I traded for a well used Gillette New and it’s one of the smoothest most efficient razors I’ve used. Based on that I traded for one that had been replayed and it was one of the roughest razors I’ve used. Neither one has teeth that seem to be noticeably out of line. Any ideas why there is such a stark difference in the feel?
I think it’s part of the replating process. I’ve replated several really old and ugly family Gillettes with good results but it ruined my uncle’s old Tech as a shaver. It used to be ugly to look at but shaved wonderfully. Now it’s pretty but is barely usable. Remember that these razors had pretty good tolerances when they left the factory. Some people argue by the time you need to replate them the tolerances are already out of whack due to wear and the replating just puts them back to where they were originally. I think a person skilled in replating probably could bring them back close to original but there are some variables that keep this from being a sure thing. When they replate they place the razor in an acid bath to removed the original plating and then do some buffing to smooth things out. It’s possible the stripping and buffing took off too much metal. Then they electroplate a new finish. There can be some variation based on time in the bath (probably current, type of metal, quality of metal in the solution etc.) If they leave it in too long the plating would be too thick. Not long enough it would be too thin. Anyway, there’s a ton of variables. I’ve had seven replated and it ruined one as a shaver. I also own unmodified originals of these razors and I think generally they shave a tiny bit better then even my best refurbished ones. It could all be in my head though (YMMV.) The only thing I’m 100% sure of is replating ruined my uncle’s Tech as a shaver. I’m sure someone more knowledgeable then me will chime in with corrections and additions.
I've had similar experience and you explained it perfectly. Ruined the shave on a Krect Spiral Curve Slant I had. Acquired another in fair shape and leaving it alone to protect the shave quality. You nailed the reasons and risk. Sometimes it effects it and sometimes it doesn't
so far i have been lucky.any of the old gillettes i really liked i tried and succeeded in finding mint near NOS replacements,either parts or complete.a bit more time consuming but worth it.not really a solution for family heirlooms razors if you must use them but..i preferred mint original parts on my car restos when available as well.
Depends which model(s) you got. They made them in a few iterations and then there are the foreign ones made in England for example which are different from the American counterparts. The different iterations all shave differently same with the American vs. the English made versions. For example you have new long and short comb 3pc razors, they shave completely different, easy to tell the difference though because of the length of the combs on the guard side by side are different and where the Gillette logos are situated. The short combs the logo is in the center of the base plate and long combs the logo is to the side. Then you have Deluxe versions which have flat bottom base plates, they shave differently from the long and short combs, then you have 2 versions of those that also shave different from each other, one with a 15mm wide flat portion on the base plate and the other 17mm. Then you have the Goodwills which can be mistaken as new razors if you don't know Gillettes especially the 160 and 175 models which are based on the new base plate. Short story long if the base plates aren't marked the same they aren't the same razor and won't shave the same. If they are then we'd need to see them to figure out what is what. If it turns out they are identical sans plating then the plating is most likely the culprit.
Based on your description I believe the well used one is a long comb, but not a flat plate and the replated one was a short comb( I no longer have the replate I put it in a pass around box).
That would explain the discrepancy in the performance. The long comb new razor is mild compared to a short comb new.
I couldn’t tell a difference in the combs before I posted I had to go off of where the Gillette stamps were. The long comb is still very efficient.
long comb vs short comb .short comb on left.reissue short combs had long comb caps also.early short combs had bigger cap corner tabs that won' fit long comb base plates.
