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Gillette Heritage Initial Review

@MrAstro i think if someone is a fan of the DE89/R89 razor, this makes a nice addition. It’s a nice variation of the DE89 format. However, if that’s not your thing, then I can see it not working out.

I thought the de89 was meant to be comparable to a Merkur 34c but I have no problem with the Merkur being too mild.
 

BradWorld

Dances with Wolfs
I thought the de89 was meant to be comparable to a Merkur 34c but I have no problem with the Merkur being too mild.
I started my DE journey with a 34c. I moved on to other razors quite quickly. I later got an R89 and became quite a fan. I find it to be much smoother and more pleasurable to use than he 34c, but just as efficient. I wish the DE89 were my first razor. Regardless, they are close enough performance-wise that I would definitely say they are quite comparable.
 
I started my DE journey with a 34c. I moved on to other razors quite quickly. I later got an R89 and became quite a fan. I find it to be much smoother and more pleasurable to use than he 34c, but just as efficient. I wish the DE89 were my first razor. Regardless, they are close enough performance-wise that I would definitely say they are quite comparable.

It seems very unlikely but maybe mine is an anomaly. Even my Gillette Techs shave decently well for me but I just couldn’t get my face smooth with the Gillette Heritage- I was shocked. I tried on three occasions and the last occasion I even used more pressure Against my better judgement.
 

Rosseforp

I think this fits, Gents
I’m a bit late to this party but I recently bought one from Amazon in the US although I’m in Australia. I have an extensive collection of modern DE razors of various brands and a heaps of vintage Gillette’s.

I struggled to get my face smooth with the Gillette Heritage after three passes and I had to touch up spots everywhere. I was using a Feather too. It felt like there was so little blade exposure that I had to apply too much pressure. I like a Merkur 34c if we want to compare it to a modern Zamak razor but I’d call a Merkur a 3 or 4 out of 10 in terms of aggression but this was like a 1 in imo. Barely useable and I have come to prefer slightly milder razors because I get a bit of skin irritation but this was too mild.

So all in all a bit disappointing- it’s nicely presented and the handle is like the ones on my Gillette New open combs. i also bought the cheaper new Gillette supermarket DE with the heavier handle ie. with the spiral grip and I’m pretty sure it was much better. I’ll have to try the cheaper one again just to confirm my suspicions.
Mine worked great with a shim!
 
@MrAstro i think if someone is a fan of the DE89/R89 razor, this makes a nice addition. It’s a nice variation of the DE89 format. However, if that’s not your thing, then I can see it not working out.

+1. It isn’t hard to get a BBS out of that design. I shaved with my DE89 for 4 years almost daily.
 
So if I have this straight, the Amazon and Walgreens both have the same head, but different handles. The Walgreens cap is etched with the KCG logo, the Amazon cap is not etched but comes with a storage case.

Well, I have the Walgreens and I'll be getting the Amazon version in a month. Works for me, a home version (Walgreens) and a travel version with storage case (Amazon).

Of further note, Amazon is now showing its version is unavailable, not known when or if it will be back in stock.

The KCG baseplate is concave beneath where the handle is affixed but same gap. There are other minor differences as well between the KCG and Heritage. This is for product differentiation. The threads are brass for both like their R89 counterpart.
 
I’m a bit late to this party but I recently bought one from Amazon in the US although I’m in Australia. I have an extensive collection of modern DE razors of various brands and a heaps of vintage Gillette’s.

I struggled to get my face smooth with the Gillette Heritage after three passes and I had to touch up spots everywhere. I was using a Feather too. It felt like there was so little blade exposure that I had to apply too much pressure. I like a Merkur 34c if we want to compare it to a modern Zamak razor but I’d call a Merkur a 3 or 4 out of 10 in terms of aggression but this was like a 1 in imo. Barely useable and I have come to prefer slightly milder razors because I get a bit of skin irritation but this was too mild.

So all in all a bit disappointing- it’s nicely presented and the handle is like the ones on my Gillette New open combs. i also bought the cheaper new Gillette supermarket DE with the heavier handle ie. with the spiral grip and I’m pretty sure it was much better. I’ll have to try the cheaper one again just to confirm my suspicions.

Definitely something wrong with your Heritage.

Over a year ago I stopped using a Progress as my daily shaver in favor of the Heritage. And I used the Progress at some very aggressive settings.

And the Heritage is way more aggressive than a 34c which I also used daily many years ago.

The Heritage gives me some of the best shaves I've ever had (blades are Astra SP).
 
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Well gees out of my collection of god knows how many DE razors maybe 50 or 60, none of them were that mild. Maybe I have no idea ;-). I also have the brand spanking new spiral handled Gillette DE and no problem there.
 
It seems very unlikely but maybe mine is an anomaly. Even my Gillette Techs shave decently well for me but I just couldn’t get my face smooth with the Gillette Heritage- I was shocked.
It does seem very unlikely. I would expect the Muhle head to be very consistent in manufacture.
Perhaps you can post a picture of this razor.
 
