What would you consider "Must-Haves"?

Well if you are going to have a shaving collection I would start with looking for the following, I believe that searching antique store's and a little elbow grease will provide you with a starter collection and some nice shavers. All of these razors are easily found with a little effort.

1. Gillette Slim Adjustable
2. Gillette Fatboy Adjustable
2. Gillette Tech 1940's
3. SuperSpeeds in the 50's, the 50's were a real heyday for Gillette
Red tip
Blue Tip
4. any of the Lady Gillette

These are all readily available and are good shavers.

 

guess i lied

on its way:

gem junior, circa 1902-1906




gem stropping machine




original owners record of all shaving items purchased, blade sharpenings, maintenance, etc.



the box

 

1. Slim adjustable
2. Gillette Platinums (SWEDES)
3. TSD soap
4. Aqua Velva after shave
5. Aqua Velva cologne

 

My basic must have razor list would be:

A Tech, older US fat handle or an English Tech.
A NEW
A Super Speed, 40's style or flare tip.
An Adjustable, Fat Boy or Slim
A Rocket/Parat
An Injector, type E, type G or adjustable


You could go crazy and try to get them all like me (not recommended).

 

Merkur Slant
Feather
em's soaps and creams

 

and i thought my OCD was bad.

 

Hot lather and a sharp blade!

 

But, it's so fun! :whacky011

 

I think of "must have" razors as razors that have to be really nice and something I would be proud to own if I had limited access to the outside world so I would say: GEM G-Bar, Gillette '48 Aristocrat, (gold) STAR.

Beyond that: GEM 1912, Schick Krona, Gillette Red Tip, Gillette Fat Boy.

 

For me, collecting is for a reason, such as to experiment to find a better a/o different shaving experiences. I started on Slim, Fatboy, and Red Tip, but later benefited from the Gillette New, Gem Push Button, and EJ, which each offer much different shaving experiences.

 

I'm a razor fetishist, I'll admit it, but in spite of really loving the diversity of beautiful Safety razors, I coul very easily get by the rest of my life with one razor. A gillette NEW, or a Gem 1912 would do me fine, but a Gillette #15 would probably be my choice.

Since I do have the luxury of more than one razor I still try to keep my rotation down to a manageable number, otherwise option paralysis would set in each morning in front of the mirror. So my list fo favorites has thus-far shaken out as follows:

1. EJ DE89L (my first DE)
2. Gillette Long comb NEW with BRW Bull Mastiff handle
3. Gillette Red Tip
4. Gem 1912
5. 1938 #15 Aristocrat
6. Vintage Brummell slant (Same as Hoffritz)
7. New Norfolk Deluxe Tuckaway (for travel)

There is no one of those that is a "must have", but they are currently the ones I have not cared to part with. Really any one of them would suffice as my one and only razor, but if I had to choose one to keep it would probably be the #15, and if I had to choose one to ditch it would be the DE89

 

I am really enjoying these retro posts!

Anyway, for me "must have" means the work horse razor that I always fall back on. I may not use it every day, but I have to own it in case I need it.

That razor is... a Gillette Tech or a modern clone. Right now, a Lord Tech clone fills this slot. It's a touch more aggressive than a Gillette Tech but not as aggressive as my NEW and nowhere near as aggressive as my open comb M.P. r89.

It's a "must have" because if I have a bad, irritation causing shave, then the Tech is the razor I can go to that won't make things worse. True, I won't get as close a shave as usual, but I will look shaved which is a must for work.

 

If I had to pick a limited amount
1. Super speed late 40s-50s
2. Gem 1912
3. Straight of some sort

Feel that gives a great variety in razors but if I could add two more it would be a Schick Krona & Slim. Both are nice change ups.

 

Beware the man with only one razor! ... Or was it Book? Anyway:
You need:
A Gillette '04 WW1 or before DE.
A 1912 Gem/Ever Ready/whatever SE
A Gillette '41/46 Ranger
A 1965 Gillette Adjustable
A Merkur Futur
A Muhle 41
A wide, black handled Boker open razor

You'll have a Razor for all Seasons!

 

The idea of "must have" gets too much into personal taste to make a list for other people. If I recommend even two razors, then it's probably about more than just the best shave. If I recommend five as being a path that one has to travel on the road to the perfect shave, why not just recommend the one that I think is best?

You can get a good idea from reading these forums which razors people consider vintage classics which everybody ought to know about. If you're perfectly happy shaving with an EJ, Merkur, or Muhle, though, you don't necessarily need to get all those Fatboys, News, Super-Speeds, Single Rings, and whatnot.

I've collected a lot of razors because they interested me for one reason or another, not necessarily because I was looking for something better than I already had. It's left me with many razors that I'm glad to own, and even to use sometimes. I wouldn't tell anyone else that they must have a Schick H, or a Stahly Live Blade, though.

Having rambled for a while, here are some razors which, now that I've tried them, are ones that I always want to have available.

• Kampfe SCS
• Gem Junior Bar
• Gem 1912
• Schick E2
• Schick O

But that's just me.

 

My Merkur HD has never let me down, and for a vintage razor I absolutely love my Gillette Red Tip SS.

 

To quote somebody, "There can be only one."

 

The 9 Commandments in random order:

Gillette Fat Boy
Gillette Slim
Gillette 1940's Super Speed
Gillette Sheraton
Gillette NEW
1914 Ever-Ready SE
Schick Injector Type G
Gem or Star 1912 SE
Gem Micromatic Clog Pruf

 

I have a dozen or so razors. Among those, the must havs, in no order:
-EJ DE86
-FatBoy
-New Long OC
-Gem Push Button
-Red Tip
-Slim