I hate being ripped off with the cost of razor blades. Do you?

[PeteMorris]

Probably because my face looks like I've been attacked by a cat when I used the cheapies. Even aldi let me down on this one.

 

Yes I agree....I 'have' tried the cheap and cheerful ones, and I've had the equivalent of the Texas Chainsaw massacre too. They're awful things. If the 'expensive' ones cost around 10p to manufacture, I wonder what the 'cheapies' cost?

 

Plus the fact, and loath as I am to admit, I inevitably fall for the marketing trap of buying a fancy super duper razor at a 'special' introductory price, and then getting locked into having to buy the replacement blades. Bit like buying an iPhone really.

[dvp82]

I'm sure that you're right about the cost of manufacture, but I bet that the ones that you buy have by far the biggest marketing budget. I'd understand your position if you had little choice of what razors that your purchased, but there are lots of cheaper alternatives right through the price ranges.

 

So maybe the question is, why do you buy the expensive ones?

 

Wont come cheap having Roger Federer and Lionel Messi plug your products.

[JFKvsNixon]

Yes I agree....I 'have' tried the cheap and cheerful ones, and I've had the equivalent of the Texas Chainsaw massacre too. They're awful things. If the 'expensive' ones cost around 10p to manufacture, I wonder what the 'cheapies' cost?

 

Plus the fact, and loath as I am to admit, I inevitably fall for the marketing trap of buying a fancy super duper razor at a 'special' introductory price, and then getting locked into having to buy the replacement blades. Bit like buying an iPhone really.

 

There are other choices than the bottom and the top of the price ranges!

 

As I said a couple of posts earlier I accidentally purchased some of the older mid range Gillette razors instead of the new vibrating top of the range ones, and do you know what? I didn't notice any difference!

[Alcoblog]

The thing that annoys me is that the razor blade manufacturers keep changing the design of how the blade fits on to the razor itself. Therefore, it's quite easy to spend the best part of an entire weekend searching for exactly the right fitting blades ... thus eliminating any chance of (for example) going on a picnic with lovely sandwiches (and G/F!), or (again, purely as an example), scientific things.

 

To combat this waste of time, I keep an eye out for special offers, whereby you buy the blades with a free razor. This works out cheaper than just buying the blades themselves (which basically are doomed not to fit).

From memory (!), I paid around £9.00 for a Gillette fusion Pro-glide razor with five blades at Superdrug a few weeks ago, which now takes pride of place in the 'Area 51 and a half ®' bathroom facility, casting aside the collection of previous Gillette razors with micro-millimetrically different fitting couplings.

 

To be honest, with the actual blades (five in each head) and the precision that goes into their manufacture, I don't really have a problem with the prices ... just that I wish they'd stop changing the fittings!

[PeteMorris]

There are other choices than the bottom and the top of the price ranges!

 

As I said a couple of posts earlier I accidentally purchased some of the older mid range Gillette razors instead of the new vibrating top of the range ones, and do you know what? I didn't notice any difference!

 

Ah but did you still have the older handles to fit the accidentally bought blades?...They seem to change the fitting on a regular basis so they aren't compatible. Personally, I don't tend to hoard old razors (handles...or whatever the term is).

 

I can see your point in that there are mid range priced stuff out there. But even those will cost more than it actually costs to make them.

 

I don't begrudge a profit being made at mine and everyone else's expense. That's the world we live in. But obscene profit annoys me.

 

I 'like' the newer ones (except those with five blades...they're useless)...I don't tend to cut myself with them, and lets face it, there's nothing worse than getting ready to go out somewhere and 'nicking' yourself with a razor and having to have a blob of cotton wool or (poormans version) toilet paper stuck to your face to stem the blood flow.

 

---------- Post added 23-09-2014 at 11:56 ----------

 

The thing that annoys me is that the razor blade manufacturers keep changing the design of how the blade fits on to the razor itself. Therefore, it's quite easy to spend the best part of an entire weekend searching for exactly the right fitting blades ... thus eliminating any chance of (for example) going on a picnic with lovely sandwiches (and G/F!), or (again, purely as an example), scientific things.

 

To combat this waste of time, I keep an eye out for special offers, whereby you buy the blades with a free razor. This works out cheaper than just buying the blades themselves (which basically are doomed not to fit).

