Is there a bad vintage Gillette razor?

I haven't been doing this for very long but I have had the opportunity to try several different Gillette razors. I have used a Fatboy, a Slim, flair tip SS and an open comb new. They all perform very well and I have been able to get at least a CCS and more often than not a DFS from them with my limited experience.

I am consantly browsing the local shops for new additions and I want your opinions.
Is there a Gillette razor that I should avoid or are they all pretty much a safe bet? I'm looking for both shaving and overall product quality warnings if you have them.
Thanks.

They're all good, but that's not to say that every razor works well on every face.
For example, as much as I liked the beauty of the ball-handle techs, their mildness just didn't offer me the shave I needed.
So I couldn't adopt it as my regular razor.

I was PIFed a 40s Gold Tech that I considered far too mild for me, then I tried a blade most folks consider among the sharpest in it (Gillette 7 O'Clock Yellow) and it gave me a great shave on a par with a much more aggressive razor. So a razor I was eventually going to PIF stays in the rotation.

So to answer the OPs question, I don't think there is, with the right blade.

They don't all shave the same, and I haven't tried them all, but none seem to have a really bad reputation as shavers. They did have those QC issues that led to cracked handles on many of the Old types and some of the News. In most cases, that kind of damage would be obvious when you bought it, and can be patched up if necessary, or you could use a replacement handle.

Is there a bad vintage Gillette razor?

Yes.

Yes there are;

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...Nastiest-Damn-Razor-We-Have-Ever-Seen-Contest!

I don't like the late 60's black handled Slim (before they moved to the longer Super Adjustable). It has more metal on the head than earlier Slims or Fatboys and IMO that affects the shave. Mine nicks me more than any other Gillette I have.

I hate the Blue Tip. That's about the most worthless damn razor I've ever shaved with. It doesn't just leave whiskers behind, it leaves lather behind too !!

The answer to your question will vary with each and every person. What's good and bad in anything depends on who you ask.

bobfarvour said:

I hate the Blue Tip. That's about the most worthless damn razor I've ever shaved with. It doesn't just leave whiskers behind, it leaves lather behind too !!

Click to expand...

Remove the TTO option, and you stubble (stumble) upon....The TECH

bobfarvour said:

I hate the Blue Tip. That's about the most worthless damn razor I've ever shaved with. It doesn't just leave whiskers behind, it leaves lather behind too !!

Click to expand...

The Blue Tip is all that I could come up with too. At least with a mild 3 piece razor - like a Tech - you have the option of putting shims under the blade and making the razor just as aggressive as you would like. So, you can make any mild 3 piece razor more aggressive than a FatBoy on 9, but since it is a TTO there is nothing you can do to boost the blue tip.

Ummmm going against the grain here, but all of them. Same goes for all new DEs as well.

I think we are pretty lucky there is such a variety of great Gillette vintage razors to select from, and at pretty reasonable prices considering they seem to last indefinitely. I have found with the half dozen or so I've used over the years there is quite a difference with which brand/model blade you use. I've not used a bad Gillette, but some blades are definitely better with some razors and not as good with others. I have yet to shave with anything better than an English Flare Tip SS with a Shark Super Stainless, but I'm open to the experience...