Best and Worst Gillette DE Razors

Try it...you will be ok with it I bet.

 

I really like all of my Gillette DE Razors. I really like my Above the Tie Razor set also. I Like my Weber SS/DE the best of all my Razors. I like the Gillette Fusion Proglide Flexball Razors but my favorite razor of all of my Razors is my Weber Set up.

 

I've been shaving with various vintage Gillette's for about 5+ years now and of all the ones I've used so far the short handle 60s/70s travel tech is by the far the worst shaver of the lot.
I think I like the open combs the best but I also get really good shaves using post war techs when paired with a merkur blade. As far as the best open comb goes it would be a toss up between a senator and the 3 piece short comb.

 

My best Gillette's are any one of my adjustable's on 7, I started out with my Slim and thinking I had lost it went with the Super Adjustable 109 and lately my dads Fatboy that my brother let me have. I don't think there are any worst Gillette's but my least efficient are some of my techs, Flare Tip, Milford and some Old Types.

 

Just revisited this entire thread. Some very interesting opinions, all valid, after all the razor is a tool. It has to fit and work for the user.
I have had many vintage Gillette, TTO's, 3 Piece, all the way through carts. I can't say that any of them haven't afforded me a great shave---once I mastered the angle. Lately, I am getting great shaves from my '08 Old Type, and 30's New's (LC & SC). These are superb tools. I have found that a setting of 7 on my D3 195 is a sweet-spot for a great shave. The head of the Fatboy, being rather large, means that one can lose the angle easier. Not the case in the Old Type. BUT...my favorite of my Gillettes is my 1940 Milord Tech. Something about this razor speaks to me. Great looks, superior balance and for whatever reason, a touch of "Tiger". Those who know me, are probably tired of reading about the 2011 R41, I know, I can get repetitive. It's always a Tiger. But the Milord Tech is a "Sleeping" Tiger. Just when you turn your back on her, she pounces. To this day, I do not know why. I don't.
My first post in this thread can be ignored. I was still wet-shaving ignorant.
You've seen her before, but I never tire of posting a glamour shot of the 1940 Milord Tech.

 

Beautiful picture of your 1940 Milord Joseph.
I always like seeing it.

 

Thank you.

 

I agree with many of the sentiments expressed here. My Senator & Sheraton are my favorite TTO razor(s), but the Ranger Tech, ‘40 Milady, and ‘41 A’crat, depending on my mood, keep my attention without any disappointment.
Of the 3-piece razors, OT, Goodwill, and NEW Short Combs all win the day.

 

After 3 1/2 years of wet shaving, I can easily state that I get great shaves with all of my Gillette DEs. I find their three piece razors, like the New and the Tech, to be the most maneuverable. However, my favorite is the fatboy.

If I were to include the Gillette injector in the mix, I would have to say that is at the bottom of my list. It’s not a bad razor, but it is very mild unless it’s loaded with a twin blade. The Gillette injector was a half hearted attempt to compete with Schick and incorporated the Gillette Trac II handle.

 

I did not know gillette made an injector. I get great shaves from all of my gillettes, but my experience is limited to the following from most liked to least. Prewar tech, 64 slim, 75 SA, 76 superspeed, new lc, postwar tech, late 50s superspeed stirling. I have never tried a ranger tech, milord, old type, or the other high end ttos, and fatboy, toggle. The only razor i have used and hated is the R41. I even have a cheap plastic gillette stirling that shaves fine. I really enjoy shaving with razors knowing the original owner was pissed off at things like hitler, and pearl harbor, i always think about the history those razors have seen. I wish i would have recieved my dads superspeed he said was issued in the airforce, but at that time he said he didnt really need to shave and probably didnt keep it past boot camp, to this day he shaves with a plastic disposable, no cream.

 

My limited knowledge is limited to my limited collection of post-war Gillettes; well I had to stop somewhere

I have to say that all of my dozen or so Super Speeds and Adjustables give me an excellent shave. Having said that I will admit a slight preference for the chunkier 50's models like my NDC SS, '55 Flare Tip and '58 Fatboy, and a slight disfavor for the 70's models.

 

I can definitely agree with you when it comes to pondering the history of various razors. My typical razor is usually a common one like a Tech or SuperSpeed but its the premium ones like the Milord or Aristocrat that capture my imagination the most.

