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Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

johnwhiles.com

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Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#161

Post by raffraffraff »

dghughes wrote: post #132
motohagiography wrote: post #11

I've used a straight razor for almost 20 years. Vindicating to read that the price of a Dovo pays for itself. I think my bar of shaving soap is probably the better part of decade old as well. In the interim, a whole peculiar subculture around shaving has developed, but you don't have to be a part of it to just use a razor. Makes you unreachable by corporate marketing as well, which is itself its own reward.

I have a straight razor it's almost a lost art using one. I tried one but I figured I'd end up killing myself by accident. Plus I don't have to patience to sharpen and strop the blade. A safety razor is also a great investment and cheap. I bought a Wilkinson Sword handle $20 and a pack of five blades $5. It's an old name-brand sold practically everywhere. I can get more than a month out of one double-sided blade. Plu…

+1 on the safety razor. I bought an Edwin Jagger model, a box of 100 Astra superior platinum blades, a nice brush and a tub of Arko soap. That was honestly over 5 years ago and I haven't spent a cent of shaving since then. I think I have 35 blades left. It's amazing how long they last. I'm really close to the end of the soap.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#162

Post by yojo »

ascar wrote: post #74
CoastalCoder wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aside from differences in cost, do you find anything about a straight razor compellingly better than e.g. a Gillette Mach 3? I go through Mach 3 cartridges pretty slowly, so price isn't a big concern. And I don't notice anything deficient about the quality of my shaves. But one thing I really like about safety razors is that there's zero risk of serious injury.

Safety razors are much better at making a neckline, if you only shave clean partially and trim the remaining beard. Personally I also get less skin irritation from the safety razor compared to the Mach3 I used before. Given I use it correctly. If you move "against" the hair instead of "with" the hair it caused a lot of irritation for me. But that was essentially user error. In total I would never go back to a Mach3.…

The “once you use it correctly” is worth highlighting though.

I tried the double edge safety razor. Got the brush, shaving cream, big pack of Astra blades. Watched a bunch of YouTube videos on technique.

Spent way more time shaving. Nicked myself an ungodly number of times. Somehow got a worse shave out of it. Ended up going back to the cartridge razor.

I really want to be a double edge razor guy, but I was not able to make it up the learning curve.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#163

Post by jchw »

ginko wrote: post #151
jchw wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except that it’s also way more expensive and wasteful (edit: both because you have to buy them more often and because each pod is more packaging and the packaging for all of the pods has to be sealed, unlike powder in cardboard…) than just grabbing the powder. If the discomfort from using powder over plastic pods is anything more than completely trivial to you, I’m not sure we can communicate meaningfully on this sub…

The tablets I use are wrapped into some kind of wrapper that dissolves in the dishwasher (I think it's some sort of gelatin) so there's no real waste other than the bag they came in. A big bag of tablets lasts me over a year so I really see few downsides here.

To me that sounds like you don’t use your dishwasher that often. Which is fine, good even. But the thing is, for me, the box of powder lasts like, multiple times longer. If a huge bag of pods lasted me a year, I can only imagine the powder would last three. Across the whole industry, the trivial increase in plastic waste instead of less cardboard waste is probably quite colossal, and all for basically nothing.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#164

Post by sgt »

I use an electric razor made by Philips and I shave dry once a day, although occasionally I skip a day. I am not a "werewolf" person, so I think I get away with this. If I had more aggressive beard growth, I'd probably want to do a wet shave and also maybe use a proper razor.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#165

Post by maxerickson »

stevesimmons wrote: post #153
maxerickson wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The razor blade doesn't really dull, it gets mineral deposits that make it rough. So water hardness can make a big difference in how long they last.

Does that mean soaking in say vinegar would revive them?

I dunno, it's not something I would bother with.

I expect it would be difficult to consistently replicate the factory edge.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#166

Post by nrclark »

gruez wrote: post #158

>Other examples of products that seem to exhibit a similar trend, where purported convenience leads to higher prices >Cooking equipment: essentially indestructible Cast Iron skillets transition into teflon pans. The newer pans perform worse, and must be replaced on a shockingly regular basis. They also seem to be poisonous. They have their uses. I wouldn't try frying eggs in a cast iron, for instance (technically you…

> I wouldn't try frying eggs in a cast iron, for instance (technically you can, but it requires an absurd amount of oil).

