What's new

Trac vs. Atra vs. Sensor

I have a 2-track Schick with the Paul Revere handle; free from Schick, it gave a decent shave but Trac 2 cartridges don't seem to work well with it. Atra and Sensor give similiar shaves to it in my opinion, not as good as DE, SE, Injector. I wish it was able to use injector blades.

Richard
 
An evangelist wouldn't look for converts in the church, now...would he?:lol::lol:

Which is exactly why I don't jump on a thread entitled "Fatboy or SS?" and say "They're both pretty crappy! Now try a Trac II 'cause that's what I use!"

I'm kind of under the impression that most members with a post count of at least thirty have been privy to the wonders of a DE, especially on this site. Let's let cartridge users have their say, too.
 
Which is exactly why I don't jump on a thread entitled "Fatboy or SS?" and say "They're both pretty crappy! Now try a Trac II 'cause that's what I use!"

I'm kind of under the impression that most members with a post count of at least thirty have been privy to the wonders of a DE, especially on this site. Let's let cartridge users have their say, too.

I'm happy to...you're welcome to your say. Nothing wrong with that.:lol:
 
The Trac II came out about the time I graduated high school(1971). Before that I shaved my teenage face with Dad's DE Gillettes. The gold one(Aristocrat) was fine, the silver one(late 50's flare tip) was fair(much more agressive than the Aristocrat- I still have both those razors & it's sill true!), the Red Tip was a face chopper(long gone, I'd probably do a lot better with it now:wink:), the stubby little travel razor was strictly for stunt shaving.

Used Trac II's for several years- sometime before or after that I had a Gillette Techmatic(the rotating band razor- those things were dangerous, often didn't hold the band tight enough!), and an adjustable Schick Injector. Somehow I skipped the Atra, but did get a Sensor shortly after thay came out. I wore a beard for years, probably why I missed the Atra.

IMO the Sensor is much better than the Trac II, but then I can see the reason for the rotating head. It offers a better shave for less skill, which is a big help to those who never were taught anything about holding a razor at a certain angle, and that a lttle practice & skill may be required to get a good shave. Also- I always had a *Lot* less trouble with the Sensor clogging up with whiskers when they'd gotten too long. In the bathroom drawer there are still 3 Trac II handles- and all 3 have the "blade side" of the handle beaten up, from trying to knock the hair/whiskers out of the blades against the edge of the sink!:lol:

I have a couple of Sensor handles too- they both look fine. Hmm- just for giggles- does Personna make a good cheap cartridge to fit the Sensor Excell handles?:confused:
 
The Trac II came out about the time I graduated high school(1971). Before that I shaved my teenage face with Dad's DE Gillettes. The gold one(Aristocrat) was fine, the silver one(late 50's flare tip) was fair(much more agressive than the Aristocrat- I still have both those razors & it's sill true!), the Red Tip was a face chopper(long gone, I'd probably do a lot better with it now:wink:), the stubby little travel razor was strictly for stunt shaving.

Used Trac II's for several years- sometime before or after that I had a Gillette Techmatic(the rotating band razor- those things were dangerous, often didn't hold the band tight enough!), and an adjustable Schick Injector. Somehow I skipped the Atra, but did get a Sensor shortly after thay came out. I wore a beard for years, probably why I missed the Atra.

IMO the Sensor is much better than the Trac II, but then I can see the reason for the rotating head. It offers a better shave for less skill, which is a big help to those who never were taught anything about holding a razor at a certain angle, and that a lttle practice & skill may be required to get a good shave. Also- I always had a *Lot* less trouble with the Sensor clogging up with whiskers when they'd gotten too long. In the bathroom drawer there are still 3 Trac II handles- and all 3 have the "blade side" of the handle beaten up, from trying to knock the hair/whiskers out of the blades against the edge of the sink!:lol:

I have a couple of Sensor handles too- they both look fine. Hmm- just for giggles- does Personna make a good cheap cartridge to fit the Sensor Excell handles?:confused:


I don't think the Patent allows "generic" verions of Sensor cartridges yet. Only Atra and TracII. One local drugstore sells cartridges that fit both the Atra and the TracII. There are Sensor-like razors, but nothing that fits the handle.

As for the cartridges getting clogged up, the only time I've ever had significant problem with that was when I used canned shaving cream/gel.

Never had a problem with Williams or Van Der Hagen soap or any of the "better" shaving soaps and creams in the past few years as far as clogging up the razor (Atra and Mach 3).
 
Which is exactly why I don't jump on a thread entitled "Fatboy or SS?" and say "They're both pretty crappy! Now try a Trac II 'cause that's what I use!"

I'm kind of under the impression that most members with a post count of at least thirty have been privy to the wonders of a DE, especially on this site. Let's let cartridge users have their say, too.


I'm over here, because I can't imagine why anyone would want to use one. For almost 40 years I've wondered that. :lol:Honestly. I don't think that cartridge fad will ever catch on.
 
I don't think the Patent allows "generic" verions of Sensor cartridges yet. Only Atra and TracII. One local drugstore sells cartridges that fit both the Atra and the TracII. There are Sensor-like razors, but nothing that fits the handle.

There's been Sensor compatible cartridges for years, put out by ASR under different brands. Personna markets two different types: one is the "store brand" version which is exactly the same as the Atra knock-off, but with a different adapter, and it's been around for at least fifteen years. That's the first cartridge I used BTW.

The second is the Tri-Flexx, which fits the Sensor but has three blades. The Tri-Flexx razor also doubles as a replacement Sensor handle, and I like the fact that it's metal as opposed to the new plastic Gillette handles.

Merkur manufactures a blade that is compatible with Sensors, though I've yet to try it. FWIW their fancy-pants Trac II razor can be fitted with an adapter that allows it to use Atra, Trac II, and Sensor razor cartridges.

Also, Super Max in Japan manufactures a "Mach III" knock off that uses Sensor compatible three blade cartridges, but they're pure garbage. You can see these pop up from time to time at Dollar Tree.

It's my understanding that the Generic Sensor carts first appeared in 1995, when Gillette lost its exclusivity patent by introducing the Sensor Excel. I'm not sure exactly how that works, but apparently they found a way around that loophole by the time they came out with the Mach III.
 
Will [FONT=&amp]Gillette Atra and Trac 2 razor blades fit the same handle...???[/FONT]

I don't think so, but it's been 20 or more years since I've looked at either razor. As I vaguely remember, the Trac ll handle slides onto the new cartridge, and the Atra handle requires "pinching" two little tabs to load the cartridge. Maybe a current user can clarify.
 
Last edited:
Will [FONT=&amp]Gillette Atra and Trac 2 razor blades fit the same handle...???[/FONT]
No, but some aftermarket cartridges will fit either handle.

In other words, if you have an Atra handle, Trac 2 blades will not fit it. However, if you have both a Trac 2 and an Atra handle, you could buy a 10-pack of cartridges and use on in the Atra and the next in the Trac-2.
 
Only if the cartridge is made to fit both. Now (supposedly Personna) it is available online and very cheap. USD$14 for 100 cartridges on Amazon.com.
 
Top Bottom