Poor Man's Luxury

Fantastic input.  It seems that we are converging on a consensus:  DE razor, maybe in a kit from Maggard's, Sterling or Razorock.    Pick a soap and brush (synthetic or boar) from the kit.  No consensus on aftershave, but alcohol based rather than a balm.  No consensus on blades.  Some surprises for me are no one suggested the Wieshi DE (sold under various house brands).  It is a TTO so easy to load, but is it bad? No SE razors. Also, not too many recommendations for old drug store brand aftershaves, e.g. Pinaud, Aqua Velva, British Sterling, etc.  Also no recommendations for use of a pre-shave.  I approve of that!


Also surprised that many of you not only assembled a kt for less than $100.00, most were closer to $50.00!

There's absolutely nothing wrong with going the SE route either. Vintage Schick and GEM razors can be had for a little bit of nothing. Probably the biggest downside to SE razors is the availability of blades. Sometimes GEM blades can be found at drugstores. Injector blades you're probably going to need to source online. There are also many more brands and "models" of DE blades than SE offerings. As for a consensus on blades...you probably won't find one. Those seem to be solely preference from user to user. Sure there are the popular ones - Astra, Feather, Gillette Silver Blue, Schick Chrome, and so on. Speaking strictly for myself, I find (most of) them all to shave just fine, the biggest difference being longevity. Others will say they prefer "Brand X", and have their reasoning for doing so. 

Most find pre-shaves to be pointless, so long as you can get a decent lather. I think the reason there aren't more recommendations for store brand aftershaves is because this forum is chock full of hobbyists. Most of us have found that the artisans churn out better performing soaps and splashes (and balms, etc.) than the mass produced stuff. In addition, many of us love the scents offered by artisans. As a result, most of us have more software than any sane person should have, and yet, we're always looking for more. 

For what it's worth, none of the guys I've "recruited" have ever turned shaving into a hobby. They tend to stick with one razor, one brush, and maybe - maybe - up to two or three soaps. Yet, every one of them enjoy using a DE razor and don't regret making the switch from disposables or cartridge razors. 

As you've already discovered, there are more options than you can shake a stick at, and zero wrong answers. Honestly, technique is far more important than the gear. Nice software and hardware makes the experience more luxurious.

Fantastic input.  It seems that we are converging on a consensus:  DE razor, maybe in a kit from Maggard's, Sterling or Razorock.    Pick a soap and brush (synthetic or boar) from the kit.  No consensus on aftershave, but alcohol based rather than a balm.  No consensus on blades.  Some surprises for me are no one suggested the Wieshi DE (sold under various house brands).  It is a TTO so easy to load, but is it bad? No SE razors. Also, not too many recommendations for old drug store brand aftershaves, e.g. Pinaud, Aqua Velva, British Sterling, etc.  Also no recommendations for use of a pre-shave.  I approve of that!


Also surprised that many of you not only assembled a kt for less than $100.00, most were closer to $50.00!

There's absolutely nothing wrong with going the SE route either. Vintage Schick and GEM razors can be had for a little bit of nothing. Probably the biggest downside to SE razors is the availability of blades. Sometimes GEM blades can be found at drugstores. Injector blades you're probably going to need to source online. There are also many more brands and "models" of DE blades than SE offerings. As for a consensus on blades...you probably won't find one. Those seem to be solely preference from user to user. Sure there are the popular ones - Astra, Feather, Gillette Silver Blue, Schick Chrome, and so on. Speaking strictly for myself, I find (most of) them all to shave just fine, the biggest difference being longevity. Others will say they prefer "Brand X", and have their reasoning for doing so. 

Most find pre-shaves to be pointless, so long as you can get a decent lather. I think the reason there aren't more recommendations for store brand aftershaves is because this forum is chock full of hobbyists. Most of us have found that the artisans churn out better performing soaps and splashes (and balms, etc.) than the mass produced stuff. In addition, many of us love the scents offered by artisans. As a result, most of us have more software than any sane person should have, and yet, we're always looking for more. 

For what it's worth, none of the guys I've "recruited" have ever turned shaving into a hobby. They tend to stick with one razor, one brush, and maybe - maybe - up to two or three soaps. Yet, every one of them enjoy using a DE razor and don't regret making the switch from disposables or cartridge razors. 

As you've already discovered, there are more options than you can shake a stick at, and zero wrong answers. Honestly, technique is far more important than the gear. Nice software and hardware makes the experience more luxurious.

I completely agree with your analysis. Thanks for the input, although I will disagree with one point: I have not always found "artisan" products (both soaps and splashes) better than some old school mass market higher end products. In fact, I have been bitterly disappointed at some of the artisan products I have blind purchased based on favorable reviews, especially considering the price. I will not name names, but some of them are very highly regarded here.

