Mach 3 Razor Refills... (price, stores, review, coupons)

[MattOTAlex]

I know that there are alternative shavers besides Mach 3. This inquiry isn't about those alternatives.

For years I used a simple straight blade until I discovered Mach 3. Anyone who has used a straight razor knows how close and effective they can be. After trying the Mach 3, I was very satisfied with the results and have continued to use the product.

However, anyone who has ever purchased a Mach 3 refills knows that they are quite expensive.

Has anyone discovered a cheap source for Mach 3 blades, or at least those which are compatible?

Thanks!

Matt

[Gettingouttahere]

You need to get into couponing. I haven't paid for razors in years. I treat them all as disposables, because, as you've discovered, the manufacturers lure you in with the awesome deal on the initial razor, then gouge you with the price of the refills.

The secret is to buy massive quantities of razors and NEVER BUY REFILLS.

I stockpile my husband's favorite (Gillette Fusion Power) and probably have about 50 of them at the moment.

How do you do this? You find out online when the next Procter & Gamble coupon insert comes out in the newspaper (first Sunday of the month, usually, but sometimes the last). You get the preview listing of all the coupons available -- this is also easily found online. When it's a month that has a high-value coupon like a BOGO Q or a $5 Q, you get your hands on lots of those coupons (you can buy the individual coupon online from several different clipping services, if you don't have a cheap/free source of inserts). And then you match that coupon with a drugstore sale at CVS, RiteAid or Walgreens.

Every week at one of those stores there is a promotion on razors -- either Gillette or Schick. They rotate from week to week but they're invariably the same deal, with little variation...

You find the deal matchups (also online, at a gazillion different sites) and do the deal over and over again, optimally using the drugstores' "play money" like Extra Bucks at CVS, UPs at Rite Aid and Register Rewards/points at Walgreens, so you are not spending real money.

An example deal: Get $4 ECB back on any Gillette razor (nondisposable). If it's a month with a $5 Q, you buy your Mach 3 razor for $11, use the $5 Q, get $4 ECB back, and you've spent $2 for the razor. Usually the limit is one on such deals at CVS or Rite Aid. Because of this, I have three or four cards for each store (all legit - one for hubby, one for daughter, one for stepdaughter, one for me) and so I can get three or four razors out of every store deal.

Another example deal: Buy $30 in Gillette shaving products, get $10 UP, limit 2 deals. In a month with a BOGO coupon, you would buy six of those $11 razors for $66, use three BOGO coupons and probably have three $2 coupons from an overlapping month (the P&G coupons often overlap from month to month) that you could also use on the three razors you are buying (not getting for free). The BOGO coupons will deduct $33, then another $6 for the three $2 coupons, then maybe there are store coupons you can stack with the deal (store coupons can be used on the same product as a manufacturer coupon), or maybe there's a $4/20 store coupon as well, and you get the $10 UP back, which hopefully you hang on to to roll into the next razor deal, and on and on.

Head swimming yet?

If you don't want to spent this kind of time and effort, go to eBay, where you can get authentic refills cheaper than retail. But they won't be free, and they're not comparable to the deals you can get with couponing...