Calling road warriors who travel by air (air warriors?): Best carry-on razor?

[GDCarrington]

I simply cannot believe the number of posts in this thread which talk about bypassing the rules of the TSA regarding razor blades.
Breaking the law in and of itself is enough that you wouldn't think our members would be posting about it, let alone recommending ways to do it.
You guys that have been here more than a week know that this is not permitted on B&B.
Read the Wiki on air travel and the TSA and then re-read the Terms of Use about advocating illegal activity.
If that isn't enough, read the thread about the fellow who recently had his Feather DE razor tossed in the trash can by airport security.

Agreed that there is enough hassle with TSA and Foreign agencies. No one needs to add any additional aggravation and potential arrest issues to the matter.

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/Air_Travel

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/Travel_shaving_brush

 

[quartz]

Former road warrior here-- I traveled for two years, nearly every week, by air, for 4-day gigs from 2006-2008. I'm starwood plat, AA exec-plat, Hertz #1 gold, and I think at one point I knew the names of just about every call agent Amex had on staff. I was let down that the move Up In The Air didn't go deeper into the rewards points game. If you're like I was, you have trouble sleeping in a non-hotel bed and you've slowly outfitted your home-base apartment with furniture that resembles the hotel chain you most often stay with.

Anyway...

About half-way through my first year traveling, I started experimenting with wetshaving (I was just out of college and wetshaving in a hotel each week really amplified the 'sexy' image of corporate-sponsored travel). I'm not advocating this, but at the time my interpretation of the TSA travel rules was such that you could carry the blade in the razor without hassle (I realize that the wiki here disputes this, but I didn't know about badgerandblade back then and the TSA employees I knew all saw it as a grey area, not a hard-restriction).

In traveling those two years, I had problems three times, only two of which were during business travel, and only one of those times did I end up actually having to give up the blade to a very apologetic TSA agent as his supervisor towered over him with her hands crossed. Most of them know our lives are in that little bag we put through the metal detector, not just things we want on the beach like the family of 4 in the non-plat security line.

My advice: Don't give up and compromise on lesser forms of shaving. Sure, carry a backup (it sounds like these days, the Schick Hydro is a good choice), but my question to you is: where do you travel to? If you're traveling to big cities, you should be able to pick up some blades at your destination. I've had hotel concierges track down feather blades for me. Cab drivers often know where to get them in big cities. You say you can't mail blades... how late of travel notice are you getting? If you've got 2 days notice and you're going less than half-way across the country, you can get the blades to your hotel before you get there via regular mail. Do you ever return to the same cities? If you use the same hotel over and over, leave some blades with the desk staff. I kept a box of shaving/bath supplies at one of my most common destinations simply because it made it easier to pack those weeks.

Sorry, this post got really long. Best of luck to you on the road as a wetshaver. Believe me, it's worth it. When the travel started to burn me out and I was ready to leave the game at the end of those two years, it was the little things like wetshaving that got me through my last few months.

 

[Uncle Erik]

I take a DE - legally. I either mail blades to the hotel I'm arriving at or buy some when I get there.

The TSA is not going to deprive me of a good shave.

Also, I disassemble the razor (usually the DE89L) in my kit so it's obvious to the screener that there's no blade.

 

[Barbash]

I fly a lot for work and have tried a number of different cartridge razors and for me the Bic Sensitive single blade disposable is by far the best.

 

[luvmysuper]

I travel for work almost constantly, and I always check a bag.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you are on business travel, any fee charged for baggage is reimbursable.
If you check a bag, you can bring whatever your heart desires.

 

[GDCarrington]

I travel for work almost constantly, and I always check a bag.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you are on business travel, any fee charged for baggage is reimbursable.
If you check a bag, you can bring whatever your heart desires.

Generally my heart desires not to have to travel via airline. I minimize as much as possible, but there are times...

 

[RayH]

When I flew to DC last year going to WV, I took a DE razor with me, it and the blades were in checked baggage. No problem. It seems to me that the biggest problem with flying isn't checking your bags, it's your carry on. There's only so much room in the overhead compartments. I've heard a rumor that US AIR might start charging for bags that end up being checked at the gate. Apparently people have been taking bags that are oversized to the gates and checking them in without having to pay for the bag.

 

[luvmysuper]

Personally, I'd rather see a free checked bag and a charge for every carry on.
The oversized carry ons are getting to the point of being ridiculous.

 

[beginish]

I'm traveling with a DE and blades for the first time today (always used a cartridge in the past), and am checking bags just to avoid any/all hassle on the way to the gate.

 

[Slivovitz]

This comes up with great frequency, and the same things are always said, so I'll say the same things I always say.

The only reason people think injectors might be okay is that the TSA people probably won't know what they are and may think they're cartridge razors. Want to bet that you won't get the one TSA guard who does know what they are, and that the blade can be removed? Besides, as others have said, you really should play by the rules.

The last few times this came up for me, I was visiting family and was able to mail DE blades ahead while taking a bladeless DE razor in my carry on, quite legally. I could have paid $50 extra for checked luggage and put the blades in there.

If on some future trip, mailing them ahead isn't practical, I'll take my trusty old Atra, or maybe even a Hydro 3.

 

[DE Shaver]

The oversized carry ons are getting to the point of being ridiculous.

I wholeheartedly agree. I was trying to check-in and an older Italian woman was trying to carry on two enormous bags plus a smaller one, in addition to a checked-in truck. Unfortunately for her, the two larger bags also had to be checked in an it cost her an extra $75 and $125 respectively. She was furious and used a number of expletives, which I understood being Italian of heritage.

 

[ateace]

Whenever I travel, I leave the DE at home and keep my trusty Sensor for quick, easy shaves on the road.

I keep the handle and a magazine of carts in my toiletry bag. They take up minimal room and never cause a raised eyebrow or delay at the airport.

 

[RiverCitySlim]

personally, i'd rather see a free checked bag and a charge for every carry on.
The oversized carry ons are getting to the point of being ridiculous.

+1

 

[Slash McCoy]

There is no reason to go with the goo just because you are going with a cartridge.

Take a puck of VDH and a cheap boar. Ask room service for a coffee mug, and go old school. Or just face lather without a mug or bowl, keeping the VDH in its little clear plastic cup. When you are ready to return home, you can toss the soap, or take it home, whatever blows your skirt up. A good toweling and maybe (if there is one in your room or if you bring your own) a couple minutes under the blow dryer and you can bring the brush home. If it is in a ziplock you can even carry it home wet. It won't hurt it to be kept wet and wrapped in a ziplock for a few hours traveling. I hate goo. I would rather apply bar soap with my bare hands than use goo.

 

[nuclear balm]

i glue 5 Derbys together and say it's a cartridge. I also carry a quarter in my pocket to call my attorney.