Shaving is not expensive if you simply clean the blade after using it. Cleaning the blades slows the oxidation process on the edge which is the primary contributor to poor blade performance.
I once friend-of-a-friend met somebody, a materials science grad student who had "invented/applied" a high tech alloy to the edge that allowed for blades to last at least 10x. But instead of for shaving, the big money was in blades sold to flooring carpet cutters, they use a new blade for every cut. His selling proposition was (conservative) 5x which would really increase productivity/save labor. Problem is, his market was too scared to try it, at the risk of messing up an expensive piece of carpet which had been ordered in fixed quantity, they'd rather just put in a new blade, the cost wasn't an issue.
fsckboy|1 year ago