Nice catch Smudge.

I've got a bent tooth on a 1930 Gillette NEW and I noticed when I tried to bend it back w/ a pliers, the tooth got imprinted a little bit by the pliers teeth. So I gave up.

In other news, I finally got around to trying Wilkinson Sword blades for the first time. I've had 3 nice close shaves w/ the first blade. I should have tried these sooner.

Ok so I found this razor while cleaning up at my mom’s house, probably was my dad’s at one time. I finally picked up some blades at the local drug emporium so I could give it a go since I’ve never shaved with one before. Man all I have to say is I like this razor better than my injector style razor. Beat of all no nicks as I usually seem to get with my injector especially on my right side for some reason.

Hard to tell with the camera angle, Fat boy or Slim Adjustable?

I’m guessing SA, I have one with same “date code” as me - 1st qtr 1963

Honestly I’m new to DE razor but I’ve learned a little about it, mainly because after I posted it I went back and noticed it was the same as one of the ones you started the thread with. Yeah it’s slim adjustable with a H 3 date code. ‘62 3rd quarter. But obviously it doesn’t look as clean or in pristine condition as yours.

quote:

Originally posted by drabfour:
Ok so I found this razor while cleaning up at my mom’s house, probably was my dad’s at one time.

Bonus. I found my grandfather's shave brush on display in my mother's bathroom on shelf w/ other knick knacks.
It was that brush that got me started wet shaving.

I hope you were able to get some good blades. Looking back the blades I started w/ were horrible. Or my technique was a bit off too.

Drabfour, nice score on that Slim Adjustable! Mine is a '63 or a '64. It's my all-around favorite. You found an excellent razor to get started with.

I managed to find that other ball end razor head on the Tech handle. Comparing the two, the older of the two of them, which I recently bought is indeed the thinner head with the more aggressive angle to it. On that Tech handle with a Feather blade, it's super aggressive. Like, I have to be completely on my game to get a good shave and not cut myself or over shave with it. On the upside, it takes one careful pass and then a cleanup pass and I'm done.

Picked up a 3D printer from a friend who's getting out of the game the other day. Looking around, I found files to 3D print what amount to Gillette Tech razors. Not sure how I feel about those, but I did also find a file for a snap-on cover for three piece safety razor heads I think I'm gonna try printing.

I’d love to have an old Gillette Adjustable, I had one but no idea where it is now.

As I posted over a year ago, I bought my first electric razor, a Braun Series 8. It’s alright, it doesn’t cut me, but it takes about as long to do a good job as it does me using a double-edged razor.

The shaver head probably needs to be replaced, and I’ve been stalling on doing that. As a result, shaving more often with a razor, twice a week isn’t uncommon. Not using my mug and brush regularly, it makes no sense for me to keep shaving soap in the mug, it just dries out.

As luck would have it, my friend here, dsiets, gifted me with a Palmolive Shave Stick some years ago. Perfect. Wet my face. Rub the stick over the stubble, lather it up with my brush. GTG.

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:
I hope you were able to get some good blades. Looking back the blades I started w/ were horrible. Or my technique was a bit off too.

The only blades I found at the drug emporium were Wilkinson Sword but I figured, not sure though, that they might be better than the Van Der Hagen they carry at Walmart.

quote:

Originally posted by drabfour:
The only blades I found at the drug emporium were Wilkinson Sword but I figured, not sure though, that they might be better than the Van Der Hagen they carry at Walmart.

The Van Der Hagens I tried were garbage. Wilkinson Sword makes a couple different types of blade, the ones I got in a sampler pack were good.

Honestly, the adjustable can really offset a blade. I can dial mine down to a 1 with a Feather in it (should still be the case, but they were known as the sharpest blade available when I was learning about this stuff about five years ago) and it yields a pretty mild shave. I stuck a Derby Extra in it a while back and cranked it up to about 8 or so and it gave me a shave that I'd compare to a Feather set around 3-4. Some guys really like Derby Extras, but those in a Gillette Tech are too dull for me and give me razor burn. All that is to say, with an adjustable, the blade matters a bit less since you can dial things in.

--->This is a revival of an older thread.<---
Older people and older shave system.

Not the best week for me but I was long overdue for a hot shower and shave. I had to trim things back w/ a trimmer before I showered.

My usual "cheap" DE Edwin Jagger 89.

Blade -A fresh IP Red from before the move from Israel. I understand these are now being made again but in Germany. I've yet to try one from my 100 pack German source.

Shave Soap- Mama Bear's Mandarin Ice (Mandarin orange w/ menthol)
I have to say, for all the non tallow products I've tried, Momma Bears is my favorite. It ranks up there w/ my favorite tallow products.

Brush- Sterling synthetic shave brush. Less than $20.

Results -A very good shave on head (2 passes) and face (3 passes). I could do more passes but I'm happy w/ these results.

Finished w/ Sterling Soap Co. Executive Man aftershave w/ menthol splash.
A nice heat and then a long lasting cool.
Ive mentioned before I love the burn and then the cool.
I think it's supposed to be their version of Creed Aventus?

I've been feeling my face and head often and it feels great.

quote:

Originally posted by drabfour:

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:
I hope you were able to get some good blades. Looking back the blades I started w/ were horrible. Or my technique was a bit off too.

The only blades I found at the drug emporium were Wilkinson Sword but I figured, not sure though, that they might be better than the Van Der Hagen they carry at Walmart.