A few weeks ago, I got a great deal on a '41 Aristocrat with its original case. For some reason, I find this one really interesting. It's a '41 which means its one of the last TTOs that Gillette would have made before switching over to wartime production of Tech razors for the military. Since it's an Aristocrat, it's not a razor that a working man would buy for himself. So, was it a gift to a beloved father or son? Did someone scour the stores in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor just to find a razor? I can almost see someone desperate to find a replacement Gillette wandering into a drug store in early 1942 and being lucky to get the last razor they would stock for several years. The razor itself is a puzzle. The case itself and the top lining are in great condition while the bottom insert was completely missing (badly worn and discarded?). The razor has clearly been well-loved, missing a fair amount of the gold wash and initially having a dropped knob. This, though, should not be surprising as it was likely someones main/only razor for the Duration.

 

I'll try to rank the ones I've used but this is subjective since in the main they are all really good shavers.
Good shavers
Non-adjustables
1. TTO open comb Senator
1a. New short comb gold, contract tech handle / New long comb 3 piece gold, fat handle. LC is the more forgiving of the 2
2. Post war 3 piece tech nickel w/ date code, ball end handle
2a. Post war tech 3 piece gold no date code / Pre war tech 3 piece nickel no date code, fat handle
3. 1926 open comb travel razor silver - same style as the tuck away / Chesterfield
4. 1921-1929 open comb old type gold with curved base plate, no serial ball end handle.
5. Red tip Super Speed
6. 48-49 40s style super speed nickel / 50 40s style super speed nickel no date code
7. 50s flare tip super speed nickel w/ date code with maltese cross screw
8. Blue Tip Super Speed

Adjustables
1. Gillette slim
2. Gillette fat boy
3. Gillette Gold super adjustable black handle

Bad shavers
1. Gillette 60s/70s travel tech short handle.

I have a few others I haven't used due to needing to be replated and tetanus shots not being up to date. There are also others I've used that I've long since parted with like a black tip super speed, gold plated 47-49 aristocrat, red and blue tip super speeds. If I thought they were exceptional or unique shavers I would have kept them. Some people collect to collect some people collect to use like myself.
Outside of feel and balance of a handle you can pretty much get the full spectrum experience of shaving with various closed bar gillette razors with a fine tuned adjustable.

 

love my british gillettes-- aristocrats,rockets,flat bottom techs, new tech hybid and rfb. i don t use my adjustables much .need more time with my old types.

 

Personally, I'd ditch the short handle and try it again with a regular size one.

 

I have, that particular head just does not shave well for me.

 

i have a variety of techs, i like the flat bottom ,prewar techs the most and the 60/70s zamak ones the least.

 

For shits and giggles I did a side by side shave with the senator on one side of the face and the new sc on the other. I am hard pressed to be able to tell the difference in the shave of the 2 afterwards. The handles are largely irrelevant since I finger shave and once you find the balance point it is about the head angle and pressure applied. It just takes awhile to get out of the bad habit of using the palm to apply extra pressure. So the only variable left is the weight of the head. I would theorize the senator was only a hair better because of the weight of the head allowing for more hair removal.

Either way if I had to recommend one it would be the new sc and only because of availability. You can find user ready new short combs for $20 or less on ebay and etsy whereas Senators demand more of a premium and are harder to come by these days. Also these 2 are not mild shavers and will keep you honest as far technique goes unlike techs which even though you can get great shaves doesn't equate to great shaves on other de razors until you unlearn bad shave habits you may acquire from lack of feedback. As much as I like techs this is also another reason why i still rate those 2 open combs higher on my best to worst list.

With that said techs are what I would call a working mans razor unlike the those 2 open combs. If you are doing anything that you sweat a lot the tech shaves you don't notice the sting and irritation of sweat on the face unlike open combs when you go for a close shave with either. Both have their place and use from a practical standpoint also.

 

In my 17 years as a paramedic i have never seen a case of tetanus, its not very common since a majority of industry stopped using horses and its not common to have horse crap on the streets. Rust wont have tetanus if it is not exposed to it. Is ot possible to get razors replated? I have one that could use it.

 

Yep. I picked up I believe it is a Milord that is in good mechanical shape minus plating loss that I would deem unusable because of pitting that I might have redone to give as a b-day present. It is identical to the 48-49 40s style super speeds except for the gold tone. I would assume it also shaves exactly the same as the equivalent super speed so it would rank accordingly on my list.