Close, but No Cigar

Being unwilling to pay the going auction price, I have, for a few years now, been holding out hope of someday finding a Barbasol floating head in the wild. I know, slim chance, but the hunt is part of the fun. Last weekend, I thought lightning had struck.

My wife and I were checking out a new antique joint; I walk up to the first case I see, spy a few razors inside, and: eureka! There's my Barbie! Bigger than life! Twenty bucks! I try to remain calm as I wait for the clerk to complete her transaction with another customer. Damn, they want to chat! I'm starting to twitch. Finally, they're done and I ask if she could open the case for me. "Oh," she says, "that one doesn't' lock, just go ahead and open it up and look at what you want." I luckily do not break anything as I lunge into the case. And then I have it. In my hand. The elusive Barbie is mine!

But alas, it is not to be. As they say in football, after further review, the ruling is reversed: It's a Barbie alright, but a non-floating head version. Totally unmarked. Yes, still a nice razor, and I'm happy to add it to the collection for $20, but the Holy Grail it is not.

The hunt continues.

BTW, anyone have experience with both versions and care to weigh in on the difference in shave?

Nice! ......... I'm the other way around .....I've never had a non floating head Barbasol in my hand. I scored a gorgeous cased floating head last year from the auction site. I was lucky to win it, as I sniped it at the last second and got my dollars and pounds mixed up in the excitement ........ So I effectively lowballed it and still walked away with it

I've only had it in my rotation a couple of times since and it's a surprisingly milder razor than I was expecting. That may be as I always gravitate towards my small collection of R41 heads which I swap back and forth between different razor handles, so aggressiveness may measure on a higher scale for me ............. But still a lovely, effective, well balanced and hefty razor.

I was lucky, and found one, in the Wild, last year. Floating head, $5.95. The funny thing is, I didn't know what it was, or if it was worth keeping, until I got home, and asked people here. It was about the only great find, in the Wild, for me.

A great score, nonetheless. Congrats.

Thanks for the encouragement (and condolences) guys. It's encouraging to know that it may still be possible to find a Barbie FH in the wild, so that will keep me going. In the meantime, the non-FH will enter the rotation, and I'll post a report when it comes up.

I found my FH in the wild about a month ago for $15 (well, $25 for the razor and a honing stone in its box) and I knew at the time that a Barbie was worth buying, but only slightly aware of the variants. Did my research here when I got it home and went WOOHOO!

It's now earned its place in my 2-razor rotation with a RR V3 Slant - from wild to mild, but both nicely efficient!

Keep looking, they are out there!

Congratulations on the score - and a very nice brush in the picture.

I have both versions of the Barbasol. Keep looking for the floating head.; it is one of my favorite razors.
That said, the version you have is very much underrated, in my opinion. It is milder than the FH, but still a fantastic shaver. Congrats on the find!

DrAwkward said:

I have both versions of the Barbasol. Keep looking for the floating head.; it is one of my favorite razors.
That said, the version you have is very much underrated, in my opinion. It is milder than the FH, but still a fantastic shaver. Congrats on the find!

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Thanks for that, Doc. I haven't fired this one up yet, but I'm pretty sure I've already shaved with it, or at least its functional equivalent, the Royal Crown. See this thread http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/423646-Royal-Crown-DE-The-poor-man-s-Barbasol

I've looked my non-FH Barbie over carefully, and I'm pretty sure the head is identical to the Royal Crown. Assuming that to be the case, I concur that it's a fine shaver, and actually might be better for me than the FH as I seem to get along well with the mid-range, aggression-wise. The FH might be too much for me, but that won't stop me from looking.

Spang said:

Thanks for that, Doc. I haven't fired this one up yet, but I'm pretty sure I've already shaved with it, or at least its functional equivalent, the Royal Crown. See this thread http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/423646-Royal-Crown-DE-The-poor-man-s-Barbasol

I've looked my non-FH Barbie over carefully, and I'm pretty sure the head is identical to the Royal Crown. Assuming that to be the case, I concur that it's a fine shaver, and actually might be better for me than the FH as I seem to get along well with the mid-range, aggression-wise. The FH might be too much for me, but that won't stop me from looking.

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I gotta disagree with you. I also have the Royal Crown. It may look the same, but it is not the same. Give the non-FH a try and let us know what you think ...

DrAwkward said:

I gotta disagree with you. I also have the Royal Crown. It may look the same, but it is not the same. Give the non-FH a try and let us know what you think ...

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That is music to my ears. Mine is an eyeball observation only, and yours is based on actual shaving, so now my curiosity is back in gear. I'm calling up the non-FH for tomorrow's shave, and a report will follow. Thanks again for weighing in.

DrAwkward said:

I gotta disagree with you. I also have the Royal Crown. It may look the same, but it is not the same. Give the non-FH a try and let us know what you think ...

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Ok, you called this one all the way. I ran the Non-FH Barbie this morning, and there is no question it is a different shaving razor than the Royal Crown. In general, I found it to be noticeably more aggressive, but still very smooth. I looked, again, very carefully at the two razors, both loaded, and it's hard to see any substantive differences. The blade exposure looks identical, but the Barbasol seems to have just a tiny bit more blade gap (both have gaps that are so small that it's hard to see even under strong magnification). I think the difference is the cap, which on the Barbie seems to give the blade just a bit less bend. Whatever it is, I concur that the Barbie is definitely a fine shaver, and really pretty aggressive in its own right. I'll follow your advice and keep looking for a FH, but in the meantime (which could be a long time), I'm quite happy with the non-FH.

My results were very similar. I didn't work very hard at distinguishing them, but the two heads look almost exactly the same. The Barbasol, however, is both smoother and more effective. The FH version is renowned because it is even more effective without being harsh or rough.
I'm glad you like your Barbasol!