Ive found the Wilkinson Sword blades to be very good. They are one of my favorites in my DE89
I only recently discovered (bothered to try) them this year and rate the ones I got a 9.5/10
while in my EJ DE89.

I pretty much get my blades on Amazon or https://maggardrazors.com/ a bit south of me.

I need to get back into regular DE shaves.

Since retiring last year I’ve gone to the scruff side, only shaving once a week or so and usually doing a quickie with a disposable.

I am confident that I have a lifetime (for me) of blades at this point, might as well use them. Haven’t bought any creams/soaps in years but still have a good quantity and variety on hand.


Still looking for a great condition Fatboy…

*ETA*

Decided to do a good shave after my shower this morning, ahhhhh!



Gillette Slim Adjustable, Date Code I 1, just like me (1st Qtr 1963)
PolSilver Iridium blade
Wet Shaving Products (WSP) White Tip badger brush
Sterling’s “Margaritas in the Arctic” Soap, Supercharged with Cremo Cooling Shave Cream
Lather whipped up in my Georgetown Pottery scuttle
Alum Stick
Pinaud Lime Sec aftershave



As for my FatBoy quest, I spent considerable time on eBay last night looking for a decent FatBoy to no avail. eBay had crummy looking ones around $60-$80, decent used ones from about $150 to pristine north of $400. I thought about getting a cheaper used one to send for refinishing so looked into refinishing services.

Found this one, regular price $239, on sale for $199 and found a 15% off code so $169 refinished in Rhodium with Gold accents. They provide the original razor and claim it will be flawless after the refurb and refinish process. The $169 is about $20 cheaper than sending your own razor in for refurb and refinish work ($185 for Rhodium) so a pretty good deal. They refinish them to order so about a two week timeline. Will update once received.

Merry Christmas to me!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: 911Boss,

Got my “Holy Grail” Gillette FatBoy!

Took a little longer than expected, about 5 1/2 weeks from order to delivery. It is an absolutely pristine Date Code E 1, making it from 1st qtr of 1959 which was the first full year of production for the FatBoy.


I’ve inspected it thoroughly and can’t find a mark or blemish on it. I can highly recommend Razor Emporium out of Phoenix AZ. fantastic work, email communication at every step of the process and an unbeatable price.

Used my new 3D printer to make a stand and display for it. Haven’t used it yet, but it will get a shakedown run sometime this week.

Oh wow, congrats on that Fatboy! Absolutely gorgeous work. I didn’t realize they’re out of Phoenix. I may have them do some of my favorites.

A work of art, that is.

quote:

Originally posted by 911Boss:
I am confident that I have a lifetime (for me) of blades at this point, might as well use them.

I think I've come to same conclusion.
And then I recently bought the new Personna Reds being made in Germany that are out now (formerly Israel).
Shaving every other week, face and head, I think I only need shave soaps and aftershaves from here on out but I won't need any more for quite a while.

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:

quote:

Originally posted by 911Boss:
I am confident that I have a lifetime (for me) of blades at this point, might as well use them.

I think I've come to same conclusion.
And then I recently bought the new Personna Reds being made in Germany that are out now (formerly Israel).
Shaving every other week, face and head, I think I only need shave soaps and aftershaves from here on out but I won't need any more for quite a while.

Having recently gotten into the 3D printing thing, I’ve been printing shave related stuff. Today I printed a blade holder and dug my back stock out of the closet to load it up. I thought was set for “life”. Turns out I am down to only about 30 Red Personnas.

Still have gobs of PolSilver, but given price and availability I ration my use of them. Looks like they may now be known as “Wizamet”, but can’t be sure and unknown if the same quality blade. Quick check of Amazon history show it has been 10 years since I bought blades. So I should be good now for another 10 years.

Wife just told me she was on her last blade (she uses Derby) So I order up some Astra Superior Platinum for her, as well as another 100 Red Personnas for me. Also ordered a 50 pack of Shaving Revolution Japanese Stainless blades to give a try. 4.5 star avg with 23K reviews, never heard of them but figured I’d give them a try.

^^^Let us know how those Japanese blades work out.
Are they made in China? Or am I getting bad info.
Edit: I'm not trying to point fingers. My favorite blades are Russian Gillettes brands, so...

I'm focusing now more on shave soaps which I don't think I have a lifetime supply of, yet.
I'm thinking I need to revisit the non-tallow Momma Bears soaps. I have four that I use occasionally and I can't get over how well they perform vs. my tallow soaps.

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:
^^^Let us know how those Japanese blades work out.
Are they made in China? Or am I getting bad info.
Edit: I'm not trying to point fingers. My favorite blades are Russian Gillettes brands, so...

I did a little "research" on them before ordering, only negative comments were folks who considered the naming to be "deceptive". Yes, made in China using Japanese Stainless steel. I honestly don't care where they are made as much as the quality of the shave. Didn't find any comments complaining about the blades themselves and seem to have one of the highest Amazon ratings of any DE blade.


That said, I only bought the pack of 50 to give them a try.

My Gillette Blues are in fact made in Russia, and confirmed my new order of Personnas are marked as made in Germany. Curious if I will be able to tell any difference from the Israeli Reds aside from the different individual wrap. New ones have a red paper with brand name vs. basic wax paper of the Israelis.


Here is my warm off the 3d Printer Blade Dispenser/Storage box. Nice little spots where you can slide the top of the blade box into so you know what's where.

^^^ Pretty cool, I like it.

And replace the PolSilvers w/ Wilkinson Sword and those would be my "desert island" three.