Thread: Cost vs. Quality

Originally Posted by Oglethorpe

As a new guy I was in the market for a vintage razor for the cost effectiveness. I know most guys in here will say it won't happen, but let's say you just can't get into straight shaving? Worst case is you spent $40 on a Wapi or Geneva and you can probably just re-list it for the same price. It beats dropping 120 bucks on a top shelf razor and having to be worried about turning that around.

I like the idea of shaving with classics, even though I haven't done it yet. Stay tuned for how that works out...

A top shelf razor my friend goes for well over 1000.00, Spending 120 for a razor is modest....
In any case, I agree with the fact that you can turn around and sell it on the classifieds. A Zowada, or Top Shelf Livi and the like, you may not get the 1200.00 you spent on it.

Ok you caught me in all my noobish glory... but spending that kind of money on a razor is wild. I did see that "damascus" blade on the classifieds going for a cool grand... I guess I just misused the term "top shelf".

I know a lot of people find the current production Dovo great, and I must say you're lucky because these are plentiful and inexpensive (almost any vintage razor costs more in brand new condition).
I don't consider them great razors by any stretch of imagination. Now the vintage Dovos are a different story, and I don't know why the current production is not on par with them.
Perhaps this is just my subjective evaluation, but if you look at the razors I have you'll know I'm not making it up.

Now on vendors taking back razors for 'any' reason - this is just not true. Yes, they will go a long way to make their customers happy, but that's not even close to say 'Satisfaction guaranteed, or your money back' policy. A policy of this kind adds a large overhead to the cost of doing business. I don't want to turn this into another economic discussion, but it's good to stick to the facts - some things are just unfeasible.

There is a big advantage to purchasing a new Dovo and it's consistency. It may not be the greatest razor ever made, but there is plenty of people who have shaved with one of those, and unless you are a special exception you should be able to get a good shave with it as well.

The bottom line is it's not all that difficult and Glen summed it up quite well. Figure out your parameters and go find something that fits in there.

Originally Posted by zib

A top shelf razor my friend goes for well over 1000.00, Spending 120 for a razor is modest....
In any case, I agree with the fact that you can turn around and sell it on the classifieds. A Zowada, or Top Shelf Livi and the like, you may not get the 1200.00 you spent on it.

WHAT !!!!!

Originally Posted by gssixgun

WHAT !!!!!

I concur

Originally Posted by gugi

I concur

What they said

Originally Posted by Leighton

What they said

I'll let Zib speak for himself, but my guess is he's saying that someone new to shaving won't clearly experience the results of a TZ, for instance, for some time along the learning curve. I think I have to agree. Although it took me about a month of shaving before I appreciated the better made "top shelf" razors.

That said, I appreciated the craftmanship very soon after I began.

That brings up a discussion of what exactly transforms a good razor into a fantastic razor. While I have promised to have a chat with Hawkeye about what my thoughts are, I decline to delve into this discussion at the present time.

Quality aside, I really like shaving with an old blade myself. The fact that most vintage/antique blades are at least as good quality, and in some cases even better quality is great too.

It might not make sense, but I don't have a Dovo/TI/etc and I have no interest in owning one any time soon either. For me, if just anyone off the street can go and buy the blade it's not that special. This whole shaving thing is a hobby for me... it isn't just about shaving simply to get the job done because I have to. It's something that I really enjoy. If I just wanted a tool to get the job done I probably would grab an entry level dovo that is shave ready from one of the vendors and be done with it. And not to put that down, I'm sure that works perfectly for a lot of people, it's just not for me personally.

Even still, old blade preference aside, I guess another thing for me is that I don't hear people in hear ranting and raving about how the new dovos/tis are the best blades. If I did, I would already own one. In fact, I hear way more buzz for Double Arrows and Wapis, which I'm sure is just because they are inexpensive and a good value, but still, there's more mention of how great they are than how great dovos and tis are, from what I've seen lately. (Just to be clear, I'm NOT claiming wapis or DAs are better quality than a new dovo/ti/etc).

I think this topic is akin to the natural vs synthetic hone thing preference. With a synthetic, there is no mystery, no strange allure. Everyone who buys one gets the same thing and it's just a tool to get the job done. With a natural, since they all vary and you're not really sure what you have until you try it, there is a very attractive mystery there (for me at least) to try them all and find the "best" one. Some people really like that challenge and search. Similar to synthetic hones, with a brand new razor, you know exactly what you're getting from the get-go. You don't have to search high and low for one - anyone who wants one can have one. There's no mystery (well, save for the anomolous defects, which we can hopefully assume are weeded out by a good vendor). With a vintage razor, they are all a little different, can sometimes be hard to track down a specific one, and you never really know exactly what you've got until you try it, and chances are, you are one of few who actually have that particular razor. I love that. Customs fit into this category as well, since they are, well, custom made one-offs.

Anyway, I much prefer shaving with an old blade. The older the better. And preferably one that I've cleaned up and honed myself I guess it depends on why you are getting into shaving with a straight in the first place. Is it because you think that you can save money in the long run? Is it just to find a more effective/comfortable/closer method of shaving, and you could really care less about all the different types of razors, hones, strops, soaps, brushes, etc, etc, -- you really just want shaving to be shaving? Or maybe you want to take part in an age old tradition and potentially start a new hobby? Or maybe I'm way off in left field by myself making no sense

Originally Posted by bpave777

someone new to shaving won't clearly experience the results of a TZ, for instance, for some time along the learning curve.

Yes, I believe in the beginning the razor makes very little difference as the technique is the dominating factor that dwarfs everything else.