Poor Man's Luxury

Baili BD176 and Lord L6 can’t be beat for the price. Lots of great blades for $10/100. Yaqi defect brushes are less than $7.
Stirling Boat Drinks is $10.

RayClem blade evaluations can help you find good blades.

I am also interested to hear from those of you across the pond using your own products at your local prices.

If I get it right Ted, you're inquiring about that step just above the bare minimum starter set (which here in Italy is probably Wilkinson Classic DE with its blades + Omega 77, 81 or 48 + Proraso soap and AS for the most).
Well, in that case I’m on Stirling kit team too, absolute bang\buck benchmark!

I agree with the Stirling camp group. Excellent value for the $$$. But, I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Pinaud shave soap & after shave splashes. The shave soap is easily attained for under $4 for 2.5oz and produces a very nice lather that gives what a shaver would need, glide & protection. The aftershaves are like $5 to $9 and are practically found anywhere that gives excellent basic skin conditioning and toning with their classic Clubman scents.

Another mention that I'd throw in as I use them in my rotation quite frequently, is Italian Barber/Razorock. When they have their sales, you can pick up some really good soaps and after shaves for well under $10 and again, cover the basic needs for any shaver, noob to seasoned Vetiver. Their brushes are economical and offer excellent value. You can literally pick up a whole shave kit custom picked (soap, splash, brush & razor RR brand, Fatip, etc.) on their site for under $50 with 100 blades and be good to go.

There's plenty of budget priced items in the wet shave arena that will fit the bill for anyone that just wants affordable products that deliver great shaves. I do hover mostly in the higher end realm of shave hardware & software but, I do enjoy taking a dive into the budget friendly area at times as one can really find some true gems in there as well. Hell, I've shaved with a Dollar Tree razor and it has proven to be a razor that in a pinch or one just wants to be frugal, will give satisfactory results without drawing any sangre.

Plenty of low priced products to enjoy out there....

One thing that I’ve always thought it helpful to newer shavers, especially taking budget into consideration, is being able to buy smaller pucks/tubs of soap. 4-6 ounces is just a lot to get through, and if someone new gets a big tub like that and doesn’t like it it can make them hesitant to buy another big one…
With that said, smaller tubs like the 2oz offerings from Catie’s Bubbles and the 3oz seasonal from Stirling and 345 are great. Maybe a little bit more per ounce compared to the full size, but still a great value and plenty of soap.
There are also some good small producers that aren’t as well known like Daveli Farms, Red House Farm, Adagio Road.
And shave sticks are still a great option; again less volume than most full-sized tubs but plenty of soap and great performance from brands like Speick, La Toja, Lea.

The suggestion for shave sticks is a really good point that I had not thought of.

I gotta agree with the guys on Stirling, especially if you’re looking for low cost and great performance. They’re the tops when it comes to value. Their starter kits range from $35-$80 and include everything to get someone started - razor, brush, soaps, etc. You can certainly piecemeal things on your own, but they make it so easy with one stop shopping.

Thanks, this was really helpful as I have never used Stirling products and didn't know that they sold complete sets.

Yeah Stirling soap baby. Great performance value and scents. AFS and post balms are a staple for me as well.

I will add to the Goulash for the helluva it though


Razor: Razorock GC 68. $ 55.00
RazoRock BC Silvertip Plissoft Synthetic Shaving Brush
Regular price $18.99

Soap: Sir Henry AOS dupe, Sandalwood, $15.00
AFS: Sir Henry Sandalwood, $13.00

Sir Henry, like Stirling is easy to lather and is a great base. Plus, if you arenot happy with it, you can return it no charge.

Astra Superior Platinum, Greens 100 blades, $9.00

Just over a 100 bux, but I would love these shaves. Software would last for 6 months, hardware forever, and blades about 1 year. Waaaay better that the goo and carts.... Cost and performance.

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Thanks for the specific comments on Astra Green blades. I had no idea.

It is hard to build a luxury set for $100; you mostly can get vintage razor, zamac razor, or one CNC 316L option from China. Then, a boar or synthetic brush and a few good options for soap and aftershave.

For $200 sets, you can get a titanium or adjustable stainless steel razor, and a good badger brush from China, or some premium boar or synthetic brushes from USA or EU. Additionally, there are more options for soaps and aftershave.

For $600 sets, you can get a popular high-quality razor like Lambda, Rocnel Sailor, or Paradigm Ti etc., and a custom-built shave brush handle from US with a high-quality badger knot from China. There would be also many options for software.

