Your mileage may vary

You'll see this a lot when you lurk about the shaving forums. What it simply means is not everyone will get the same results. While you might get a BBS (baby butt smooth) shave with a Red-tip and a Feather razor, I might come away with irritated skin due to mine being more sensitive that yours. There are a lot of variables to consider in your search for the best combination: a razor's blade gap (described as "mild", or narrow, and "aggressive", or wide); your whiskers (I can get by with shaving every other day, while you might have a 5 o'clock shadow at noon); skin condition (smooth and sensitive, or rough and tough?); the blade itself (a vintage carbon steel blade, to me, is much harder on my skin than a Teflon-coated stainless steel blade); pre-shave ritual (some shave before showering, some after, some use a pre-shave oil, some don't, some use hot water to shave, some use cold...you get the picture). All this stuff needs to be taken into consideration if you plan to actually use what you collect. If you only plan to collect NOS (New Old Stock), unopened/unused razors, and keep them locked up in a display case, then all this is moot. But, I like the feel of a vintage razor, both in my hand and on my face. And my entire collection is on display on my bathroom countertop, all within easy reach.

What you use to lather up affects your shave as well. The two main points to consider: It's gotta be moist, and it's gotta be slick. I mainly use Williams Mug Shaving Soap. Now, I've read many a disparaging comment regarding Williams, but they've been making this stuff since like 1840, so they must be doing something right. Once you learn how to lather it up, it works just fine. The trick is keeping it moist, because it can dry up rather quickly. HEB's used to carry it; now, all they have (in the way of pucks) is Van der Hagen scented and/or glycerin (depending on which store you go to). There are a ton of other soaps out there, in tube, puck, powder, or whatever other form they could come in. Go to Google Images and search "shaving soaps", and you'll be amazed at the variety (and cost). You can even get special little bowls, too.

Brushes. I have three. But there are probably as many brushes as there are soaps. My first was a cheapie black acrylic-handled "bristle hair" that came with a stand and bowl. Well, everyone else had more than one brush...and I had that balding Czech brush...so, I started looking for a knot (the bushy part without the handle). I settled for a Maggard synthetic, and mounted it using auto/marine sealant. It was as different as night and day. The synthetic felt like I was applying lather with a soft piece of foam rubber. Too soft, actually, as I had a hard time building up a decent lather. I then found a vintage "pure bristle" Strong Set brush and Old Spice mug at an antique shop in South Carolina, and I do believe this is the best-ever brush devised by man. My bristle-hair has been relegated to the job of "travel brush", and kept in a little pickle jar...