Gillette D1 Rhodium Red Dot Fat Boy

Discussion in 'Safety Razors' started by GlennConti, Jul 5, 2013.

  1. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    The mail man was nice to me today and brought my D1 Red Dot Fatboy today. Here she is:

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    The TTO works flawlessly to open the silo doors and the 1/4 turn lock works great; nice and smooth just as it should. The adjusting ring is a little tighter to move than it should be but all right, and the finish in certain light on one of the silo doors is mottled. This all just gives her character. I took a few shots until I could capture the mottling. Here it is:

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    The mottling is not on the surface. The surface is smooth. It is like water spots under the rhodium??? Maybe the original finish was damaged. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
     
  2. swarden43

    swarden43 "It's your shave. Enjoy it your way."©

    My thoughts? Absolutely beautiful! :cool: May she provide many great shaves.
     
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  3. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    The replate job on this razor is very good. It was not buffed on a wheel to remove the nickle. I believe it was an ultrasonic chemical stripping process that was used to get the nickle down to brass. Then a replate in rhodium. This is because the detail in the markings under the head is crisp and the silo doors don't bind at all like excess plating has occurred. Under a 7x magnifier you can see pits that were covered by the rhodium and where excess black paint was applied as splashes that were not cleaned up. The red dot paint is also skimpier and a different color than on my D1 Toggle (which is factory original and can be used for comparison). But to the unaided eye the replating is not evident (except for possibly the mottling if that was caused by the chemical stripping??)
     
  4. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    Thank you. I plan to make this one a work horse for me.
     
  5. oldtrout

    oldtrout Well-Known Member

    D1!!!!! That's my birth quarter razor and a beautiful one at that.
     
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  6. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    Thanks. Way cool. It's my birth quarter too. I'm Feb 15th exactly in the middle! 58 D1 was a great time for razors. Gillette was on a roll. I may even get a TV special too just for that.
     
  7. Erik Redd

    Erik Redd Lizabeth, baby, I'm comin' to join ya.

    Man, you guys are old! (I'm a D1 too):)
     
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  8. Woodekt

    Woodekt Well-Known Member

    Cool! Looks good! I recently sent out a F4 fatboy for the rhodium job and I'm patiently waiting for its return!
     
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  9. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    I just got through shaving with it! I took extra time on the touch up and got a BBS! This razor is more aggressive than my E4 Fatboy at the same settings. I did two passes at "7" and the final ATG at "5". This razor gives more feedback feel/sound than my E4 FB too. Definitely cool. I got a better shave than I get with my injector (which gives me great shaves too and is saying something). Here is a picture of the setup I used. My brush is a low cost standard Chinese Pure Badge and the aftershave is Eucalyptus/Menthol TSD which I highly recommend.

    L1020727.JPG
     
  10. alpla444

    alpla444 That's sweet!

    Yet another sweet looking adjustable razor added to your collection.
     
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  11. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    There's not too many left for me to get now. :)
     
  12. ins0ma

    ins0ma Well-Known Member

    Very nice! I've got a Fatboy that I really like, although I've only had it for a few weeks and am still getting acquainted with it. Since I bought it it's been in the back of my mind that if I really liked it, I might look into re-plating or refinishing, although it has a couple of what look almost like burn marks on the handle, and I'm not sure how they'd fare under treatment. I think the Fatboy shaves really well, and you've got a gorgeous one, congrats!
     
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  13. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    Hi insOma. Thanks. I would love it if as you're finding out about it, you would share your experiences about the replater (if you go that way) with us here in detail. :)
     
  14. ins0ma

    ins0ma Well-Known Member

    I don't think I'd be able not to, Glenn ;)

    The "burn marks" I'm talking about on my razor should be visible below. Opinions about it as a candidate for refinishing are welcome:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
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  15. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    I don't know why it couldn't be replated. However, I would ask the potential replater a few questions:

    1) Does he use a chemical nickle strip (better) or does he buff the nickle off (loses detail)?
    2) After a chemical strip can he buff out the burn marks and any other imperfections he finds in the brass prior to replating?
    3) Will the silo doors open as original or will they become lazy (too much plating thickness)?
    4) How long should the plating last (not enough plating thickness)?
    5) Does he offer a service to paint the numbers and collet black? The spring red? How much extra?
    6) Will the adjustment ring be harder to turn after plating?
    7) The 1/2 turn to lock down the blade, will it be affected?
    8) Can he repair minor alignment problems in the doors if any?
    9) What kind of guarantee on his work if it is not as described above?

    These are the questions I would ask and select the replater that answers the questions the best.
     
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  16. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    I terminated the Supermax Titanium's life early today and tried the Red Dot with a Polsilver Super Iridium. Weeper City! I had to break out the styptic pencil. The shave was real close but I had to abort the ATG pass when I saw all the red!. It's funny I usually have good luck with the Polsilver. Looks like with this razor I'm going to have to rewrite the book on which blades work well.
     
  17. Schwank

    Schwank Member

    cool! looks great!
     
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  18. GlennConti

    GlennConti Well-Known Member

    Just as a test I put the same Iridium Polsilver blade that I had trouble with yesterday in my Slim and shaved today at the same settings. Guess what? No problems at all. No red. I think I will try a Kai blade in the Red Dot tomorrow just to see. The Kai usually gives me great shaves. We'll see tomorrow.
     
  19. Mouser

    Mouser Well-Known Member

    Nice. I have a Fat Boy that I got from Razor Emporium and I may send it in for a rhodium job with them if I could ever part with it for so long. I had heard from some unremembered source that replating a Fat Boy in rhodium somehow makes it more aggressive, seems they were correct although I can't imagine how and finally and unfortunately for me, there are no FBs stamped with my birth year. frown.
     
  20. Weeper Warrior

    Weeper Warrior Well-Known Member

    The thickness of the plating will change the blade gap at any given setting. The replate being a lot thicker than the factory plate. It would not be much of a change but would possibly feel more aggressive.
     

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