Poll: Shaver, Collector or Both?

Chris L · 08-03-2008, 06:37 PM

Given our sizable membership, I'm very interested in seeing statistically what categories we all into.

Straight Shaver first, collector second?

Collector first, shaver second?

Shaver non-collector (my definition would be someone who owns enough razors to shave with and that's it).

Collector (one who does not shave with straight razors). I know we have at least one collector only who does not shave with straight razors.

I would consider myself a shaver first and collector second. I have a fair amount of straights in need of restoration and only a few excellent condition razors. Because of the resto razors in storage, I say that does put me in the realm of collecting. I actually could see myself getting to the point at some time where I have only a small number of razors in rotation and none really in collection.

Chris L

xChris · 08-03-2008, 07:14 PM

I follow your sentiments pretty much. I think I will always have more razors in my collection than I truely need to shave with though.

ByronTodd · 08-03-2008, 07:34 PM

Where's the poll option of "Shaver first, collector only because of RAD?"

I'm pretty sure I didn't start out wanting 50+ razors, I think I only wanted a nice shave. But then I saw a nice looking razor in BST, and a restorable one on eBay, and then another....

English · 08-03-2008, 08:13 PM

Similar to all the above sentiments.

I only need one razor and it's nice to have a back up in case of emergency.
But I see one here or there and get tempted. Either to restore or because I've always wondered what do they shave like.

At present I have eight razors to move along and six keepers. Of the six keepers, I really should sell four but which ones and in my mind there is always a little niggle about you may not find the same quality again. The really good ones are getting harder and harder to find. I don't think of myself as a collector, but I suppose I must be.

Ockham · 08-03-2008, 08:17 PM

I choose shaver first and collector second... but not in the sense that I collect straight razors only for the sake of collecting... no... I shave with every razors I have, but I like to have many of them (RAD is difficult to overcome). As I also have been contaminated by RRD (razor restoration disorder), this is not going to be easy to handle...

freebird · 08-03-2008, 08:25 PM

I shave therefore I collect.

wopmanfixit · 08-04-2008, 02:37 AM

It wasn't until after I'd shaved with a straight for a few months that the collecting bug bit me, and bit me hard.

JimmyHAD · 08-04-2008, 01:47 PM

Well I have to shave and have been doing so exclusively with a straight for the last four months but I am definitely a collector. The darn things are like potato chips, can't have just one.

cudahogs · 08-04-2008, 03:03 PM

I only have one razor that I would never shave with-a mint celluloid nude. Everything else is open game including 19th century WB's (some of my favorites)!
-Fred

Seraphim · 08-04-2008, 03:35 PM

Quote:

I have enough razors to shave with and that's it.

This is pretty open-ended isn't it?

One razor is all one needs to shave with, yet most seem to need 5-6.

Maybe 7....

OK 8....

One more couldn't hurt.....

10, but that's it! 10...

I'm serious now- I don't need any more than 12.....really.

gssixgun · 08-04-2008, 07:11 PM

Shaver first, but the collections are getting out of hand, I actually have 20 shave ready DD's and Shumate's that I rarely pull out of the display cabinet......
Then you gotta have the actual shaving rotation, which I told myself would be a nice 14 razors (yeah it's at 20 already)
Now we don't talk about the second drawer of shave ready razors that have been bumped out of the top drawer ( I think 14 or so) and of course the restore drawer, that hey I am actually getting down to almost nothing....
Yeah I am definitely a shaver not a collector............. HA!!!!!

c_kyle · 08-04-2008, 08:16 PM

I'm the single vote for collector only, with the caveat of 'yet'. I do plan to shave with straights; but, for now, I'm focusing on collecting and restoring/refurbing.

holli4pirating · 08-04-2008, 09:42 PM

I love razors, I love hardware in general. But I can't afford to have too many around. I limit myself to seven; that is the most I feel I can justify since seven day sets seem relatively common. Granted, I do have more than that, but they are either not shave ready or being compared (with the possibility) of replacing razors that are in the lineup. And when I have a slot to fill, like right now, I tend to have more in the to be honed and to be compared piles.

Seraphim · 08-04-2008, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

I love razors, I love hardware in general. But I can't afford to have too many around. I limit myself to seven; that is the most I feel I can justify since seven day sets seem relatively common. Granted, I do have more than that, but they are either not shave ready or being compared (with the possibility) of replacing razors that are in the lineup. And when I have a slot to fill, like right now, I tend to have more in the to be honed and to be compared piles.

"I limit myself to seven".....and then goes on to say he surpasses that limit.

Dude, you've got it just as bad as the rest of us!

Presently42 · 08-04-2008, 11:27 PM

I could certainly see owning seven razors (I own one), and indeed do plan to do so at some point. Or ten, if one follows the French Revolutionary Calendar.

For the moment, though, I'm penniless! Cursed SCAD / SSAD!

Whiskers · 08-04-2008, 11:48 PM

Yeah, see ..

I have this bad habit that started out with wanting to buy one ...maybe two razors ...

they turned into four ...

then I picked up another two ..

then another four...

Honestly, I just couldnt walk away from a deal like that, ya know ?

Then I found Ebay.

But I do shave with a straight razor, sure ... It still takes me a while (~45 min) to shave up. Still building my confidence with it, to be honest. Every time I shave, it gets a little easier ( and less nicks

) so my pace will pick up in time. But I am starting to dig it.

Oh, and the hones ... yeah ... I pretend like I dont see them.

sebell · 08-05-2008, 12:19 AM

I'm a shaver. Although I enjoy acquiring razors, my collection has never grown larger
than 7, and is often less than 4.

- Scott

Bruno · 08-05-2008, 06:37 AM

I have a couple of razors that I use to shave with.
Atm I don't have a custom -yet- but when I do, I will use it as a shaver like the others.
I am in this for the restoration, which I like the most.
I take razors with a lot of real damage, painstakingly restore them, and then either sell them at a reasonable price or send them back to their owner.

There are a couple of interesting razors in my to-do pile, and I am working on a couple of projects which I might end up keeping.

But I don't just buy razors for the purpose of owning them. I don't feel like I've earned them in that case, and I don't have the money for it. Restoration is both my hobby, and a way to pay for the tools.

JimmyHAD · 08-05-2008, 02:54 PM

In the early 1980s I collected straight razors. They were cheap in second hand and antique stores. I ended up with a couple of hundred. I tried shaving with some of the better ones but couldn't hone them correctly and lost interest. I found a couple of like minded enthusiasts and keeping a few of the really old ones I sold or traded the rest.

For the last half a year I am back at it and this time I can hone them and I am shaving with them. A totally different experience. Being able to interact with what you collect is much more fulfilling. I love to get an ebay special with an edge that looks like a hacksaw blade under magnification and hone it back to life and shave with it.

Eventually I may just keep favorites and sell the superfluous stuff after it is shave ready. Right now I am doing what Lynn always suggests, having fun.

jockeys · 08-05-2008, 03:27 PM

i have about half a dozen razors at any given time, and a couple of them are usually in the process of being worked on. i shave with all of them, and when i get more, i usually give them away as a form of razor evangelism, haha. same with soaps and brushes, when i get more than i can realistically use, i give 'em away to cut clutter in my bathroom.