Which ones would you keep?

[Legion]

For a while now, and usually when I have had a few drinks, my razor collection has given me a funny feeling.

I guess, at the end of the day, I started this "hobby" for very different reasons than the way it turned out. I just wanted a good shave. And I like vintage stuff, and learning new skills, and working with my hands. Cool.

How did that evolve into hoarding thousands of dollars worth of razors, soaps, hones, etc, etc....?

Anyway, I'm not saying I'm going to dump the lot on BST any time soon, but it is kind of one of those things that sits in the corner of my eye... And I ask myself... Should I? Could I??

So I'll put the question to you guys, mainly the ones with big "collections". If you had to, if the gun was to your head, the kids were hungry, whatever, what stuff would you keep? The bare essentials.

I'm not talking your prettiest trophy stuff. I'm talking the best of the best, the stuff that gives you the best shave, regardless of price.


So for me....

I think I would keep my Klaus Tornblom with the ivory scales, and my Tosuke kamisori. My big LPB coticule and the Le Verte. Some Palmolive Euro shave sticks (they do the job, in an unpretentious, reliable way) And the vintage butterscotch Simpson brush handle, given to me by SWMBO, and reknotted with TGN Finest.

With those things I could honestly shave well for the rest of my days. Everything else is just...


So what about you? What basics would you keep, if we all had to come to our senses? And why? Pictures are always nice.

[johnmrson]

I'm no help I'm afraid mate. I struggle to get my straight collection to under triple figures. I couldn't survive with just a bare necessities set up.

[Greybeard]

I would do what I had to do.
However this is just an exercise and as much fun for me as a root canal. I'm just not going to play any more.

[Obiwan]

You only need one coticule. You should sell that la verte (to me of course). I struggle as well with the temptation to sell razors that see little rotation time. If I had to, I guess I'd try to pick out the tough to replace razors, the amazing shavers and sell the rest. I'd keep some different size and grind options to cover the range or taste as well as I mood changes.

For stones, I'd keep my grey dressante which I absolutely love and a few small bout that I'm always fond of using.

The other thing to keep in mind is if you purge your collection you can always start it up again. Second time wisdom is always helpful.

[grump]

I am actually struggling to do something of the sort. I want to get down to about 14 to 21 straights. I pull items out to sell and find myself putting them back. Ha ha, it is difficult.

[maxman]

Good question. I unloaded a number of DE razors last year to cull the collection.
I didn't use them and decided that I wasn't going to collect them.
I'd stick with one of everything to keep the variety.
Rooney Finest 1/3, Boker Red Injun 101, Feather SS non-folding, Toggle, GEM Damaskeen, RazoRock KL, Thayers WH.
The hardest part for me is the brush. The straight is the easiest. The Boker has always given me the best shaves.

[Wid]

I did something like this a while ago. Went from 30 something razors to 4 and one strop. For stones I have a 325/1k/coti and jnat. I could go a bit lower to a couple staights keep the coti and strop. That would really be all I NEED.

[bbarton713]

I did that with razors and brushes a while ago but still have more than I "need". I love my vintage Simpson butterscotch AS2M, Schick Hydromagic, and Mama Bear's rose ice soap. I could shave the rest of my days with that setup. I'm not there yet with straights, check in with me in 6 months or so.

[honed]

A couple of Heljestrands, MK#32 & 1880's frameback perhaps. Palmolive soap & my Simpson Colonel. The Shapton Pro's to keep 'em sharp. I would live happily ever after...

[OkieStubble]

The bare essentials:

Gillette Trac II
Omega #11047
Arko
Aqua Velva

[Snuff-Belgium]

A 7/8 best silversteel, a shavemac D01 2band, a coticule and some cella.

[turtle]

I wrestled with that and had a number of straights already on a BST post. I hovered over the "Post" button, then deleted half of what I listed and still felt like throwing up.

In the end the ones I did sell went to good homes so I don't feel as badly as I thought I would

Now the question is.... Can I do it again.... WILL I do it again....

I have a couple of straights I don't think I COULD sell and might even have put in the cold box with me when the time comes.... Except for the one that a fellow B&B member wants and I should put that one in my will to go to him.... YEA buddy that is the only way you will get that one away from me....

[mycarver]

For me to part with anything.. You're just going to have to pull that trigger. If I start to let things go it would be death by a thousand cuts.

[JZH]

If I were trying to simplify, I'd keep my CJB some Tabac (or MWF) and my brush.

[Mark1966]

[whispers quitely in the ear] PIF the DEs to another Aussie [runs around to the other ear and whispers] PIF the DEs to another Aussie [scurried away]

Not sure what I'd do mate, hard call. Maybe you should give it some thought, any ideas floating around in your head :)

[hokahay]

I could probably get by on my:
Zowada Shooting Star Mammoth
B&b Vey Shavemac
2 TM OldTimers
1953 president
Sara Bonnyman Small scuttle and lather bowl
And maybe my boker
and my 6/8 1/4 hollow Wacker
and maybe my Hart 6/8 polished sq
oh and my Hejestrand
don't forget the Evide Sonnent Extra and the Dovo Bone
the edge care stuff.
and thats all i need.

oh, ya, and
this chair,
and this ashtray,
and the dog
and thats all I need

Ok I don't need the dog, maybe.

[trick420]

I did something like this about a month ago... I had about 25 razors. Now I have 13. IF I had to cut to the basics, I'd keep one of my Gold Dollars (for the shave... it shaves amazing), one of my TI's, my Hillbilly Sofa King, and my FW Engels. I could live with those. I'd keep my semogue 1438 and my plymouth butterscotch, my home made strop, my vintage coticulew. For soap, I'd probably go back to Musgo Real. If not, then MWF. For many years (pre B&B) I had 5 straights and used musgo real.

[Cochese2323]

Right now, I have 6 straights, 3 modern and 3 vintage. I would keep my Hart Steel (favorite razor), my Dovo BQ (first razor) and my W&B I got for $20 (if Paco ever sends it back to me ) . If I really had to, I guess I would dump the W&B cuz I would make a decent buck. Other than that, I only have 2 brushes, one cheapie I started with that I could dump and a custom from BobFarvour with a TGN Finest that matches my Hart, so that stays. Only have one strop. And for honing, I use lapping film which is super cheap. Could probably sell half of it and pay for the whole lot I purchased. Got the granite slab I use for free and have a DMT1200 for bevel setting. Could probably downgrade that to a cheap 1k stone, but would probably break even after shipping costs.

Soft goods would be my weakness, but they are relatively cheap. But even there, I only have about a half dozen soaps and I only use Nivea ASB, so I only have maybe $100 worth of soft goods anyway. Wouldn't really pay to unload that stuff either.

[Jporco]

I tried with my fountain pens quite a few years ago and sold about 50 or 60 of my nearly 500+. Well, i Regretted the decision..and spent more $$ trying to buy some of them back. Since then, I have decided my watch collection will only keep growing, my guitar wall will remain, and my 200+ razor family will only get larger. I'd rather sell my house, dump the 401k, or just get a second job rather than keep searching for an item i thought i owned then realize i sold or traded it. (my wife and daughter can decide what to do with my collections after I am gone)!

But this is just an exercise right???! So, with a gun to my head, I would select my first Hart (a prototype) as the one razor to keep, my Vulfix badger, no preference on soap (cream) and my Captains Choice AS. With these bare bones, I could wake up every morning looking forward to my bathroom ritual.

[professorchaos]

I'll be happy if I can get things down to 55 straights, a synthetic progression and a J-Nat progression (1 Aoto, 2 Awase-to and 3 Nagura). Problem is that I am too lazy to do all the packing and shipping.