The price of razors.
BY: SeminoleTriathlete on 2011-11-16 2:10 PM

So it had been a while since I purchased any razor blades.  I went to the grocery store last night and saw that the price has increased to $20.99 for 8 blades!!  They were the standard Mach 3 blades.  I just refuse to give in to this and pay what is probably a 1000% markup per blade.  I started researching other options and found that straight razors can last a life time with proper maintenance and use.  Does anyone have any experience with them, or any other suggestions for that matter?  (As a side note, this is just for shaving the face.  I haven't even thought about all the other triathlon related shaving.)
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Go Noles
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Somewhere, someone is training harder than you.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: bradword on 2011-11-16 2:17 PM

Funny you are going through what I just did. I'm getting a shipment of a safety razor and kit from Amazon today. I will let you know how it goes. A little investment up front, but I hear they are great and way cheaper in the long run. I couldn't pay $50 for replacement blades anymore for a crappy Mach 3 either!
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--Brad--

"Following the course of least resistance makes men and rivers crooked."
-- Harold B Lee
http://www.bradleytechnology.com

RE: The price of razors.
BY: BigDH on 2011-11-16 2:45 PM

I know what you are saying. I buy a new pack every couple years. My wife signs up for some give away thingy and I get a new Gillette razor every 4-5 months, somehow. Not sure how that works.

Also curious about the straight razor thing.
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Darren
---The Circle Has No End---
The only thing going long makes me want to do is go LONGER. A little slower, a lot longer.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: JoshR on 2011-11-16 4:04 PM

Have you tried googling them? I bought some a few months ago, it was ~$12 for a 10 pack I think.
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I have to hand it Oriolepwr. He is a FFB GENIOUS! I was beaten soundly. What
must I have been thinking?? I really Should have known better. Next time I
might even go ahead and forfeit, rather than take another beatdown like I got
this week.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: zed707 on 2011-11-16 4:10 PM

I have the same Trac II that my dad gave me in high school. Great razor and it gives super close shaves. You can still get generic blades at about $5 per 10. I even found the blades at the dollar store a few years back--they worked great. Score!

For the gym I use disposables--dollar store again, 5 for a dollar. I should say I have a thick beard that grows very fast, so not just shaving fuzz.

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"You know, you used to be on my list of trustables, and it was a very short list. I wasn't even on it."-- Dale Gribble

I'm gonna boogie oogie oogie
Til I just can't boogie no more

"Go play outside."-- Mom

RE: The price of razors.
BY: scorpio516 on 2011-11-17 9:46 AM

The razors I use on my head are $3 for 10 .  Generic equivalent of old school Gillette Atra Plus blades

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Spamming my not-really-tri-related blog
http://scorpio516.blogspot.com/

RE: The price of razors.
BY: vmaldonado111 on 2011-11-17 12:00 PM

I think the Mach3 makers employed the Drug Dealer Marketing Plan: First one is free.

I received a free Mach3 razor for my 18th birthday......I am now 34 and have never purchased anything different. Not necessarly because of brand loyalty but because they fazed out the the old school double blade. In any case, I really like the shave I get with these razors.

But they are crazy EXPENSIVE!

RE: The price of razors.
BY: LockOut on 2011-11-17 12:09 PM

I use both from time to time. A disposable is much easier to use for a quick, decent shave. You are much less likely to get nicks using them. But yes, they are expensive, and no, they don't give you as close of a shave. With the safety razors, I tend to get a bunch of really small nicks. Nothing that a styptic pencil can't fix. 

Also, I suggest not letting the hair grow long AT ALL between using a safety razor. My facial hair doesn't grow quick at all (I can go about 4 days before I start feeling grungy), but after about 2 days, there is no way I'm taking a safety to my face. It just rips the hair out. Not a good feeling at all.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: Nole Runner on 2011-11-17 1:08 PM

Now you know why Warren Buffet if the largest Gillette shareholder!

