Hello all.
Been using a Merkur 34c for over 2yrs now. Was considering getting the 39c because I miss the longer handle feeling the disposable razor of my past provided. That got me thinking. What might be a good upgrade for my next razor that might be considered more "heirloom" quality? Not saying the 34c is not that quality. It is well built and with proper care, will last a long time. I think being able to pass a good quality razor down to my boys in the far future would be pretty cool.
Doing some searching online, and things get pretty expensive and fast. I don't necessarily need cutting edge/futurist razor design. I prefer the more "antique" styling that has continued to show through from the years past. Hope this makes sense and look forward to the responses.
Hey Cardinal. Welcome to SU.
I thought maybe I'd provide a bit more information, from the perspective of a zealous vintage razor collector of 14 years or so.
Firstly, I found it useful to get to know what other razors "actually look like", particularly the non-Gillettes. Many razors are either misidentified in ads, or not identified at all.
I found that there's lots of interesting razors that are made in England, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Sweden for instance. Often these nice razors "go for a song" on these "non-main" Ebay, and other, sites. I started perusing the Ebay sites that were located within each of those countries rather than Ebay.com (for Spain "todocoleccion" is better than Ebay, in Sweden "tradera" is the place to go, and in Switzerland it's "Ricardo.ch") I got a fairly "automatic" search method going for each of these websites that I completed daily, and that only took a half hour to do. It wasn't a chore though, I thoroughly enjoyed the "treasure hunt" each day!
I often got sidetracked by a razor I didn't know. I would end up doing some research on it, looking at the other shaving websites, particularly Badger & Blade, for more information. There's also other shaving sites in Europe that can be helpful.
Google translate allows you to communicate in any other language (particularly if you avoid using idioms). This allows you to communicate with sellers, as well as understand the information on foreign razor sites. I've had many sellers comment on how good my command of their language is!
Some websites don't accept Paypal which can make things more difficult, involving bank transfers. But there's lots of selection just sticking with the various Ebay sites and Paypal, so there's no need to take it further unless you're really interested.
Some vendors will only sell within their country. If you really want that "Petard rasoir", for instance, and the vendor only sells within France, that means you need to have a "forwarding agent" there. There's lots of them. I've mentioned a few forwarding agents that I like on another post. There's obviously no need to take things this far, if you're just looking for a nice vintage razor.
Some people think that the supply of razors, given the often vast numbers made, will continue on, forever. Maybe with Gillette's that might be true. I believe that the supply of more obscure razors is limited, and will "run out". After all, they're not making any more of them. Does that make them valuable? Not necessarily, except maybe to you. And at this point, that needs to be enough. So I've been busy collecting what I wanted, while they're "still there". Have I spent more than I needed to? You bet! Have I wished I could buy another razor, with better looks than the same one I already bought? And that is now being sold at a cheaper price? Yep. And yep. A more patient approach to razor acquisition will pay off financially. But again, life's short, I do enjoy my collection, it's not like I'm buying Ferrari's, and I've never spent money I didn't have.
This might be "too much information". Hopefully you, or others, find it interesting or helpful.
Good luck with your next acquisition(s), Cardinalcin.
P.S. Two more tips. Snipe. Always snipe. Set your maximum limit and then only bid once, 4 seconds before it ends. Also, use a sniping service since some of the auctions in Europe and Australia will be ending while you're at work or sleeping.
