Why I hate "which razor is better" posts

Available from one source OEMing it for who knows how long going forward. Besides, a person asking which razor is best will not necessarily be located in North America.

The DE89 has been around for years, and it or its Muhle equivalent, is sold by every Tom, Dick and Harry in creation. The Merkur 34C is at least as widespread, if not more so. Both are likely to be around many years in the future and are readily available worldwide.

 

Thank you!!! It is so frustrating getting recommendations or ideas for products which are available in the USA only.

Agreed. Only depends on the region where you live whether the Edwin Jagger or the Mühle is the cheaper offering. One of the three (DE89, R89 or 34C) should be easy to find in most parts of the world.

 

The DE1/Teck2 is available worldwide through AliExpress in its Baili incarnation. I'm talking about a recommendation now not years from now. Just passing on what I personally would recommend today to someone.

 

I think being guided by what's available at brick and mortar stores in 2019 is ridiculous (E-J lists only online stockists by the way). But that's just me. Yes, I ordered my Baili , my Q-Shave, my Yaqi head, and three sets of blades from Aliexpress. All six orders, from five different vendors arrived in 2-3 weeks without issue . Tracking looks like this. i don't make blind recommendations. You are obviously welcome to recommend whatever you like. Both our opinions have been made pretty clear.

 

Why are brick and mortar stores ridiculous? I have purchased a lot of things from a local cutlery store over the years. For newbies especially, being able to see things in real life is quite educational and helpful. Nearly all the cutlery stores in my area carry at least some Merkurs and accessories. Besides zero wait time is always nice!

No wonder all the newbies are going to Reddit/wicked_edge nowadays. They are what we once were.

 

I WISH there was a brick and mortar store in my "vicinity" that carried shave gear. We had one Art of Shaving and that went belly-up. I would mos def patronize such an establishment.

 

Never been to a brick and mortar store to shop for shaving equipment, and although I live in the second largest city in the US I don't frequent a "local cutlery" if there is one. There is one shave shop about an hour away (West Coast Shave maybe 1.5) but the internet is a thing. The only reason I would drive an hour and back plus parking to go to one to buy what I could online would be for a meet-up.

 

So much about shaving is personal preference that it is nearly impossible to predict what someone will like. Another issue is that with time preferences change. A good example recently for me is the Lord Premium Safety Razor/L6. I bought one of these a couple years ago and did not really care for it so it sat and collected dust. I put a fresh blade in it last week and got 3 fantastic shaves with it so far. No idea why things are different now. Maybe my technique has gotten better? Maybe the blade I picked works wonders in it? Who knows.
Maybe if something isn’t working for you set it aside and come back to it later.


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Likely your technique has gotten better, the razor hasn't changed

 

i would love to have a local shaving shop around here. there is one but it sells muhle razors only..something like a wcs or british tobs shop would be awesome..a mens shop, cigars , you name it..

 

My stones arrived today. I made a box for the big one (Crown). Now I can ruin some straights another way. HA. Hopefully not.

 

Now you can tell everyone "I got big stones".

 

The same applies to the best shaving cream or best brush or best straight razor or best after shave. You ask a dozen people and you're gonna get a dozen different answers. Unless you have tried it yourself, you're never gonna know.

 

Some folks opinions help me to save money. There are a few guys who's clues are mobetta. Jist causing trouble heya.

 

"best" being the word, best car, best truck , best restaurant etc.other opinions do give some help and direction for many..

 

True.

 

Getting back to the points in the OP...

That is because they know PLANofMAN has a plan, man.

Why not simply give them a succinct and honest answer?

"Which razor is better, A or B?"

I found razor A to work better than razor B. Preferences vary among individuals, so you might find razor B to work better than razor A.

or

I have used razor A and like it, but I have never used razor B. For that reason, I can't really say which one is better. If you join the forum, you will probably find people who have used both, and can provide sage advice.

Easy peasy, and also an opportunity to recruit new Shave Den members.

Many of the popular reviewers get free stuff from the vendors to review. Some also receive payment from YouTube, so it's not like they are not compensated.

 

but best of anything is up to the individual..

 

True, but individuals just starting out have no way of knowing that. Recommending a razor that has given good results for many others is likely to give good results for the person asking the questions. It is not an absolute guarantee, but one that has a reasonably good chance of success.

Your mileage may vary, but that does not mean it will always vary. It is more a matter of giving initial guidance for further research, rather than identifying the ne plus ultra of razors.