Thread: 14 Especial Para Barbas Duras

Hello,

I'm currently bidding on this but I think it's gone a little high. Are they realy worth this much? I was checking out his sell history and they go for like 400$ plus. I've read so much good about em but I've also seen people comment that there are just as good razors for more then half the price.

Could anyone name a few? Or are they secret I prefer larger razors, 7/8 and above.

Best,'
Erik

STRAIGHT RAZOR FILARMONICA BARBAS DURAS #14 RED BOX NOS - eBay (item 160478544657 end time Sep-15-10 10:04:04 PDT)

Welcome to the site.

Unfortunately we dont offer valuations or price/bidding recommendations here, but razors are worth whatever people are prepared to pay for them. If you feel the price has gone higher than you want to spend, then I guess that gives you your answer..!

I've not used a Filli myself, but I hear they are very good shavers. I'm slightly skeptical myself as to whether they are good enough to justify the price difference between that and, say, a DOVO Bismarck but I'll withold judgement until I actually use one. The price is one reason I havent been bidding on them.

Is this going to be your first razor? If so, I would recommend spending a lot less than that in case you dont like shaving this way.

Have a look in the classifieds here for 7/8 razors. Theres this one for a start thats less than the Filli you were bidding on, so keep an eye out there.

I think Revisor make 7/8 and 8/8 blades, and so does Wacker though they are a little more expensive.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Welcome!

Yes they are expensive and yes they are excellent shavers.

Are they worth the $$$$$, no, but then the price is simply the amount someone is willing to pay and I've seen them go for $500. As a disclaimer, I own and use a #13 EPBD and a #13 DT. They are among my favorites but were purchased prior to the current crazy pricing.

There are other razors that shave as well for much less.

I own and use a #14 EPBD, a #14 Novadur and a #13 DT, and they are all great razors. But the truth is that there's really lots of great ones out there.

And I appreciate someone as knowledgeable as Stubear recommending one of the razors I have for sale right now on the Classifieds, but to be perfectly honest, that W&B is not one that I would recommend to a beginner, if only because it is really long, heavy and very sharp. Not surprisingly, you can hurt yourself pretty good with one of these razors, so I would start with something a little more forgiving, just to see if you like shaving this way.

To answer your question about pricing, here's a simple way to think about these razors -- they really are like little, inexpensive, antique cars. Almost every single one of these razors, if properly sharpened and maintained, will give you a fantastic shave, just like almost every single antique car will get you from home to work and back. Some are more beautiful in the eyes of some people, so they command a higher price. Some are quirky or difficult to use or exceptionally rare to find, and that may command a higher price too. Some were very available and not all that highly prized for many years and then, only recently, became the object of widespread desire, leading to shortages, higher prices, and even more widespread desire.

In other words, you might say that the #14 EPBD is kind of like a mint '71 Plymouth Road Runner. For many years, you might be able to find one anywhere for not much money, and then people gradually "rediscovered" what was a pretty decent item to begin with, bought up whatever examples were on the market at the time, and then watched the prices soar to higher and higher levels as ever increasing demand chases an ever decreasing supply. So is a #14 EPBD or a '71 Road Runner "worth" the money? Well, in one sense, of course yes, because there's people out there who will pay that price to own one, and they certainly aren't making any more.

But the more appropriate question here is whether one of these items is worth it TO YOU? If you're simply looking for something to shave with, then I'd tell you that you can do much better buying three or four really excellent, current production razors and using them in a rotation, which helps to keep them sharp and maintained -- just like there's much better choices for transportation than simply buying a '71 Road Runner to go back and forth to work! If you absolutely, positively have to own the '71 Road Runner of razors, and that's what gives you happiness in the morning, then I'd say, welcome to the insane asylum, and good luck bidding on the Filly!

Fily's are great shavers. They always fetch big dollars for the most part, like DD Goldedges, DD Wonderedges, Most Pumas, Dovo Fritz Bracht, to name a few and they are highly collectable and sought after which drives up the market...They are all great shavers, and have been hyped to death which raises the price. Funny thing about the NOS Fily's is, They are great shaver's out of the box, I have several, I didn't need to do anything but strop... This is exceedingly rare...

That's is a reputable vendor btw

#13 and Barbas Duras are outstanding and I've paid that much and more - but ultimately it depends upon your preferences and budget. Seems timing is sometimes an issue with Fillys too. The same blade will fluctuate wildly at times so have patience.

I've just completed about a year of intensive RAD withdraw. :-) Seems in the span of around 10 months I managed to gather over 300 great razors and dropped way more cash on them than I ever imagined possible. Also picked up another 200 or so "project" razors that I hope to restore at some point. With retirement less than 2 years away I'm really gathering the blades, scales, tools, and other items I'll need to keep myself busy cranking out dream shavers - or so the story goes as far as my wife is concerned.

Anyway, I've been traveling for work and pleasure for the last year and haven't been on here for almost a year. Consequently I've not bought a new blade in that period either so the price of that Filly seems to still be where they were a year ago.

Welcome to SRP Erik. As Yogi Berra said,"It ain't over,'til it's over." If you get that Filly for what it is now feel lucky. Worth it is in he eye of the winning bidder. I like my filly razors but I got them before they went into the stratosphere.

Some of the best shavers in the world are made right in your backyard in Elskituna. Look for vintage M.K. Heljestrand razors. They are right up there with the best of them IMO.

I tried about 30 different razors and 14 Especial Para Barbas Duras was clearly the best for me.

Wow, thanks for all the replies!

I will try to win that one, but I doubt I will. My account isn't loaded with $ atm and I'm not anywhere near home so that I could fill it up.

Guess I need to wait for my turn, I've seen two of these go on the classified in like a week or two maybe so I'm guessing sometime they will pop up when I'm on here and then I hope it's me whos pressing the Pay now button first!

Thanks alot people,
Erik

Just when you thought it safe to go back in the water....duntah duntah duntah (Jaws music...)

Filarmonica BARBAS DURAS 8/8 Straight Razor *MINT COND* - eBay (item 170619563472 end time Mar-28-11 12:29:25 PDT)

Wow...that one is PURDY!!!