It does seem very unlikely. I would expect the Muhle head to be very consistent in manufacture.
Perhaps you can post a picture of this razor.

I wouldn’t have said there’s much blade exposure there but I havent gone and studied my other ones that closely. It did shave me but after three passes I wasn’t smooth and I had to do touch ups all over the place.
 

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Cannot see an obvious problem with it. The blade exposure looks very negative but that is probably related to the aspect of the photo; it may shave better with a Kai blade. Feedback suggests the Gillette Platinum blades which ship with the razor deliver good results. Blade gap should be ~ 0.72 mm which you can check with a spark plug feeler gauge.
hi-1b.jpg
 
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Cannot see an obvious problem with it. The blade exposure looks very negative but that is probably related to the aspect of the photo; it may shave better with a Kai blade. Feedback suggests the Gillette Platinum blades which ship with the razor deliver good results. Blade gap should be ~ 0.72 mm which you can check with a spark plug feeler gauge.
View attachment 1194896

I think it’s pretty negative too. I can try and clean it up and take a few more but it’s tricky to get a good shot. I normally clean them with a toothbrush and dishwashing liquid before I put them away after three shaves with a blade.
 
Cannot see an obvious problem with it. The blade exposure looks very negative but that is probably related to the aspect of the photo; it may shave better with a Kai blade. Feedback suggests the Gillette Platinum blades which ship with the razor deliver good results. Blade gap should be ~ 0.72 mm which you can check with a spark plug feeler gauge.
View attachment 1194896
Try this photo - cleaned up and with a new blade and a bit more light.
 

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That has surprised me; I have the EJ DE89 and always considered the exposure as neutral on those razors. Always get a good shave from the DE89 although it is a tad less aggressive than the Merkur 34C.
This razor is very much -ve blade exposure but nevertheless I would expect a similar shave performance to the Gillette Tech.
Use the handle on the KCG razor and you then have a good razor. :001_unsur
hi-2b.jpg
 
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That has surprised me; I have the EJ DE89 and always considered the exposure as neutral on those razors. Always get a good shave from the DE89 although it is a tad less aggressive than the Merkur 34C.
This razor is very much -ve blade exposure but nevertheless I would expect a similar shave performance to the Gillette Tech.
View attachment 1194907
I wonder if the first incarnations were more aggressive and they’ve tried to tame it for new users... it’d be interesting if someone who got one a few years ago when they first came out could put a feather in and take a photo like this.
 
Bull
That has surprised me; I have the EJ DE89 and always considered the exposure as neutral on those razors. Always get a good shave from the DE89 although it is a tad less aggressive than the Merkur 34C.
This razor is very much -ve blade exposure but nevertheless I would expect a similar shave performance to the Gillette Tech.
Use the handle on the KCG razor and you then have a good razor. :001_unsur
View attachment 1194907

Ok here’s a picture of the King C Gillette version and I believe it is quite different. This should surprise a few people huh.
 

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Allowing for variations in photos, I would say the blade exposure is very similar; negative blade exposure on both. Note the difference I see in the two heads appears to be the curvature to the underside of the base plate (yellow line) on the KCG.
They should shave very much the same.
I would try the KCG blade in the heritage inspired razor; feedback suggests it is a better blade. That may be the difference you are experiencing. Balance point will also be different as the the KCG handle is much longer and heavier.
hi-2b.jpg
KCG1c.jpg
 
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Allowing for variations in photos, I would say the blade exposure is very similar; negative blade exposure. Note the only difference in the two heads appears to be the curvature to the underside of the cap (yellow line) on the KCG.
View attachment 1194912View attachment 1194913

Do you have an r89 and a feather? It’d be cool to see a similar photo. I fancy the KCG is slightly less negative although I agree they are both negative. One side seems more negative than the other although it might be parallax.
 
Do you have an r89 and a feather?
I don't have a picture of that combination. However the Feather blade is the same dimensions to other blades so image wise it would be no different. The Kai blades are a tad wider so you would notice a difference in shave with that blade but I think that blade is overpriced.
If the KCG works for you try the KCG blade in the heritage inspired razor as the reviews on that blade are extremely good.
I find the Astra SP and GSB work very well in the DE89 so should be fine in the Muhle heads.
 

Rosseforp

I think this fits, Gents
I wonder if the first incarnations were more aggressive and they’ve tried to tame it for new users... it’d be interesting if someone who got one a few years ago when they first came out could put a feather in and take a photo like this.
One side seems more negative than the other although it might be parallax.
Correct, the edge of the blade needs to be in the center of the picture to eliminate most of the parallax.
This is my Gillette Heritage I got December 2019. I believe it was the second release.
Without a shim the blade exposure is negative, but I was still able to get a nice shave.
GilletteHeritage.jpg

Below with a shim.
GilletteHeritageShim.jpg

With a shim the Heritage felt much like my GameChanger 84-P, the blade exposure is neutral.
GC84-P.jpg

My GameChanger 84-P.
 
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