Thread: The Future of Straight Razors

Originally Posted by Skippy

do you think they will at least start selling them in the big chain stores like Wal-Mart and so on?

I could see walmart carrying frost-style "razors" next to the hunting knives

Originally Posted by Rusty Shackleford

Hehe... we're sort of "the fisher of men" of wet shaving.

Heheheh. I like that language.

Personally, I doubt that straight shaving will grow much. Like hot-rods ebb and flow with time, straight shaving will as well. Chip Foose, Boyd, and a smattering of others pumped up the hot rod market for several years, but it will dip and rise over and over again until it is legislated away.

I think the same will happen with razors. They will ebb and flow until someone gets it in their head that they are the latest greatest threat to the safety of X.

Originally Posted by Slur

The way people will shave in the future, will be decided by marketing and not by the people.

Not if I have anything to say about it. I mean... who has been brought here by marketing? Yet we share an interest for a unique way of vanquishing our facial hair and, by most indications, a peculiar way of doing things in general.

Marketing tries to influence you, disposables keep on getting cooler and stuff, and yet they don't convince me that they are better. Except to shave cats, which are very difficult to shave with a straight.

Originally Posted by stealgood

If they ever market straight razors they will sport plastic scales (unbreakable) and the blade will be neutered to a 1/64" protruding, all with safety in mind, disposable.
Maybe double safety blade, throw away insert about 1 inch long. It will have a safety book along with it written in 50-60 languages, no sharpening needed, KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN in huge letters stamped on the side of the scales. mAdE IN cHInA or Bangladesh.
I assure you they would be Lawyer-ed down too silly to even look at.

In other words, a shavette?

The internet is interesting. It creates these wonderful forums like this where we can find information on relatively fringe interests that we never would have been able to get so quickly before the internet existed. As an example, learning about Bluegrass music would have been 100 times more difficult for an adult from a non-musical family living in Texas in the days before the internet. It's not a common interest this far South, and finding the pockets of hardcore fans and players (not to mention instructional material and information on instruments) would be near impossible without the internet.

It also creates the idea that our fringe interest is somehow mainstream or may be going that way because a few people are catching on. How many total members are there of SRP? What percentage of the world's population does that represent (we're international, right?)? Not exactly mainstream. I just don't see this ever growing to the point where the barriers to entry are worth overcoming to try to take new razor market share away from Dovo, Boker, TI, and the entry level distributors. Especially with a bunch restorable antiques still out there.

What I do think we will see is enough growth in the hobby to make it worthwhile for even more custom grinders to get into the business, which will only benefit us! It will be fun to watch, and thanks to you guys and your support I get to watch it from the "inside"!

Just my $.02


--David

Originally Posted by Snake

In other words, a shavette?

A safety shavette for lord's sake


I think and hope that SR shaving will remain for a niche marktet. When it would become mainstream(as noted before) the education most of us have received here won't be spread to the 'new' SR shavers. Who, of course, will still hate shaving and see it(along with pre-shave prep) as a chore.

It takes a certain mindset, one that isn't found in mainstream. Namely Patience, the will to learn new skills and to know the ways of the old(modernised).

I have to agree with Leadduck. If big chain stores start selling them, i can see them being the crappy, cheap versions so as to appeal to the mass market. The problem i can see with them being stocked in the mass markets is that people won't know the difference between a good razor and a bad one and many people who may have got hooked on it may be put off from a bad first experience by buying cheap, poorly made razors. It happens enough now with people buying bad razors on e-bay. People i talk to don't seem to realise how much money you save once you have all the kit, as most of it will out-live you! Also, as others have said, i like the fact that i shave with something no-one i know does. Don't get me wrong, if anyone asks me about it i point them in the direction of this site and explain how much better it is, some just will always view it as a chore!

Originally Posted by hoglahoo

I could see walmart carrying frost-style "razors" next to the hunting knives

I rember when I was a kid in NE Oregon (Small town) the local drugstore sold straights..From what I remember they were packaged much like the filis' I se in those clear packages....I often wonder if thats what brand they were? I so had I had the foresight and bought them up I could have been a wealthy man today..They were reletively cheap and were hung on the shaving racks with DE blades and shave cream..

I think the current influx of people is do to economic/green reasons than anything else. I know that is the reason I started straight shaving. When I started looking at it from a financial perspective and found that yeah it may cost more upfront than a fusion or Mach whatever but after using it for a year it more than makes up for the cost and since I can then use it for many years to come with no extra outlay ( except maybe honing ) if I don't drop and break it then after the first year I am saving money.

Now that is not considering AD's at all, if someone gets a collecting bug , if you end up buying a custom razor, or expensive vintage NOS one.

If the economy keeps being flat or falling we may see the niche becoming more mainstream as people search more and more for ways of cutting expenses. Unless the big manufacturers decide to cut their prices on cart refills if things keep the way they are.

I offered to purchase my best friend a new dovo and strop as a gift. His exact words were
“are you crazy, I don’t want anything that sharp near my face" He stated he gets very nervous when a barber uses one on him to trim the edges after a haircut. We talked about 30 minutes on the subject and I could not convince him. I think this will remain a niche market.