Gibbs Replica Razor

The battle of the adjustable's!

Representing the USA we have the Gillette Fatboy E1, on the other corner, representing Europe (myself from Portugal =P), the french Gibbs réglable!

Rules: 3 rounds, 3 days beard (I have a light beard), proraso pre shave, prosaso soap and proraso (omega) boar brush.

Some photos of the contendors:







I tried to be as original as I could so gibbs blades (NOS) and some Gillette blades (NOS) from the 70-80's I believe. Im trying to be impartial.

The fatboy is one of my daily shavers, I know it well so 1st pass I like in 4, 2nd pass I like in 6. This was my first time with gibbs, so I used the N setting which I believe was the one they recomended.

Let the battle of the heavy weights begin!!

What two different shavers we have here. The gibbs is head heavy, very close shave and a big blade exposure. Again, first time with the gibbs, I was very cautious.
1st round: fatboy wins! Much softer and similar effectiveness. The gibbs made me feel the blade too much and I dont think it was a better shave. I know that some persons like to feel the blade, thats not my case, but it feels like a shavette.

2nd Round: fatboy in 6. Now shaving against the grain, both did a good job, no burns, soft shave. But again the fatboy wins.

3rd round: well lets get the fatboy in 9!
In this round Im out of my confort zone in the fatboy. Again I feel more the gibbs blade but its more confortable than the fatboy. The fatboy gave me a couple of nicks, the gibbs none. Its a final BBS shave but the 3rd round goes to Gibbs!

Some Proraso White balm to finish and Im done! After 1h I still feel some irritation from the fatboy in 9, the gibbs side is great.

I have mixed feelings. The fatboy is my home, the french Gibbs was a weekend away. It was nice, fun, but feels good to come home. But there is no doubt that the gibbs is a great shaver, and I believe many of you will love the feel.

I also have to say that I used 2 vintage blades to make this original, but every razor feels different with a different blade.
I want to try the gibbs with some astra platinum and see how it feels.

Thanks!!!

 

I want to add some pictures from the gibbs in N and the fatboy in 9.

 

I would guess that, ultimately, the Gibbs would prevail.

 

The Gibbs is adjustable. If you're feeling more blade than you like, turn it down.

 

I know, but it was the first time, I wanted to get some experience with it =)

 

It reminds me the Rex Ambassador.
Speaking of the Devil ...

Pearl Shaving
Flexi

https://pearlshaving.in/products/mens-grooming/razor/flexi/pearl-flexi-adjustable-razor/​

​

 

Is this a Chinese rex knockoff? They already screwed the guy making the Gibbs replica

 

@Juno
Nope.
Pearl Shaving is from India.
I know this brand from years.
Never had issues. I trust it.

 

I haven't found any info about the price of the Gibbs replica. But the Pearl will go for about $70.00. It's all CNC brass with special chrome plating. It's specs are.........

• Razor Total Height: 90 MM
• Razor Handle Height: 83 MM
• Razor Type: Two pieces razor
• Razor Head Type: Close Comb.
• Razor Weight: 130 Gram*
• Blade Gap: 0.35 MM – 1.40MM

 

Considering what people pay for razors ~$69 USD which is what the exchange rate as of this writing is certainly worth rolling dice on this one.

 

Im waiting for the v2 version from yaqi shaving:

https://www.yaqishaving.com.au/collections/adjustable-de-safety-razors

Its cheap and who got v1 says it was very good.

 

I've had a couple of shaves with mine. Enough to give some first impressions, but not enough for a full review yet.

 

The Pearl Flexi had production issues with their first and second runs (V1 and V2), which is to be expected with a new razor of any kind. I own the Pearl Flexi V4 (fourth production run) and it is a superb piece of shaving hardware - except for the paint used for the red dot indicator.

After the first shave with it, as I do with all of my razors, I rinsed and washed it clean and then dipped and swirled it in rubbing alcohol. This is not just a sanitizing ritual. The alcohol also breaks down any soap inside and out as well as dry evaporates any left behind water that didn't shake out. The red dot indicator paint immediately began to run, I noticed it weeping from the razor into the alcohol. I noticed it in time to get it back out of the alcohol and it not have totally washed away all of the red paint. Now, it is just a small, faint red dot.

Of course this doesn't affect the shave but still annoying for this to happen with a brand new razor. The Pearl Flexi is probably the best DE razor in my several-razors rotation.

If you can't afford or just don't want to spend the $249 on the Rex Ambassador (plus an additional $50 for the stand, and additional $100 for the protective case), the Pearl Flexi is the way to go at this time. I purchased mine from Maggard Razors for $80 shipped, a stand included in the set.

As we all know, any vintage razor is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it. Personally, I feel the Gibbs adjustable razors are overpriced, too much of a hassle to shave with since you have to modify modern DE blades to fit it and shaving wise aren't any better than a Toggle, Fatboy, Slim, long or short handle Black Beauty, Rex Ambassador or Pearl Flexi. I feel that even just for putting in one's razor collection, the Gibbs' are still overpriced unless MAYBE for a minty NOS set but even then, personally IMHO, over $250 is too much. They aren't exactly super rare unicorns, unless NOS, and are usually sold with at least its original case. All of that said of course IMHO. I just can't imagine paying $400, $500 for a Gibbs and then actually putting it into shaving rotation.

Now... If you want a super rare unicorn adjustable that uses modern DE blades, find a Personna Micrometric or a L'Essor Le Supreme.

 

This is opening a door for alot of debating People will then say the same for Gillettes with the red dots, bottom dials, toggles, executives, fatboys since there is the slim which can be had for $25 easily. But im not about to lol. I enjoy the hobby in general and collecting odd ball. Rare and common razors. I especially enjoy finding them for cheap! Lol

 

This why I made sure to say it's all IMHO and "any vintage razor is worth whatever you are willing to pay for it. lol

 

Oh i saw that.. but most dont. Lol that “IMHO” needs to be a neon sign flashing in bright colors because some tend to gloss over that part and go straight for the jugular.

 

I couldn't make it flash but I edited for brightness.

 

The heritage gibbs is definitely on my radar. I cant wait for the reviews to come in from those that have the original and the new.

 

Third shave with the Heritage. Normal (N) settings for both the aluminum Gibbs and the Heritage, 2nd use Feathers. Again more blade is felt with the Gibbs, and the lightweight model had more trouble ATG on the moustache and chin than the Heritage which was smooth and serviceable in its efficiency on the beard. As expected I wanted another razor for pick-ups on my head shave, today the 1913 Vector aka the Mark Cross.

Very much enjoyed the Heritage today. Lose the annoying dial + handle adjustment and it's really a fine razor for most folks for whom the geometry meets their needs.




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Are you the only one with a vintage gibbs that is reviewing this razor?


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