From memory (!), I paid around £9.00 for a Gillette fusion Pro-glide razor with five blades at Superdrug a few weeks ago, which now takes pride of place in the 'Area 51 and a half ®' bathroom facility, casting aside the collection of previous Gillette razors with micro-millimetrically different fitting couplings.

 

To be honest, with the actual blades (five in each head) and the precision that goes into their manufacture, I don't really have a problem with the prices ... just that I wish they'd stop changing the fittings!

 

That's half the problem too when I go out to buy replacement blades. I'm pretty sure from memory, I couldn't precisely 'name' the exact make and model of razor I've got. So it's pointless seeing an offer and thinking ooooh, that's cheap(er), and convincing yourself they're going to fit your razor you've got at home, cos chances are, they won't fit.

 

I agree that on occasions it might be better to buy the special introductory offer...as often they can work out cheaper than just buying the blades.

[JFKvsNixon]

Ah but did you still have the older handles to fit the accidentally bought blades?...They seem to change the fitting on a regular basis so they aren't compatible. Personally, I don't tend to hoard old razors (handles...or whatever the term is).

 

They came with the handles.

 

I can see your point in that there are mid range priced stuff out there. But even those will cost more than it actually costs to make them.

 

I don't begrudge a profit being made at mine and everyone else's expense. That's the world we live in. But obscene profit annoys me.

 

You keep forgetting that there are more costs associated with the razors other than manufacture costs. Is it any coincidence that you buy the razors with the highest marketing budgets, as dvp82 said Messi and Federer are probably two of the highest profile sports stars out there.

 

 

I 'like' the newer ones (except those with five blades...they're useless)...I don't tend to cut myself with them, and lets face it, there's nothing worse than getting ready to go out somewhere and 'nicking' yourself with a razor and having to have a blob of cotton wool or (poormans version) toilet paper stuck to your face to stem the blood flow.

 

Before that latest newest new razors came out did you cut yourself when you shaved?

[tinfoilhat]

They came with the handles.

 

 

 

You keep forgetting that there are more costs associated with the razors other than manufacture costs. Is it any coincidence that you buy the razors with the highest marketing budgets, as dvp82 said Messi and Federer are probably two of the highest profile sports stars out there.

 

 

 

 

Before that latest newest new razors came out did you cut yourself when you shaved?

 

No I didn't - the Mach 3s I used for years suddenly became impossible to get from anywhere so I bought, reluctantly, a fusion. No sooner had I bought it complete with blades Gillette suddenly let Mach 3s back on the market.

[milquetoast1]

Apparently when razor blades go blunt, chances are they're not really blunt but just dull from the residues of hair and skin that collect on the blades.

 

Buy yourself a Razorpit sharpener:

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Razorpit-RP-O-B-Razor-Blade-Sharpener/dp/B004W2UMDW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411470062&sr=8-1&keywords=razor+sharpener

 

Those lubricating strips are a marketing gimmick to make you think the blade needs to be binned.

Edited September 23, 2014 by milquetoast1

[JFKvsNixon]

No I didn't - the Mach 3s I used for years suddenly became impossible to get from anywhere so I bought, reluctantly, a fusion. No sooner had I bought it complete with blades Gillette suddenly let Mach 3s back on the market.

 

If you're interested you can get them from Amazon, you can also pick up 13 Mach 3 blades for £20 from the Boots website.

[PeteMorris]

They came with the handles.

 

Well that's very fortuitous. Or canny on your part. Well done!

 

You keep forgetting that there are more costs associated with the razors other than manufacture costs. Is it any coincidence that you buy the razors with the highest marketing budgets, as dvp82 said Messi and Federer are probably two of the highest profile sports stars out there.

 

 

Yes I saw the post, and yes people like that don't come cheap. I realise the manufacturing cost isn't representative of the cost when it's on the shelf in the supermarket or wherever. There's packaging, packaging design advertising transport costs...I could sit all day and list them, it's not like I don't realise, but I'd hazard a guess that even with all that, the cost per blade wouldn't be any more than .... Oh...lets be generous and say 75p to a pound....

 

Before that latest newest new razors came out did you cut yourself when you shaved?

 

Probably yes...as the blades were wearing out