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Monday, March 3, 2014

Dollar Shave Club

Gillette Fusion razors have been by far my favorite and most comfortable shave.  No other razor I've tried has ever been able to compete.  But, I always hated when I had to buy more cartridges because they cost so much more then other razors.  So I usually end up using the razor blades a long time past dull to save money.
Not anymore I saw a post by a friend on Facebook about Dollar Shave Club.  They advertise you can buy razors as little as $1 a month.  Not just one razor, but 5 cartridges!  So what's the catch?  How can it only be $1/mo?  Well there are different blades you can choose from.  For simplicity sake and to save me some typing I've posted a screenshot from the website below:
 
 
As you can see the cheapest one is $1, but you also have to pay shipping and handling.  Where as the "higher end" razors have S&H included.  So, being used to the 5 blades and the trimmer blade with Gillette Fusion, and from past experience with razors that have 3 blades or less I wasn't about to try the "The Humble Twin".  I really wanted more blades and a trimmer blade, but not wanting to spend $9 (I know I'm cheap) just to try it out, I opted for "The 4X aka The Lover's Blade" for $6 even.  This will be the only blade I will be talking about since I have not tried the others.
 
A few days after ordering, my razor handle and first shipment of blades arrive in the mail.

 
At first, as with changing to a different brand or type of razor, getting used to the handle was different.  At first I didn't like it, but by the third day I started liking the design and found it fit the way I shave better than the small skinny Gillette Fusion handle.
The 4 blades actually work really well.  Because there are fewer blades they are spaced further apart than one with 5 blades, which makes the 4X razor easier to rinse/clean than the Gillette Fusion.  The shave, for me, is not quite as close to the skin as the Gillette Fusion but it is very close.
Having a goatee one thing I had to get used to is the blade doesn't go as far to the edge of the head as the Gillette Fusion so it makes it a little more difficult shaping and trimming my beard.
Also the head swivels and moves a lot easier which was another thing I had to get used to.
I waited over week before posting because I wanted to see how well the blades did after using for a while and I'm actually surprised.  It's been over a week and I'm still on my first blade cartridge.  It has not begun to feel uncomfortable yet.  Dollar Shave Club recommends change the cartridge each week but if you're like me you use things until they just can't be used anymore so you get your money's worth out of it.  I may see how long I can go before changing the cartridge.
 
With Dollar Shave Club you choose your blade and checkout just as you would when purchasing anything else online.  DSC, to make it easy and convenient they automatically ship you new blades every month.  The date you purchase your first set will become the date every month that they ship your next set of blades for the razor you chose and charge your card, so make sure you purchase on a date that will work best for you.  One nice thing is you can cancel or upgrade/downgrade to a different razor anytime.  If you decide to use your blades longer than a week you can also change it so that they auto-ship every 2 months.
 
Overall I am happy with Dollar Shave Club and plan to continue using them.  Although I will most likely switch to "The Executive" blade so I have the trimmer blade for my beard.  And because they stay sharp well enough I will probably change to getting new blades every 2 months which will mean I'm only paying $4.50 per month for razors!
 
I definitely recommend Dollar Shave Club to others.  They are good quality and you get to save money on shaving!  For $1 + S&H, $6, or $9 it's definitely worth a try.  If you don't like them, you can cancel.  If you decide to give 'em a try, please click one of the links in this post and click the banner at the top to start your purchase.  This will give me a $5 credit towards my next shipment of blades.