Money Saving Guide: Shaving and Razors

For men (and women too) shaving can become an expensive task. A pack of 8 Gillette Fusion Proglide Power Refills costs $34 in the store. The razor itself costs about $9 and if you want the electric vibrating version it will be closer to $15. 4 engineered blades, lotions, and a “microcomb” all on a stick to give you the most hi-tech shave the future can offer….

What a joke. For hundred, if not thousands of years men have been shaving the hairs from their face with nothing more than a sharp rock or jagged piece of metal.

After using the more advanced expensive razors for some time, I realized that all of the extra bells and whistles were not necessary. I bought a pack of 4 disposable Bic Comfort 3 Razors for $5 and realized that 3 blades works just as good as 4.

Next I noticed that a good amount of time and energy is spent by men choosing which shaving cream to use. There are several choices of new specially “engineered” gels. One can of Gillette Fusion Ultra Sensitive W/Aloe + Vitamin E Hydra Gel costs about $4.

When I made the switch from hi-tech to disposable razors I also switched from the gels to old fashioned shaving cream. One can of Barbarsol men’s shaving creams costs about $1.

I still I noticed that shaving was just as easy and clean as it was before.

It wasn’t until I spoke with a friend who recommended that I tried shaving in the shower that I realized that shaving cream is not even necessary AT ALL. The water from the shower head acts like a natural lubricant and also washes away cut hairs at the same time. Which means my razors stay cleaner for longer.

Something I noticed while shaving with multi-blade razors is that hairs get clogged up in between the blades and become difficult to remove, and reduce the effectiveness of the razor. This led me to think that maybe even fewer blades would be better.

The next time I went to the store I bought a pack of generic Wilkinson 2 blade disposable razors for about $1.50. I took them home and hopped in the shower for a test run. The first thing I noticed is that it wasn’t much different at all. I did have to use more strokes over the same surface to get the smoothest shave, however even with more strokes I noticed much less skin irritation.

The problem with hairs clogging up the blades was the same as before with the 3 and 4 blade. However the cheap generic razor provided a novel solution to the problem. There was a small button on the top that pushed a small plastic blade out between the two cutting blades that pushed all the hairs out and cleaned the blades. It worked perfectly. Something like this would be nearly impossible to do with all the wires and guides and moving parts in the new engineered razor blades.

I also noticed that I never once cut myself shaving with the double blade razor. The four and three blade razors I usually ended up cutting myself once or twice in the process.

While at the store there was also a pack of 15 single blade razors for $0.97. After my experiments I would recommend sticking with at least 2 blades because one will probably not get through thicker beards without alot of work. Two blades was just enough to get the job done, and my face thanked me for not removing so many extra layers of skin while shaving.

When it comes to shaving its not necessary to spend 30 to 50 dollars every few months just to keep your face looking clean. Remember that John Wayne and Clint Eastwood never needed a fancy 4 blade razor with lotion and vitamin E scented gels, and neither do you.