For sets over $1000, you cannot get better quality or performance than $600 sets, but you may have more customization options, unique materials, or aesthetics.

For someone just starting out I would recommend a puck of Mike's Natural Soap. I'm talking about the bare puck, wrapped in plastic, no jar. Most flavors sell for between $12 and $15. They smell good and they work great. But they aren't mass-market products. In fact, Mike is the epitome of the artisan soap cooker. He makes his soap when he feels like it. You can buy bare pucks on his web site.

A vintage Gillette Tech can be bought on ebay from $15 to $20. For smooth, mindless shaving, it's hard to beat an old Tech. 

A hundred Astra Superior Platinum blades will set you back $8.38. For most of us, that's easily a year's worth of shaves.

Phoenix Shavings (PAA) Peregrino synthetic brush sells for $19.95. I've put nearly 700 shaves on mine. It still looks brand new. Perfect lather every time. 

Aftershaves don't agree with my skin, but I keep a bottle of Brut After Shave ($8.59) in the medicine cabinet for an occasional nostalgic splash. I usually wash it off within an hour. 

That brings my total to between $63 and $72 USD. 

Tedolph, I know you asked for recommendations of mass-produced soaps and creams, but I haven't used them for over a decade. I did try a tube of Proraso green cream a few summers ago. It was alright. It was certainly cheap. But it smelled too strong and artificial. Maybe I should try it again.

For someone just starting out I would recommend a puck of Mike's Natural Soap. I'm talking about the bare puck, wrapped in plastic, no jar. Most flavors sell for between $12 and $15. They smell good and they work great. But they aren't mass-market products. In fact, Mike is the epitome of the artisan soap cooker. He makes his soap when he feels like it. You can buy bare pucks on his web site.

A vintage Gillette ball end Tech can be bought on ebay from $15 to $20. For smooth, mindless shaving, it's hard to beat an old Tech. 

Phoenix Shavings (PAA) Peregrino synthetic brush sells for $19.95. I've put nearly 700 shaves on mine. It still looks brand new. Perfect lather every time. 

That brings my total to between $37 and $55 USD. 

Tedolph, I know you asked for recommendations of mass-produced soaps and creams, but I haven't used them for over a decade. I did try a tube of Proraso green cream a few summers ago. It was alright. It was certainly cheap. But it smelled too strong and artificial. Maybe I should try it again.

Ok, i liked my suggestion, but I like Boukis better in all aspects less one.

The razor, brush yep... Great idea on the tech. Mild shaver, can be had much cheaper than my idea. Mike's is great and cheap.

The only thing i would add is that the Stirling samples would allow for an affordable way to try various flavors. Sir Henry and Stirling build easier than Mike's. And Mike's does have that tallow smell to her which may be offputting.

But bouki, great suggestions, esp. the Tech...

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For someone just starting out I would recommend a puck of Mike's Natural Soap. I'm talking about the bare puck, wrapped in plastic, no jar. Most flavors sell for between $12 and $15. They smell good and they work great. But they aren't mass-market products. In fact, Mike is the epitome of the artisan soap cooker. He makes his soap when he feels like it. You can buy bare pucks on his web site.

A vintage Gillette ball end Tech can be bought on ebay from $15 to $20. For smooth, mindless shaving, it's hard to beat an old Tech. 

Phoenix Shavings (PAA) Peregrino synthetic brush sells for $19.95. I've put nearly 700 shaves on mine. It still looks brand new. Perfect lather every time. 

That brings my total to between $37 and $55 USD. 

Tedolph, I know you asked for recommendations of mass-produced soaps and creams, but I haven't used them for over a decade. I did try a tube of Proraso green cream a few summers ago. It was alright. It was certainly cheap. But it smelled too strong and artificial. Maybe I should try it again.

My limitation (suggestion?) for mass market product was grounded in the belief that to keep the kit price below $100, artisan products would be too expensive. You and others have proven me wrong. In my defense I did say that vintage and "on sale" products were fair game so that might include some of what we call "artisan". So far, I have learned an incredible amount about high end "budget" shaving from everybody's suggestions. I am so impressed with the knowledgeable advice given so far that I am thinking of creating some sort of article on the topic.

This thread has succeeded way beyond my expectations. Thank you to everyone who has participated thus far.

I would like to hear some more from our European friends. I am a big fan of some of those products!

Please, keep the posts coming!