Best: By far the '41 Ranger Tech - I can't describe it but man, that razor is awesome. "Worst": Gillette NEWs. The heads are good but I find the handles to be too small for my liking and well, that is part of the shaving experience. Honorary mentions for "best": - Long handled black beauty, - Rocket HD - Slim - Big Boy deluxe
B ritish TV superspeed then Fatboy set to 7, British red tip rocket, worst performers for me are the 'NEW' I can and dont mind the 'OLD' open combs but not so much the new style or techs nothing major about any of the worst just the comfort factor is way lacking compared to my Brit TV superspeed
I never really got on with my New. Maybe I need to spend more time learning to use it. I love all my other vintage gillette my favourites being Milord (I just love the feel of it. ) and my black beauty a very smooth shaver.
I like all my Gillette DEs. I think the hardest one for me to use was the Old Type, and the current favorite is the Fatboy. I haven't tried the Slim yet.
IMO there is no worst Gillette. There are only specific Gillette razors that work better or worse for the individual. Of the Razors that I've tried the "FAT" handled tech, "NEW" LCOC, 47-50 Aristocrat and any of the adjustables have all given me GREAT shaves. I have however disliked all of the SuperSpeeds I've ever tried. Which is a shame since my birth year razor is a SS.
I have a Gillette black beauty, slim, fat boy, three different super speeds and two new long combs; one with the ball end and other with the fat handle. I love them all and there's not a dog in the bunch. Least favorite? I honestly don't know!
Interesting responses so far. In terms of best and worst, what I had in mind was quality of the shave and performance in terms of efficiency not so much the actual construction of the razor...but I guess there is sometimes a connection. I realize I didn't register my own opinion...best for me is probably the Fat Handle Tech (the WW2 military issue ones), Slim and for worst...some of the aluminium techs and the Super Speeds...just don't like the feel in my hand. Overall though...its hard to pick a loser among the Gillette vintage razors. They are such nice pieces of machinery.
Try the NEW with one of your SS handles, it changed the shave for the better for me. I know the Mongoose handle will clear the ridges on the bottom plate of a New.
The FH Tech, although mild, is the only Gillette DE razor I still own. All others have 'left the building.' I've owned most of the models mentioned in this thread and overall, most were very capable shavers. The worst GE DE razor experience came from the regularly bloody shaves I received from a 1941 Aristocrat. This could be attributed to 'user error' but after trying many DE models, it was the one Gillette that always seemed to draw blood.
Hmmm.... It's a tough question for me to answer. Given what I have in my den, then it's got to be one of my super speeds. It's not a loser by any means as it provides great shaves. It's just not as efficient as my other Gillettes and requires an extra pass or two. I still like the way super speeds shave. I can get a quick and comfortable shave at 4:00am and still be on time to catch the train. Interestingly, if the question was what's my least favorite Gillette adjustable, I'd say the black beauty. It shaves every bit as good as a slim, but the balance isn't as nice as a slim and the fat boy has them both beat.
Agreed. I never really liked the "Aristocrat" and "Superspeed" head profiles, by the way. I never understood why the Schick Krona didn't make more impact ... for me they really nailed the head profile with that one.
I vote for a "Vintage Gillette DE Fan Club" in the Safety Razor forum on TSD...anybody with me on this?