May favorite Gillette vintage razors are; New Style Open Comb, Fat Handled Tech and Fatboy. Personally I like all the vintage Gillette razors I have.
Favorite vintage safety razors?
- Thread starter Tele Savalas
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- #43
Maybe after I get some experience I'll be your sacrificial lamb. 
You might be surprised. I think the British Regent LC NEW I use almost every day might actually be slightly milder than my favorite #21 (solid-bar TTO).
I have my great grandfather's safety razor with an Old Type head and a Fat Tech handle. I love it.
Pre-War Gillette Fat Handle Tech
Perfect handle, perfect balance, perfect grip, a low profile head to shave anywhere w/o problem, and just the right amount of aggressiveness.
Not to mention, the going rate for them on eBay is about $5
Perfect handle, perfect balance, perfect grip, a low profile head to shave anywhere w/o problem, and just the right amount of aggressiveness.
Not to mention, the going rate for them on eBay is about $5
Toggle/Fatboy/#16
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My 1957 Red Tip is my favorite. If I have just a light growth, my favorite is one of my Techs.
cottontop
My 1957 Red Tip is my favorite. If I have just a light growth, my favorite is one of my Techs.
cottontop
My only 2 vintages are a Gillette Slim and Red Tip and I really like the shaves I get with my Red Tip with a Feather blade.
Fat boy
Slim
40's SS
Slim
40's SS
New long comb, Rolls (se)
British Rocket HD. Idiot proof shaving, perfect level of aggressiveness, balance and even does a great job with cheap Astra SP Blades.
My favorites are my Gillette E4 Fatboy and my Gillette Aristocrat De Luxe. The Fatboy is a great performer. The only negative I can think about is that it might be too heavy for some. I love the weight of it myself. The De Luxe is my first oc and I love it. The downside is that it may be too aggressive for some. Both are great razors. I think everyone should try a vintage Gillette at least once.
Lots of potential for AD. I speak from experience.
My best shaves come from my 1) Gillette NEW, 2) '48 Aristocrat, and 3) DR 1903/04 (and I'm not just name-dropping there...it's a fantastic shave). All have, IMHO, a great deal of blade exposure and are therefor "aggressive" (should you like that).
As for Super Speeds, they're all mild with my '40s style giving me the best shave, followed by the '70s black handle, and finally the '50s flair.
The "sleeper" in my collection is the Sheraton. Although I originally perceived it to be generically milder like the other TTOs, I've come to find it has a certain geometry that fits my shaving style. I don't get BBS, but I do get a DFS+ every time.
My "worst" came from a '59 FatBoy, which very much surprised me given its popularity. Truth be told, it was the first adjustable I'd ever used and did not realize the doors had to be open to actually adjust. Still after correcting the operator error, I was nonplussed about its performance on the next go-round. That said, it's not an adjustable thing; my Toggle is fantastic and I rank it as my #4 favorite razor. I'll keep itje Fatboy in the stable for the collector factor, but it's my last choice.
Of course, the infamous YMMV and "different blades, different shaves" caveats come into play. Recommend you take a dive into vintage with an inexpensive NEW and go from there.
Cheers,
Rick
My best shaves come from my 1) Gillette NEW, 2) '48 Aristocrat, and 3) DR 1903/04 (and I'm not just name-dropping there...it's a fantastic shave). All have, IMHO, a great deal of blade exposure and are therefor "aggressive" (should you like that).
As for Super Speeds, they're all mild with my '40s style giving me the best shave, followed by the '70s black handle, and finally the '50s flair.
The "sleeper" in my collection is the Sheraton. Although I originally perceived it to be generically milder like the other TTOs, I've come to find it has a certain geometry that fits my shaving style. I don't get BBS, but I do get a DFS+ every time.
My "worst" came from a '59 FatBoy, which very much surprised me given its popularity. Truth be told, it was the first adjustable I'd ever used and did not realize the doors had to be open to actually adjust. Still after correcting the operator error, I was nonplussed about its performance on the next go-round. That said, it's not an adjustable thing; my Toggle is fantastic and I rank it as my #4 favorite razor. I'll keep itje Fatboy in the stable for the collector factor, but it's my last choice.
Of course, the infamous YMMV and "different blades, different shaves" caveats come into play. Recommend you take a dive into vintage with an inexpensive NEW and go from there.
Cheers,
Rick
1919 Old Type. It's the only vintage razor I use. It's the only vintage razor I've ever used 
LOL I've only been at this a couple months or so, and Krona's replating a slim adjustable for me (anxious to try it).
Regarding the Old, it shaves really well for me with a Personna Lab blue in it. I can imagine having to be careful with it using blades of the period, though.
LOL I've only been at this a couple months or so, and Krona's replating a slim adjustable for me (anxious to try it).
Regarding the Old, it shaves really well for me with a Personna Lab blue in it. I can imagine having to be careful with it using blades of the period, though.
Me too. I had been using my blue tip SS exclusively, but decided to give one of my ball end Techs a try last week. What an effortless shave! I really would love to buy more razors, but I can't imagine improving on the resuls I get from my Superspeeds and Techs.
I'm in this boat. I find myself wanting a backup 40s SS just in case something happens to mine. I have a ball end tech I have yet to try. I eventually want to try an aristocrat.
I love the fat handled Techs from before WWII. Ball handled Techs from before the early 1960's. Cross hatched pattern handled English/Canadian Techs from the 1960's, full nickel. And finally the open comb Gillette razors from the 1920's and 1930's. Only issue I have with all those early razors is the handles tend to be slimmer and shorter than I'm used to, but I love shaving with them and can handle them just fine. Those old razors are tough and durable and provide pretty good shaves. They have stood up to the test of time and use and are still going strong.