BTW, Go 'Noles!!

RE: The price of razors.
BY: JoshR on 2011-11-17 2:09 PM

The one good thing about the Mach 3's (I have the Turbo) is the blades can last for a long time. Not the ultra close smooth shave that you get the first few times, but I regularly keep 1 blade for ~2 months. I shave every other day for work and I probably could keep using them longer.
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I have to hand it Oriolepwr. He is a FFB GENIOUS! I was beaten soundly. What
must I have been thinking?? I really Should have known better. Next time I
might even go ahead and forfeit, rather than take another beatdown like I got
this week.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: McFuzz on 2011-11-17 2:30 PM

I use a twin blade as well because the prospect of $4 blades clashes with my frugal nature.  I've quit getting the generic blades, too many times where they've got a burr and I prefer keeping my blood inside my body. 

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(Site under construction)

RE: The price of razors.
BY: Iowaman on 2011-11-17 2:35 PM

Appearently there was a pretty bad freeze and alot of the razor trees ded so that why the high costs.
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H.O.P.E.
Hold on, pain ends!

RE: The price of razors.
BY: peby on 2011-11-17 3:02 PM

Electric
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One day your life will flash before your eyes....make sure it's worth watching.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: wingsfan on 2011-11-17 3:16 PM

 

There was a thread about this a while back that got me to try making my blades last longer than a week like I always had. I thought people were crazy, but I'll go for a month or longer on the same blade now and it works out pretty well.

I can't use cheap disposables or my face becomes a bloody mess even on the first shave. Electrics leave me looking like I still haven't shaved unless I go over and over for 20 or 30 minutes and then my face is almost as raw as using a disposable. 

Mach 3s, King of Shaves gel as a base followed by Edge is the only way I've found to avoid looking like I should be in the ER after a shave.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: FrequentFlier on 2011-11-17 3:29 PM

Heard in college that it's not the actual shaving/hair that dulls the blade, but simply oxidation of the cutting edge.  

 

Try drying the blade heads after a shave....went from 3-4 weeks/head to 2-3 months/head on my Sensor and/or Mach 3.  Have heard to use alcohol or a clean towel opposite the direction of shave. Maybe a mental game, maybe not? 

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This fat boy's gonna Tri.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: SoberTriGuy on 2011-11-17 3:30 PM

I use my Wahl hair trimmer for all grooming.  I haven't had a close shave in 20 years, nor have I paid for a haircut in about 10 years.

Yep, I'm real pretty....

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Minnetonka, MN

Jesus does hand farts when he prays for me.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: Kido on 2011-11-17 3:38 PM

Is this for body or face?

To be honest, I get the generic twin blade bag at walgreens or cvs or something.  Usually have about 24 in the bag for 10 bucks?  They last forever, but I only use them on my face and the occasional body trim (but never complete body shave).

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- Je Ne Regrette Rien
- Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.
- Challenges are what make life interesting;
overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.
- Maybe strong is just what you have left when you've used up all your weak.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: magic on 2011-11-17 5:03 PM

Shave Secret for the win. http://www.shavesecret.com/You use 4 to 6 drops on your wet face and shave. I do this with disposable razors and get about a month per razor. I swear what kills the razor's blade is shaving cream/gel.

I'm a little closer to our common ancestor too, get a 12 o'clock shadow and Shave Secret works for me. Very close shaves.

RE: The price of razors.
BY: trigal38 on 2011-11-20 5:36 AM

I see deals like this all the time:

Buy 1 Schick Quattro, Intuition or Hydro Systems and Cartridges at $8.99, Get $4 Register Rewards
Use $2/1 coupon from the 10/30 SmartSource insert
Or use $3/1 printable
As low as $1.99 after coupon

This deal is at Walgreens this week. There are always razor coupons in the Sunday paper, stack them with a sale and you won't be spending much at all!

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"A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger."