For many years, I constantly kept an eye out for different shavers that made it easy enough for me to maintain my particular short hairstyle. After trying many different brands, I always came back to the Skull Shaver, an electric head shaver that I’ve now been happily using for over five years.
In the following review, I’ll be giving my personal thoughts and experience on the Pitbull Skull Shaver as well as providing a per-shave cost breakdown:
- What’s Included In The Box
- Advantages Of The Skull Shaver Pitbull
- Skull Shaver Cost Breakdown
- Disadvantages Of The Skull Shaver Pitbull
Use the links to jump ahead or continue scrolling to take it from the top.
Skull Shaver – What’s In The Box?
When you first purchase the Pitbull Skull Shaver, there are a number of things you can expect to receive in the box.
First and foremost are the battery module and the blade head. Previous models of the Skull Shaver used a five-headed blade; however, the brand has now released a new four-headed version that ships with the Skull Shaver Pitbull PRO. If you prefer the older version, you may still purchase it from Skull Shaver’s site though it doesn’t appear like you can buy a battery/motor by itself.
Also in the box are a wall outlet charger with USB connection, the charging cable, and a plastic cover for the blades.
The Skull Shaver Pitbull Gold retails for $139.99 but can usually be purchased for $100 directly from Skull Shaver. It is also listed on Amazon, but the price is generally higher than on the brand’s site.
Pitbull Skull Shaver PRO Options: Platinum vs. Gold vs. Silver
If you’ve browsed Skull Shaver’s Men’s section, you may have been confused by all of the options when it comes to shavers. For this reason, I’ll be breaking them down here.
The Skull Shaver Pitbull Platinum PRO is the top-of-the-line package from the brand and is priced at $197.99. It includes a 1400 mAh battery module with an LCD numeric display that indicates how much battery is left. This package also comes with a Forte PRO 4 Blade (2nd best blade) as well as the rinse stand and travel case accessories. They also back this with a 2-year warranty.
Skull Shaver Pitbull Gold PRO
Next in line is the Skull Shaver Pitbull Gold PRO, which sells for $99.89. This package also includes the 1400 mAh battery (90 minutes runtime) with LCD display and Forte PRO 4 Blade. It does not include any of the accessories, and the warranty is only one year.
Last is the Skull Shaver Pitbull Silver PRO, which sells for $89.99. The silver has a 600 mAh battery (60 minutes runtime), has an LED light battery indicator, and includes a Carver PRO 4 blade, which is the cheapest blade the brand offers. As far as warranty, this one is only covered for one year.
Pros Of The Skull Shaver
The greatest advantage of the Skull Shaver is the fact that it works quite well. The shaver provides a very clean and close shave. I’ve used it both inside and outside the shower, and in both scenarios, I was very pleased with the results. This leads me to the next big pro…
Can The Skull Shaver Go In The Shower?
Perhaps it’s to be expected of most modern electric shavers, but the fact that the Skull Shaver can be used in the shower is a huge advantage. This makes it very convenient to not only make shaving part of my morning routine, but it also allows me to clean the shaver regularly as I do that while I’m in the shower as well.
Another advantage of the Skull Shaver is that the battery is very comfortable to hold. Since I use the Skull Shaver regularly, it doesn’t take more than a few minutes each day to shave. That being said, even if I did have to use the shaver for an extended period of time, I don’t see how my hand would become tired in any way as the device is rather ergonomic.
The final positive aspect I’ve found to the Skull Shaver is that the blades are very safe and do not produce any kind of skin sensitivity after use. Even though I have a couple of bumps and moles on my head, I’ve never had a nick or cut while using the Skull Shaver. This being said, I always purchase the Skull Shaver Baron Blades, which are the most expensive and theoretically the highest quality blade that they offer.
Skull Shaver: Cost Breakdown
When it comes to the cost of the Skull Shaver, here is my experience.
First, consider that I purchase the highest-end blade offered, the Baron Blade, so you’d be able to lower the following estimates if you purchase the more affordable blades. I tend to get a bit of sensitivity on some areas of my head and have found that the Baron blades prevent this to the greatest degree, so the increased cost is worthwhile to me.
With each battery unit, I generally am able to get two to three years out of them. This averages to about $33 dollars per year just for the battery. Each of the new four-headed Baron blades costs about $40, and I have to replace these every four months for a yearly cost of $120.
All in all, I estimate that I spend about $153 per year on the Skull Shaver, and considering that I shave every day, I calculate the per-day cost to be about $0.41 ($153/365). Again, with the cheaper blades or less frequent use, you could get this cost lower, but this is my personal experience.
Cons Of The Skull Shaver
After many years of using the Skull Shaver, I’ve found three disadvantages with the unit.
The first of these cons is the fact that you can’t let your hair get too long, or the blades of the Skull Shaver will not be able to handle it. In my experience, if I go longer than 2 or 3 days without shaving my head, I find that I’ll have to use a clipper to bring down the length of the hair before being able to use the Skull Shaver.
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve now made the Skull Shaver part of my daily routine, so this isn’t a huge inconvenience, but it’s something to keep in mind.
The second disadvantage of the Skull Shaver is that there are some areas of my head where the blades are not able to provide the cleanest cut. In my case, these are the area around my temples and the very back of my neck. To mitigate this, I’ll generally use a shavette to touch these up whenever I’m already cleaning up my beard line.
The third and final pain point of the Skull Shaver comes down to the charging cable and connection on the unit. While one side of the charging cable is USB, the end that plugs into the unit is a specific connector. This means that if I forget to pack the cable for the Skull Shaver when I’m traveling, I’m basically out of luck when it runs out of battery.
I would have preferred if Skull Shaver would have made this connection point a more universal type so that if I don’t have the specific cable, I’d still be able to charge the unit with the cable from another device.
Skull Shaver Battery Life
With a fresh, out-of-the-box Skull Shaver PRO battery, I’ve had the battery last through a two-week vacation without issue. However, as the battery gets older and goes through more recharging cycles, the charges tend to last less, and the motor becomes weaker.
Generally, I’ll replace the Skull Shaver battery every 2 to 3 years. I didn’t include this in the disadvantages section as I think it’s a fair lifecycle for a unit that costs $100 new and which I’m using day-in and day-out.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, I’ve been quite satisfied with the Skull Shaver over these past couple of years of use. I’ve found the advantages and convenience of the unit to far outweigh the slight disadvantages.
In my opinion, the Skull Shaver provides significant value for money, not only when you consider the all-in cost but also when you consider the alternatives, which I’ve found to be either too time-consuming, too expensive, or simply ineffective. For these reasons, I’ve continued to use it and recommend it to any others who ask.
"Convenient, easy to use and easy to clean, the Skull Shaver provides a ton of value!"
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Where can you get a replacement battery. My shaver has mostly stopped working and I pulled it apart thinking it was just dirty on the inside. The gear casing looks brand new so I’m fairly certain my battery is about dead. The battery looks somewhat easy to replace with a little soldering.
Hey there Tom,
From what we can see, the only way to buy a new battery is to buy a new Platinum, Silver, or Gold pack, each of which includes a brand new blade. It’s a bit inconvenient but you were going to need a new blade anyways, so I suppose that’s the logic the brand applied.
Rafael
I believe the article calls the actual shaver unit (sans the blades) the “battery”. The actual batteries seem to be a 2 or 3 li-ion pack, for the little that we can see on this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YUHXAPooRM
I may have to open mine to remove some water that somehow got inside; will post some pictures if I do it.
In fact, a comenter there says:
“The battery marking is ICR18500 1400mAh 3.7V. It is a Lithium Ion 3.7 volt that can be bought at most electronic online suppliers. You’ll need to solder it in when you replace. Good luck.”
Hey Chester,
Thanks for your input here.
Rafael
They promise on their web site free 2 day shipping. However, that is a lie. You are not given the shipper’s name ( UPS,Fed Ex etc..) and not given a tracking number so you may follow it. I placed my order 6 days ago and as today is a Saturday it will be over a week if it does in fact arrive. After emailing customer service, I was provided a screen shot of a “tracking” from some unknown generic shipper. After some internet searching I did find out that the incompetent shipper they use transported the item past my home from Illinois to New York instead of delivering it to me in Ohio. 100% poor customer service and delivery failure. I have requested a full refund and cancellation of my order but have not heard back from their “Customer Service” which obviously is not customer orientated. Buyer Beware.
Hey John,
Sounds like you may have had an unfortunate experience with the shipper here, though Skull Shaver could have provided better customer service. I inquired with Paul and, in the couple of times he has purchased from them, he has had no issues with the delivery of the item. I hope you’re able to get this resolved soon.
Best,
Rafael
Anyone had any joy replacing the battery?
I’ve been shaving my head with a pitbull gold with the forte head for about 2 years now and am pretty satisfied. I searched for a lotion to use after shaving to moisturizer and protect my scalp. After about three different products I settled on Super goop play which has a spf 50 to protect the old noggen from sunburn.
Hey Ron,
Sounds like a good suggestion – Thanks for your input!
Rafael
Hey. I got my shaver a couple of months ago. (a gold) I have had no problems with it until today. When I plugged the charger in, the shaver started on it’s own at a slower speed. I cannot stop it and it runs until the battery is dead again. Has anyone had similar problems and/or know how to fix the issue. I have kept it clean religiously.
Baffled???
Hey Ed,
That definitely sounds like a malfunction. Have you reached out to Skull Shaver? This definitely sounds like the type of issue covered by the warranty.
Rafael
I bought it on Amazon. Will it still be covered. Guess it can’t hurt to ask
Hey Ed,
I’d think it would still be covered, yes. If they refuse, then you could even try going through Amazon for the refund. I’m assuming it’s Skull Shaver themselves who’s selling it on Amazon Marketplace.
Rafael
What is the warranty on skull shaver pro gold? I’ve owned two. In the last two years. Both malfunctioned and died.
The warranty on the pro gold should be one years, at least if you purchased directly from them. I’m assuming, though not 100% sure, that if you purchase through Amazon you also receive the warranty.
Rafael