Thread: How many razors do you have, and why so many?

Okay, Y'all have been helpful so far with my n00b questions. How about this one, how many razors do you own, and why do you have so many razors? From a Newb perspective I can see having 2 good razors, one in use and one to switch to when the other needs rehoned or other work done, rotate when stropping isn't cutting it on the one in use. I am seeing and hearing about people with dozens of razors. I can see it from the perspective of there are some neat looking razors out there so maybe collecting them is the point but is there a need to have a dozen razors except for the this one's purty factor?

My starting set is a low end straight and a replaceable blade straight. Eventually i want to get a really nice straight or two but can't imagine having more than 2 and maybe a replaceable blade. They last a really long time with some care and are pretty darned expensive.

Can't have too much money , too many women , too much luck , or too many razors. But to answer your question , two razors may be enough but R.A.D (razor acquisition disorder) is a common malady around here. I have about fifty in my rotation. Some have many more.

Is it just for the collection factor? Like this one is really cool or I have heard great things about this one, or that one belonged to my favorite author, or I just really like the scales on this beauty. That kind of thing or is it more like the way I am with notebooks. I can't walk through the notebooks section without picking one up but the last time I actually put pen to paper was about 3 years ago. There is just a crack somewhere in my brain that feels like if I just had that one.

My ex-wife had R.A.D but the R stood for Rats. We had a house full.

I have 4 so far with number 5 at my local barbers ready to be bought. I use 2 so far in rotation cause they are already honed and shave ready and only need a little stropping before using. No. 4 was bought 2 days ago from an Antique shop and needs some honing, it is a Krusius Brothers 6/8th KB Extra #62 with a barbers notch. I bought it for $25.00. I am going to buy a Norton 4000/8000 grit water stone tomorrow and hone it up. Check out Antique shops in your area for good deals on straight razors, some will be in very good shape some won't. 3 of my razors have come from Antique shops. The most I have paid for one is $40.00 at a Gun Show, Its a H.C. Wentworth&Sons (1902 to 1916) and is my best razor.

I have around 40 of them. The thing is, some of us just have no restraint for pretty shiny sharp objects. The other thing is, I wanted to try different styles and sizes of blades to see what I preferred the most. Soooooo, I've got the standard straights from 5/8 thru 7/8, and a couple kamisoris, couple western kamisoris, smiling blades and non smiling blades, french points, spikes, barbers and so forth. As you can see, I do have a problem, sort of! Depends if you ask my wife or not. Not saying anything about my soaps either. Good luck with your shaving.


Mike

Originally Posted by Wirm

Can't have too much money , too many women , too much luck , or too many razors.

Unless you have the first item, I beg to differ with you on the second item.

Back to the original question, I have about 50. None get a pass from the shaving rotation. If I tire of them, they go on to a new owner. My storage cases determine the maximum number.

I have many. Some I plan on being the long term custodian of. Others I have fixed up and honed. Some of those are getting ready to find their way to their next custodian. Some have required extensive repair while other only needed a good cleaning. Most of the ones I buy are either because they're unusual or need new life breathed into them. I enjoy the restoration aspect a lot. I need to get better at getting some off to their next custodian.

Okay that makes sense. Also the 20 to 50 dollar Vintages make a little more sense. I was just looking at prices and thinking 50 razors would cost like 3000 to 5000 dollars or even more in some cases. I work in IT so I do okay but still that would be hard to get budgeted. What I am getting is my Christmas present. When I upgrade it will likely be next year's christmas or maybe my birthday.

Now I really can see trying different styles and types to see what you like or more likely what works best for your habits and needs. I could see it being more of a thing for me if a) I got into honing and restoring blades b) I saw them in shops or other places I found myself on occasions c) I had more money d) I had more time in the morning and didn't keep a beard.

Is there a place where the plusses and minuses of different blade types are discussed? So far looking through forums I see a lot of assumed knowledge that I don't have. With any new research topic I come across there is always some time involved in learning the lingo.

RezDog if you just need to get rid of some...........

I like the idea of restoration. I feel I need to research that a little bit.