I was wondering when someone would notice the impact the new razor market is having on vintage. And what about the when and if Gillette starts to market their old line of shavers...
I've been trying to snag a red tip and a new open comb for a couple of weeks now and they always go for more then I want to pay
Do the Shake Sharp razors work with regards to blade sharpening ? Tried a few times to pick one up via eBay but prices got out of control. May just wait for a wild find.
After further review (shopping) I do think that the price paid for the average Gillette razor is down. For example the price of nice Super Speeds, and even 195's seem to be lower. But I also think that there is a glut of nice razors and this may be part of the reason. One exception as I noted before is the Double Ring. I think the DR price is going straight north. Good time to shop for a vintage.
While I agree with you that common Gillette's are down, it does seem that the prices for Aristocrats and Fat Boys are being pushed artificially high, especially those in mediocre to good cases. It seems to be a case of people who bought stock to flip being caught in a down market. The price for a Fat Boy Case alone is in the $40 minimum range which seems absurd for just a case. On the other hand, prices for single edge razors seem to be going northward. Last year I could buy a cased Gem or Ever Ready for around $15.00 shipped in great condition. Now the prices of them start in the $25 to $30 range with the 1914's being slightly higher. Schick's also seem to be on the upswing with certain models surpassing even the Fat Boy/Aristocrat prices and joining the Double Ring in the pantheon of absurdity. Fortunately Canada and Europe seem to be coming later to the market which is bolstering the prices for rockets/aristocrats as can be seen by the amount of English sets hitting the online auction sites right now. In fairness the trend started to escalate with the introduction of the Micro Touch One being splashed across the national airwaves and interest in DE shaving is declining as the razor disappears off of the "As seen on TV" shelves at your local drug store. Compound that with many drug stores no longer carrying the double edge blades in a prominent position, people are not going to have an easy way to obtain blades for the long run. This is a between generation of purchasing right now. My parents do not shop online and my daughter hates to go to a traditional store because she has the "Amazon has everything" mentality. Unless more stores like Art of Shaving or small local vendors start carrying supplies in the community, I see the prices continue to fall for the average joe and the nicer boxed collector pieces will start to disappear from the bay to await the next upturn.
The prices on premium DE razors are really spiking now. Especially British Gillettes and collectors items. Nearly doubled.
It seems to me that for a razor to meet the definition of user grade has sure gotten easier in the last couple of years. What used to be a $15 razor is now $25, and utterly roached crap is being listed at $15. Sure there are deals to be had, but it sure seems like you have to work a lot harder to find them.
I'm curious how much the new razor market has affected sales of antique and vintage razors. I believe people buy/use classic razors for multiple reasons and sorting out the relative contribution of one versus the other can be difficult. I first got into DE wet shaving because I wanted to save money and because I was feeling guilty over years of disposable razor use. Like many other people, my first purchase was a cheap, new razor on Amazon (Utopia, I believe). Then one day I found two old Gillette razors at a thrift store for $2.00 each. I cleaned them up and tried them out. They worked better than my new razor! I started doing some online research and found out I had a Slim and a Fatboy for a total of $4.00. I thought that using a razor already produced was certainly even more beneficial environmentally than using resources to manufacture new razors. Add the fact that many older razors were built to stand the test of time and buying a vintage razor just adds up. New cheap razors don't last. New razors that are built anywhere close to the quality of an older Gillette are (imo) ridiculously overpriced. I guess my point is that I believe there is a large demographic of people who would not buy a new razor anyway, simply because it is more logical to purchase an older one. Factor in the societal influences of increased awareness of resource usage or even pop culture (ie. Mad Men) and you have a lot of synergy for the used razor market. Ok, I'm done rambling.....
Rocket on the bay w/buy it now at $35 popped up this AM. Note: I have no affiliation with said rocket sale, just trying to help. For those of you coveting a red tip there's one on the bay again w/buy it now of $20, but I think it's like $7 shipping....again, no affiliation with these sales, trying to help.
BTW, i definitely think NB'16 is bringing prices down...we're a force to be reckoned with. I've personally taken advantage of a few REALLY good buys on the bay this year!
A quick look on Ebay shows the buy-it-now prices with the lowest at $49.99 (looks pretty rough IMHO) and the highest at $599.99. It appears most of the buy-it-now prices start in the $70s and up. Lots in the $100.00 plus range. I am not an expert on Ebay or even real smart, but I figure one could purchase the $599.99 for much less? I am not sure why folks list some of the Fatboys at very high (to me) prices. Perhaps the Ebay"experts" can give some insight.
Well I did just see a Red Tip Flared Fat Boy currently going for about twenty bucks. Considering how rare that razor is, it seems like a great deal.
Well, Easter Sunday morning was a good day to have snipes in place. Anyone who sets an auction to end on a holiday deserves the lower prices their stuff will bring. For anyone who is wondering, Sunday between 10 and 11 EST is the best time to end an auction, though not when a holiday falls on a Sunday.
Agreed. I'm in California and I generally post all of my listings at approx. 6:30 pm on Sundays. The Easter holiday did not appear to adversely affect my sales....
I tend to veer away from eBay Stores, which typically overcharge for razors. Not always, but it's rare you'll end up with a bargain. $150 for a Super Speed in user grade, with no case? No thanks. $80 for a Slim? No way.
