Thread: Filarmonica Frenzy

I'm still fairly new to straight razors, and I'm pretty certain I'm in the early stages of r.a.d. After lurking around and reading some of the positive things about Filarmonica's, I thought I would start looking at ebay and what not. The prices have gotten crazy though! One of the last EPBD's I watched went for close to $400 bones where just a few weeks ago $200-$250 was winning. I wish my 401K saw those kind of gains!

I know its basic supply and demand. I am sure they're also awesome shavers. I guess my question is whether some of you think this is going to be a trend that dies down...or not?

I certainly hope it dies down a bit. I would love to have a couple at some point.

I also have a feeling that a good many of these people are collectors buying them, or just people trying to buy low/re-sell higher.

Usually a run like this in most collection circles is caused by some sort of panic, such as a factory going out of business or a particular model going out of production. Pretty much something that gives buyers the idea that they may have a problem getting their hands on an item in the future.

I'm not sure if that is what is happening here but the cost on those blades are out of hand. Hopefully it does not stay like this forever.

I doubt it. It's the same with the Ducks. Membership here has grown by leaps and bounds. We are over 15k members. One person posts how great a razor shaves, Thousands of guys want them. It may die down a little in time, but I seriously doubt it.
If you want a Fily, Your gonna pay 350 bucks on average. IMHO, You can get a Boker, new, or a TI, or a Dovo, It'll shave you every bit as good. Yes, Fily is good, Yes the steel is good, but something has to be said for a good honing. Honestly, I can take a 5 dollar no name razor and get a good shave from it.....

jseitz76 I swear i started an eerily similar thread about 2 months ago! Have patience. Prices for #13s and Barbas Duras were insane then and so I just waited a few weeks. Suddenly I was winning NOS 13s for under $200 and even snagged a NOS Barbas Duras for under $250. This week it's crazy again. Two weeks from now it'll be significantly less expensive. Sometimes I think Mariona and the folks from Spain coordinate their auctions! They don't but it sure feels like it sometimes. Watch for things to settle down again, and then keep an eye out for one of the NOS sellers that has auctions ending mid-week. Filly auctions that end on weekends generate bidding fever. You can even get them directly from those same sellers at times, but once things heat up they cut that off in favor of the higher prices on ebay.

I'm not sure about the trend, but what I would do is have in your mind what you are prepared to pay for one.

For me, theres no way I would spend $400 on an auction razor like that (unless it was a custom or something exceptionally rare) when I can buy a brand new top-of-the-line Wacker for $300. Lets face it, for $500 you're into the territory of Mastro Livi customs and other custom makers. I simply cant believe that the Fillys are that good that they are worth those sorts of prices.

I dont have one, but are they really better than all the brand new DOVO's, TI's, Wackers, Bokers etc...? I'm not convinced!

I mean, if you really really really want one then Ok. Sink the cash into one. But I'd have a limit in my mind of what to spend and hope for one that flys under the radar.

As the other posters have said, it gets mentioned here that razor X is particularly good and suddenly they're as rare as rocking horse poop and you have to sell a kidney to get one.

Straight razors are coming back with a vengeance at the moment, and theres going to be a lot of people who've done a bit of research, seen that Fillys are generally viewed as good razors and then throw a small fortune at one because its supposedly THE ONE.

Just keep plugging away at the limit you want to spend and dont get caught up in the hysteria. You'll get one eventually.

Ha ha ha... I've seen one of these threads started every couple of months for the last 1 and a half years. Same thing happened with Le Grelots. Frenzy, then pause, then frenzy. I think it's just that a lot of people aren't sure what to buy so they read up here how great brand x or y is and then go nuts on ebay. I'm lucky I seem to have bought during the pauses...

s.

the only 350+ Phillis I have seen on the Bay are the really rare ones, Medalion Tourino mint(Undream here had a great one that sold for 400+ I think), and some others I don't even rememeber the names of.
The #14 Para Barbas Duras I think is in the 250-300 range, and #13 usually go under 200.
Of course there are exceptions too.

I don't shave with a razor that cost me more than $15 lol.

Not to add fuel to the price inflation fire....

But the Filarmonicas are worth the money. I have wacker, TI, dovo, and about 15 vintage bad boys and the Fillys outshine them all. I didn't pay as much as they're going for now, but I would if I knew they shaved this well prior to buying one. It seems like the skeptics are all the guys who haven't tried one! If you're going to spend $300 for a Wacker, you'll be able to win an EPBD for that money if you're patient (like my man in Colorado says).

If you want a big razor like a 14 that is as (if not aesthetically) solid a performer as the EPBD, check out a Palmera. They can be had for $150 less than the EPBD's on average.


EDIT: Also, @zib -- honing does have a lot to do with it, but I recently got a shave from a Palmera that was not (professionally) honed out of the box that was on par with my EPBD that was honed by Max. It had been sitting in the wrapper for however many years untouched. And to the guys who win Fillys that want to put a mean edge on them (if they're not there already), Max is your man. He treats the things like they were his first born.