Best and Worst Gillette DE Razors

I have a gold ball end tech thats not in great shape, i will have to look into it.

 

Personally I would just pick up another one that is usable since it will cheaper than replating in 24k gold unless you plan to make it a custom like rhodium plating it.

 

It was a family members and survived vietnam, otherwise i would as they can be found in the wild. Its the only razor i want to display rather then use.

 

Frankly I wouldn't replate it if that is the reason unless it is going to be used again by a family member. I would spend on the presentation around the razor as a heirloom piece with leaving the razor as is. Signify it and the person it belonged to as a survivor.

 

I love family shave stuff. I have several items. Will be great seeing it if you get it plated!! Fitting tribute!

 

http://www.razorplate.com/

http://www.razoremporium.com/razor-revamp-service/

http://www.deltaechorazors.com/about-us

And probably many more.

 

I have to disagree with your assessment that the Gillette Senator is not a mild razor, on the contrary, it is one of the most mild ( read: minimal blade exposure) razors I have ever used.

 

If you don't want to pay a premium try backroadsgold on etsy to have that tech replated. They do plating for $60 a razor. I can't attest for the quality of the work they do though so you might want to ask around first.

 

I will be making some revisions to my subjective list as I get reacquainted with some of those razors since I haven't used some of them in awhile. For example I need to re-rank the New LC. It is a lot better shaver than I remember it to be. It is right up there with the New SC, is it definitively better I don't know without doing a side by side shave but it is certainly more forgiving and I can get a BBS shave out of it on a consistent basis same as the New SC and Senator with the same amount of passes thus far.

 

I just read through this thread that I started a while back. After cycling through all my Gillettes (I have many) my favourites are the Fat Handle Tech, the Flare Tip Rocket and the Slim. But truthfully...they are all great. When I die I am taking one of each to the grave with me...just in case.

 

Black beauty slim adjustable, Fatboy, Tech all are good. Nothing bad here.

 

I have different types of open combs, closed combs, adjustables and non-adjustables. All I can say is I get nice shaves from all of them, even the mild Blue Tip. Guess what I'm saying is I really don't have a "worst" Gillette.

 

I've been on a buying spree as of late since the price was right and will be ranking and re-ranking some of my choices. I want to par down the collection anyways after trying and re-trying some of these razors. I think the first re-evaluation is going to be the 3 week mild to wild SS flair tip shave off starting with a blue tip to regular flair tip to red tip. 1 week, 1 blade, 1 razor for starters.

 

On the first pass of the mild to wild. My evaluation would be they are all mild on the scale of red tip mild, 50s maltese screw silver tip milder, blue tip mildest. I get a good shave out of all 3 but the blue is just too mild. Once I finish going through the paces the blue tip is getting retired for good. Though I do have to admit the blue tip is a good training wheels razor for a beginner or a body shaver. They all would be but the blue tip is almost cut proof. It would make a good 3 piece set for a beginner to get on their RAD but not turn them off to DE shaving at the same time. With that said I remember why I don't use the flair tip that often as is but I am still wondering why I let go of the red tip initially and kept the flair tip. They all hold up well to sweating with no to little irritation when sweating heavily with the blue tip the best of the bunch but hair coming back in the soonest. Red tip opposite of blue and silver in the middle. YMMV

Shave evaluation consists of Bic Super Chrome blades hand stropped for all razors, C.O. Bigelow cream and a badger brush. Burn test afterwards using Thayers Witch Hazel and sweat test for irritation burn aka the difference between what I call a Blue collar vs White collar shave.

Next up I need to get in a shave or so with a 40s style super speed notched and see how it compares to the red tip. I might just finish off the week with a different razor each day then concentrate on blue/silver/red tips for the rest of the month.

I have other Gillette TTOs I want to evaluate but I think I will keep this pass and theme to blue collar shaving aka easy to acquire user ready pieces that are not wallet busters.

 

No surprises there as Gillette specifically marketed the Blue Tip to people with light beards and the Red Tip to people with heavy ones.

I can certainly get a good close shave from any of them, including my Blue Tip. I do much prefer the extra weight in my hand that a brass handled Red Tip (64g) or a Regular (58g) provides over the Blue Tip (42g) with its aluminium handle. I think it also helps, as with any of these Super Speed FLARE (not flair) tips, if you use a very sharp blade. Try using a Feather sometime which is quite a bit sharper than a BIC.

Here's my Flare Tip family...



50s, Blue, Red, TV Special, 60's and Black Handle.

You'll find a 40's/50's Super Speed to be very similar to a regular Flare Tip or even a tiny bit milder. The earlier ones have just a little more weight to them so my preference is the '49 and '50 NDC models. And while they feel a little bit petite in my hands, I love the classic, simple design of them.

 

I have done at least 1 shave in a flare tip and a few other Gillettes using a Feather, it has been awhile but I wasn't impressed with the shaves so I didn't stick with them. Feather blades really aren't sharper than a BIC after the first shave, they don't hold their edge unlike BICs which are pretty consistent through 3 shaves up to 5 passes per shave on each edge. It is the main reason I don't evaluate a razor with them unless I am doing a sharp to dull shave test. I have to look up the website but someone did some testing on the blades and that is what their testing showed, pretty much mirrors my experience shaving with both blades too. BICs are pretty sharp blades I think they might be the second sharpest DE blade you can get after a feather out of the package.

I get good close shaves out of all 3 also, they would pass the drop and give me 20 test with the red tip lasting the longest so far. We are pretty much in agreement over personal experience where they overlap except for the feathers.

edit
here is the site on DE blade testing.
https://www.refinedshave.com/razor-blade-sharpness-summary/

 

Of course it's all very subjective. I tried BICs a while ago. They're a good blade but I still prefer a Feather or a GSB in my Super Speeds.

I still have one or two BICs in my shave drawer from a sampler I bought so I should give them another try.

 

Might as well unless you plan to throw them out.The key though is to hand strop the blades before each shave. It makes a big difference on the overall shave, what little you lose of sharpness you make up on the smoothness and consistency of the shave. It also helps taming a blade that pulls or produces weepers. I find it helps except in cases of blades that are not very sharp to begin with like a Van Der Hagen.

GSB's are similar shave wise to BICs. The only reason I don't shave more often with GSBs is simply I have another 30+ BICs and a bunch of blades leftover from a sampler pack to go through before I start loading up on blades again. The Nacets are supposed to be just as good though I can't say for sure only going by what other people have said about them.

 

Once I do pick up some more feathers I plan to take some of these razors that fall out of the regular rotation like the blue tip and give them another spin before I decide to part with them yet again.

 

I have some Nacets. They're very decent blades and I use them once in a while but I just prefer Feathers and GSBs. And I don't take shaving too "scientifically" - it's just a shave.

To be honest I can't be bothered hand stropping. If a blade tugs I'll just grab a new one. I know it makes blades last longer and possibly smoother but 1) I never cut myself or get weepers, and 2) blades are ridiculously cheap and my stash contains enough blades to easily last me the rest of my life.

I remember that my dad used to strop dull blades on the inside of a drinking glass, a trick he learned in the British army during WW2 when blades were in very limited supply.