby shaver, yes I save quite a bit of money. Other than my purchase of a second razor, I'm still working on my first puck and my first set of sample tucks. I shave twice weekly and have spent a total of $100-150 so far. I have another couple of years of supplies on hand...
If you have only 1 razor, 1 soap, 1 brush and your favorite pack of 100 blades that can last you a very long time even if you shave daily, then you probably save around $100-$150 a year if you shave every day or every other day. Considering very few do not get the shaving fever and majority start spending more money because of only 1 reason, shaving enjoyment with safety razor vs forceful shaving with carts. Look at it this way, Gillette high end cart will last me 6 shaves and then starts to tug and cost $5, then "Gillette" Silver blue or Super Stainless or Sharp Edge will last me the same 6 shaves as the cart but they cost around 12-17 Cents! per blade..... Safety razor shaving is soooo much cheaper even if you get the fever of buying in the beginning and stack up on some razors, brushes and soaps, you eventually will stop with constant buying and you will start enjoying the stuff that you bought during the fever lol. Well now on an other hand I know there are people here who have 2500+ razors, 200+ soaps, 100+ brushes, I don't want to judge anyone but I know for sure savings have never been on the mind of these people considering they have spent minimum $10.000 in this hobby.... I have so far spent around $500-600 in shaving equipment and I have enough blades and soaps to last me lifetime, while the razors will last me at least 10 life times I will never live haha!! Look $500-$600 you will spent on carts in about 5-6 years , and if you are really trying to safe find your favorite razor and buy another spare one, buy 10 of your favorites soaps, buy 300-400 of your favorite blades, get a decent synthetic brush that's a lather monster and dirt cheap and voila you have spend $200-$300 max for a lifetime supply of shaving.... Yes safety razor AKA the traditional way is that cheap!
