Is There Help for Blade Acquisition Disorder?

I don't think it's even been a month since I returned to the world of DE safety razor shaving, and in that time I've picked up 5 razors and (after I receive a pending delivery) about 750 blades. The "hook" for me with the blades, is that they look kinda cool on the bathroom wall, and in the grand scheme of things, they're relatively inexpensive. Most of what I picked up are Vidyut Super-Max, but I've got sampler packs, and bulk packs of Astra and Shark as well. Anyone else finding their addiction leaning more toward blades?

 

Well, I find my addiction goes for both razors and blades. I read one article that praises Personna 74 and the next Personna Red, then Feather, and on and on and I think I've got to try that. I see a deal for a 100 and take it. Sometimes like with the Feather, they don't work for me and I'm stuck with expensive blades. But the others are more reasonably priced and so, why not buy them?

The razor acquisition disorder is much worse. I end up finding my 3rd buy, a slim superadjustable, short black handle was best, after about 40 bought. Now it's on to SE razors, but not as interesting. I hope I can stop and just shave now.

 

Yes, that's pretty much my thinking too. Worst case scenario, I shave 5x/day, and use a different blade each time.

I've already realized that for me, I won't be sticking to any one razor, regardless of how good it is. In my case, it's all about rotating through them (though I imagine I'll end up with some I won't use at all after evaluating them). In fact today, I have a Pilot Magnum en route via UPS. Appears to be a decent razor (I think it was $18.95 from Amazon), and as with the blades, the appeal for me is cost. There's certainly no downside to having quality more expensive razors, but I kinda figure that anybody should be able to make a decent razor at a high(er) price. Finding one that's good, or even great, at a sub $20 price point, is more fun for me. Well seriously, the rationale really doesn't matter does it? I've gone over the edge.

 

For me each disorder takes me into another. For ex: last fall I was into soaps. To take advantage of shipping I added many blades I had never tried. Then the blade group buy and Russian sales kicked in for bulk buys. Now that is all over, RAD is emerging again. I thought I was done with that one.

 

I think that's true with me too, and with most hobbies (yeah, I'm referring to shaving as a hobby now). With few exceptions, every area/object of interest has accessories, and even the accessories have accessories in some cases.

 

That's the thing, getting a good deal on these razors. Some get unreasonably bid up on eBay. I've found http://www.etsy.com to be helpful in that the prices are usually much cheaper than they end up on eBay and there is no bidding, just a price. I even bought a lot of 5 razors for around $20 and the guy added 2 more, all vintage Gillettes in good shape. I've also had one transaction on http://www.ecrater.com, though the website is minimalist in information.

 

Yes, I keep buying soaps and creams and though I don't usually use colognes and such, I've bought some splashes. I think I am supplied for many lifetimes now.

 

It is all about the fun of this great hobby, the great variety of products to try.

 

blades are pretty cool. i love the packaging of them but i've maxed out. i found some gillette blues last year and bought them just to have them. they look cool. i even save the wrapping they come in. i put them in a shoebox. now what do i do with them? they're too cool to toss out. i saw a nice poster once done with just blade wrappers. maybe once i get 1000 used blades i'll put that together? actually, i don't think i can have too many blades................

 

Blades & soaps. In the two months since I started DE shaving, I've acquired over 1300 blades and 16 different soaps or creams (multiples of some, and many more samples). I think I have the soap thing under control but I find myself wanting more blades. I have some tucks of blades coming from bestshave.net and if I find some that work well for me, I'll be placing an order for a few hundred more. I'm also tempted to buy 200 more Personna Labs.

The only thing that would get me to buy more soap, I think, is if I find a good deal on the B/S/T, or if I decided to trade some of my excess Bigelow shave cream or Maca Root shave cream.

Any time I start to feel guilty about how much I'm spending on this stuff, I just look at all the perfume, makeup, cream, and hair care products my wife has. Holy crap, THERE is some serious AD!

 

Thats right!!

 

'fraid not...I don't believe I saw any Injectors or Schick Repeaters on your list....

 

You make a very good point. I haven't been married in years, so I can probably tally up the money on such things that would have been spent, and consider myself way ahead!

 

Not really for me. I have about 3 brands that I know work flawlessly with my face so I stick to those. Won't be purchasing any more until my Voskhod stock dwindles below 100 blades.

RAD was cured by my 2 vintage Gillettes. Thanks to them I swore off modern razors. Soaps and brushes are my biggie now, I got one Simpsons and am itching for at least one more as well- soaps...big sampler soon from TSD so I have a feeling Jo will want to kill me on my next order from there lol, I can easily see myself buying 5+ tubs of assorted scents.

 

Hiya,

I'll still pick up the odd razor now and then, but by now I have enough in the arsenal to make up a nice rotation. There's also lots of razors in there that I never use, but can't bring myself to sell em. Sheesh.

No idea of how many blades in my stash, but I think it's a pretty big number. That includes lots of extinct injector blades as well as the non production DE variety. Now certain vintage ones I'm still buying when I find one I like for the right price. I have enough for a while so there's no pressure to spend a bunch per blade, and some of those can get expensive. Yeah, it's not unusual to see some vintage DE blades selling for $2-3 each.

Never does seem to end,

Martin

 

i bought some vintage gillette blues very chreap and was going to turn them to make $2 bucks but then i thought the packaging looked so cool why not just keep them.........and so it goes on to the next blade......hopeless......even with a nice stash of voskhods

 

I'm thinking that blades are the trading cards of the shaving world. I'm doomed.

 

Unlike my addiction to creams and brushes, I have managed to confine my BAD to a few types that treat me well and might go away (or already have). I've got between 200-400 each of Super Iridium, Polsilver, and Voskhod. At 3 shaves per blade and 200 shaving days per year, I'm covered for about 10 years

 

Too bad they don't come with a stick of gum in each pack.

 

Haha! That would be outstanding!