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If y'all still out there shaving with cartridge razors you're wasting so much money on getting a shittier shave.
But, yeah, "Art of Manliness" and their ilk do try to capitalize on a call to return to old fashion things by selling jazzed up overpriced safety razors and brushes.
You don't need fancy shit to get a better cheaper shave.
i still use the same no frills safety razor handle i got from target ~2015. and the 100 pack of astra blades i got for $10 lasted until just recently
can't believe how much money i blew on bullshit gillette crap for so long
Yup! Astra blades are less than 10¢ each if you buy a 100 pack
You can get really good vintage razors off eBay for next to nothing. If you don't wanna gamble on that, you can get a stainless steal 3 piece razor for a little over $15. Even the Wilkinson sword will save you money vs a cartridge razor while also being a shitty, not very durable, de razor
Until the TSA lifts restrictions on blades, cartridge razors will continue to be a necessary evil in my kit. However, there are so many better options for your home, as you say. The shown safety razor style is perfectly fine, and so much less expensive, even if you don't go all in with a solid soap and brush, and just use a normal shave cream like Creamo.
Its inclusion here is absurd. Cartridge shavers are shitty for the environment, and shitty for your wallet; they're not less manly, they're just a less smart choice.
Wait, TSA throws a fit over razor blades in checked baggage? I can understand they deny it in carry-on but down in the hold?
No. Checked is OK, but most of my trips are entirely carry-on. I almost never check bags, unless I'm going on vacation. I did, however, once lose a nice pocket knife because I forgot to put it in my checked bag before getting on an early AM return flight, and had to give it to the bin, so I still avoid taking things that could get confiscated if I mispack them during the trip.
I don't know about you, but my outbound packing is pristine; by the time I'm coming home after a couple of weeks, it's a toss-up where anything is.
I'm only flying in Europe but have heard stories about the TSA being quite random with it's rules, so I wouldn't be too surprised to learn they do not allow them in checked baggage.
And loosing stuff at the security check really sucks.
Lately, my wife's been doing now international travel than I have, and she reports that foreign airport security for flights to the US are far more strict than domestic flights. For example, TSA in the US is pretty loosey-goosey about the liquids rules - not the amounts, but having everything in ziplock bags that can be closed. I haven't put my liquids in ziplocks for a domestic flight in years, but foreign security enforcing the TSA checks are anal-retentive about stuff like that.
Part may be because we've had pre-check since it first came out, so I may just be seeing only the less strict rules of pre-check, but I suspect the US is just more strict with airport security for incoming, non-domestic flights, and foreign airports are just doing what TSA is demanding, to the letter.
Heathrow, Charles de Gaulle, and MUC's security are way more lax than any US airport. Where they get strict is when you get to the gates for the US flights and have to go through security - TSA, this time - a second time. The only airport I thought had general security as strict as a US airport was Singapore, and their TSA at-gate security is insane. Dubai, too. Only airport I've been in where the entire gate for a flight was enclosed in glass, like a snake terrarium. And god forbid you wanted to go back out for food or something, because you had to go through that TSA checkpoint again. I hate flying through Dubai to get home.
What about electric?
If they work for you, great! I've never owned one that shaved anywhere nearly as close as a blade, or that I didn't have to use twice a day if I wanted to be clean-shaven in the evening. Plus, I don't particularly find them comfortable, or precise; they're all a little bit like using fine-grain sandpaper.
But everyone is different, and if you like the shave, you're fortunate.
For years I carried a AA battery powered one in my glove compartment for emergencies, like when I was in a rush and had to shave on the road. It was an absolutely horrible shaver, but better than the alternative. I only used it a couple of times within ten years, so I stopped doing that.
Now that's interesting, I've gotten guff for flying with a safety razor but I've never had it confiscated or been denied entry to the flight.
They're not allowed in carry-on. I've gotten through a check point with a blade on once, but I've also been pulled out and asked to verify there's no blade. It's low risk because all you lose is some time and you might have to toss a blade. But then I'm left with a useless razor until I can find a pharmacy to buy whatever crappy generic blades they have, which I then have to dial in for aggressiveness, and it's just way more trouble than it's worth.
When I was heavy business traveling, it was absolutely not worth it, because I didn't pad my airport arrival and boarding time by many minutes, and getting pulled out for a check meant I'd have to run for the gate. Plus, I'd have to make time during the trip to find a pharmacy, pay for an Uber to go get blades. Not worth it.
On the much more rare occasion that I an checking a bag, like for a longer trip, sure; I'll pack a safety razor or shavette, but then I worry about light-fingered TSA inspectors. Anything stolen from your luggage, you're never getting back. I have a couple of cheap-o safety's I wouldn't mind losing, but they're not my favorite shaves either.
All in all, for traveling, I just take cartridge razors. It's easier.
I've flown with a safety razor many times with a blade installed in it and nobody's ever seemed to notice or care. I don't tend to travel with extra blades, though -- one will do me for a week or whatever, no problem.
Largely same. Though once flying from Houston International to JFK a TSA agent started saying I couldn't bring a blade onto an aircraft and she wanted to take the handle itself. I started to protest trying to negotiate her only confiscating the blade when a massive man wearing a 10 gal hat, a mustache that connected to his mutton chops and, most importantly, a big shiny badge said in a broad Texan accent "Now, Missy, how you gonna take a man's razor? You want him to grow whiskers and folks call him kitty? Go on now, get on your flight!"
The TSA is bizarre.
I have a cheap safety razor I bought maybe 8 years ago. At the same time I spent $15 for a bunch of blades for it that I still haven't used up yet!
Wicked edge if youre in the us
Hi! I’m wondering what’s wrong with AoM? I always liked that they had really nice vintage (fucking love vintage stuff lol) looking skill booklets that I could use or learn from. I haven’t been there in a loooonnnng time though, so I’m curious if I’ve missed something?
A lot of the shaving gear has a HUUUUGE markup for that vintage look. You can get it way cheaper direct from the manufacturer.
Ah! I understand now. I never bought anything from them. I was just happy to see a “healthy” manly community. Are they still that way at least? It’s unfortunate they markup simple tools though. :/