Thread: understanding how price vs. quality of a razor

Price is an interesting thing.

On the one hand there is generally a minimum price below which you just won't be getting something of shave quality (I'm talking new razors here, btw). The proper steel, the proper skills to work it and grind it and finish it all cost. Of course the manufacturer and vendors need a profit as well. For a new razor I use the most basic Dovo as a guide on that ballpark minimum price.

Over that, you start to get prices that reflect the quality and difficulty/rareness of the steel (eg damascus), the quality and materials of the scales, the finish and so on. You also then can move into the realms of customer preference and style - a big honking 8/8 with worked spines and a raptor-like profile is almost guaranteed to attract a premium, for example. Gold washed razors too, or intricate etching and so on...

In terms of vintage, price will often reflect reputation and rarity and of course condition - a Mappin and Webb Lancet edge for example (in good condition) will set you back maybe more than some customs! Some people value scales and the often ornate patterns and impresses/carving/whatever the old-timers put on them - also the scale materials (ivory, for example, has a premium. Pre-ban, of course).

Vintage blades will often have a market that is influenced by collectors rather than users as well, particularly the rarer or more collectible brands/styles. These are often pricier than their mere parts might suggest they should be, mainly because of demand/supply.

Similarly, multiple-razor sets (in good condition) seem to attract a premium - they often appear to be worth more than the mere multiplication of the individual razors that they comprise.

So price is a tricky thing, as I said before, particularly with reference to vintage blades. Often with these we simply say that the market determines the value, which is basically true to a large extent. However, I would say with production razors (ie new), it is more a costs and supply/demand issue.

James.