FWIW it's pretty easy to fry eggs in a cast iron. You do have to oil the pan, but I wouldn't call it absurd. Just a dollop of oil in the pan. And the end result has a crispy, yummy texture that's hard to achieve with Teflon. It just takes a little practice and an open mind.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#167

Post by subhro »

gruez wrote: post #158

>Other examples of products that seem to exhibit a similar trend, where purported convenience leads to higher prices >Cooking equipment: essentially indestructible Cast Iron skillets transition into teflon pans. The newer pans perform worse, and must be replaced on a shockingly regular basis. They also seem to be poisonous. They have their uses. I wouldn't try frying eggs in a cast iron, for instance (technically you…

> I wouldn't try frying eggs in a cast iron, for instance (technically you can, but it requires an absurd amount of oil)

Which means you need to do a better job at seasoning. Cast iron is used almost exclusively at my place and I use less than 1/2 TSp oil for eggs. Granted my newest skillets are made is 1930s.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#168

Post by mr_mitm »

yojo wrote: post #162
ascar wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Safety razors are much better at making a neckline, if you only shave clean partially and trim the remaining beard. Personally I also get less skin irritation from the safety razor compared to the Mach3 I used before. Given I use it correctly. If you move "against" the hair instead of "with" the hair it caused a lot of irritation for me. But that was essentially user error. In total I would never go back to a Mach3.…

The “once you use it correctly” is worth highlighting though. I tried the double edge safety razor. Got the brush, shaving cream, big pack of Astra blades. Watched a bunch of YouTube videos on technique. Spent way more time shaving. Nicked myself an ungodly number of times. Somehow got a worse shave out of it. Ended up going back to the cartridge razor. I really want to be a double edge razor guy, but I was not able…

That's my experience as well. And if I don't go against the grain, I may not nick myself, but it doesn't result in a close shave at all. It feels like one day after I shave with a Mach3 which I can use against the grain.

I really want it to work, but it's literally a blood bath.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#169

Post by yvdriess »

subhro wrote: post #133
methodin wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a ritual to straight razor and traditional single-blade safety razor (what I use now) that is compelling in modern times when everything tells you to shave off minutes from every single thing in your life so you can free up your time. Seemingly this means just more time for internet browsing and things that have no impact on your life but I digress. The daily or semi-weekly ritual that takes time, attention a…

> I stopped using a straight razor since I couldn't get the edge as sharp as I'd like to Don’t get mad at me, but what you need is a 5000, 8000 and maybe 12000 grit Naniwa (or comparable) superstone. Also, a good strop. Leather would be sufficient. Send your razor off for establishing a good edge to Portland Razor Co. Once you get it back, you should be able to maintain that edge with minimal fuss. Carbon steels can…

For honing I swear by the Coticule stone[1], you only need the one stone as you can vary the grit. Tip: the non-rectangular stones are just as good and a fraction of the price.

Also guilty: I did start growing a beard after dropping my favorite razor :/

[1] https://www.ardennes-coticule.be

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#170

Post by hatware »

krallja wrote: post #148
jchw wrote: post #61

Add dishwasher pods to the list. It’s literally just smoke and mirrors for nearly the same formula as powder, only less of it per package. All those fancy colors? It’s die. It’s the same formula across the entire pod. So… Yep: more cost, more waste, and it has some reasonable downsides. For “convenience,” since I guess deciding how much to put into the tray is just too much work. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGD…

I watched this video and was very excited to try out the powder, since I’ve just been using the pods they sell at Costco for my entire adult life. But there are Problems. 1. You can’t find powder anywhere. Not a single grocery store near me sells it. Gel, sure. Pods, sure. Powder, not even Wal-mart had it, and they have everything. I finally found a faded and dented box at an Ace Hardware, where I wasn’t even looking…

>You can’t find powder anywhere.

Some dishwashers don't even work well with non-powders.

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