Nevertheless, my experience with introducing or leading people to wet shaving has also been that they are happy with one razor, one brush, one soap (often Proraso which I hate).

Just to clean up a few loose ends, does anybody have any experience with the Weishi TTO razor? It sure is cheap. Is it junk? Feather also makes a cheapie.

Oh, and your point about technique did not go un-noticed. Just wait 'till you see the next thread

Just to clean up a few loose ends, does anybody have any experience with the Weishi TTO razor? It sure is cheap. Is it junk? Feather also makes a cheapie.

I've never used the Weishi TTO, but one of my friends tried one. He used it for about a year before one of the doors fell off. So, based on that one crumb of anecdotal evidence, it appears to be an inexpensive razor because of its low quality. 

The Feather Popular DE razor is very light and mild. I wasn't terribly impressed. It felt cheap. I used my Popular a few times before moving it to my travel kit. Maybe I'll dig it out again and give you a better report. 

I take it back. I've never used a Feather Popular razor.   I got that razor confused with my modern Gillette Tech, made in China. Sorry.

The Feather Popular is ok, but so mild you need a sharp blade to get a satisfying shave.
Better use Feather blades, but considering their cost, maybe not a great choice with the Feather Popular.

I've been really impressed by REX tallow based shave soaps. Originally got all three in a sample size and was blown away. So when the Father's Day sale came around a few weeks ago, I ordered all three in the four ounce bowls. These tallow based soaps lather up ridiculously. Super slick. Great scent. Possibly the best kept secret in the wet shaving world.

I've been really impressed by REX tallow based shave soaps. Originally got all three in a sample size and was blown away. So when the Father's Day sale came around a few weeks ago, I ordered all three in the four ounce bowls. These tallow based soaps lather up ridiculously. Super slick. Great scent. Possibly the best kept secret in the wet shaving world.

Their soaps and aftershaves are $20.00 and up. Their razors are hundreds of dollars. So, how would you assemble a Poor Man's Luxury Shave Kit using REX products?

Honestly, technique is far more important than the gear. Nice software and hardware makes the experience more luxurious.

Totally agree, no better gift for a newbie!
Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s actually one major difference I’ve always somehow perceived between our two sides of the pond. IE, I read a post a few days ago where someone with 20+ yrs of experience claimed to use AC blades just for a single shave (or even two DE blades!), because of his tough hair... Well, that’s the kind of post which would normally raise some heavy discussion in the average European wetshaving community, but it went completely under silence here.

PS: I would also add some styptic matches in that starter kit. 
Please do not include full alum block, we want new people to embrace this hobby, not traumatize them

Honestly, technique is far more important than the gear. Nice software and hardware makes the experience more luxurious.

Totally agree, no better gift for a newbie!
Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s actually one major difference I’ve always somehow perceived between our two sides of the pond. IE, I read a post a few days ago where someone with 20+ yrs of experience claimed to use AC blades just for a single shave (or even two DE blades!), because of his tough hair... Well, that’s the kind of post which would normally raise some heavy discussion in the average European wetshaving community, but it went completely under silence here.

PS: I would also add some styptic matches in that starter kit. 
Please do not include full alum block, we want new people to embrace this hobby, not traumatize them

I've always said "Technique Trumps Tools" but on the other subject....When I see posts like that, I'm silent and just move on because nearly every time anything you say falls on deaf ears and it's a waste of time and energy. Some just have to learn on their own or continue in their obliviousness. I'll leave it at that, Happy Shaves !

Absolutely Dave in KY : as long as it's not my face and my money, I couldn't care less!
Sometimes I used to answer posting some didactic video (many of yours too), here I can just quote HighSpeed if needed, so people can read his signature 

Honestly, technique is far more important than the gear. Nice software and hardware makes the experience more luxurious.

Totally agree, no better gift for a newbie!
Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s actually one major difference I’ve always somehow perceived between our two sides of the pond. IE, I read a post a few days ago where someone with 20+ yrs of experience claimed to use AC blades just for a single shave (or even two DE blades!), because of his tough hair... Well, that’s the kind of post which would normally raise some heavy discussion in the average European wetshaving community, but it went completely under silence here.

PS: I would also add some styptic matches in that starter kit. 
Please do not include full alum block, we want new people to embrace this hobby, not traumatize them

I think we have to acknowledge that many denizens here are traumatized by being banned from other shave sites where expressing an opinion, particularly a disagreeing opinion results in first being ostracized, and then removed. It is ironic that in the Land of Freedom, people have become afraid of expressing an opinion. You would not believe the effort I put into editing my posts (and self censoring) so that they do not come across as being offensive. I even agonized over whether to start this thread at all.