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US #160 Goodwill vs British Empire set

I'm thinking about adding a Goodwill to my collection and I'm torn apart between the US #160 and the British Empire. From what I can see, aside from the different plating and top caps, the base plates on both look identical and I was wondering if someone who owns both can share more details about their performance.

The US seem a lot more common, easier to find and it's also a bit cheaper compared to the British version and I would like to know if it's worth the trouble to hunt the British version if both razors perform the same or very close.

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R

romsitsa

It is a ymmw thing. Some say even the patent stamps can make a difference (search for angel razor) I tried them and couldn't tell them apart from the New or Rfb.
The British looks much better being silver plated, imho.
Scarcity also depends on where you look, British ones are not that hard to find in Europe.
 
It is a ymmw thing. Some say even the patent stamps can make a difference (search for angel razor) I tried them and couldn't tell them apart from the New or Rfb.
The British looks much better being silver plated, imho.
Scarcity also depends on where you look, British ones are not that hard to find in Europe.

So basically, aside from looking slightly different, these two Goodwills shave like a regular NEW LC? Well if that's the case, then I might not even bother looking for one. I do agree about the patent stamps. Some folks even claim that the late US Aristocrats shave different compared to the President and the Diplomat and guess which ones are the better shavers :D. As always, thank you for the information and for saving me the trouble, time and money.
 
Don’t know anything about differences and never tried a US one. All I know is that my British Goodwill in perfect nickel is the mildest and smoothest OC I ever tried. Even better than the 1st gen Aristocrat.

I will never part with it. Even simply loading the blade is an awesome experience. Never seen such precision in grabbing the blade and keeping it perfectly in place.

Magnificent design!
 

EclipseRedRing

I smell like a Christmas pudding
I have owned the English Goodwill with and without patents and could not tell the difference in terms of the shave. I also own an English New flat bottom and for me the shave is identical to the Goodwill. That said, my English Goodwill is my favourite of any Gillette I have tried and for me it is the best Gillette ever made. The reason is clearly not the shave, which as I say is matched by the New and probably others, it is instead the whole package, including the aesthetics, the history, the affordability, the way the blade is held, the simplicity, and even the name. My Goodwill has lost most of its plate so is brassy, but I would not have it any other way, to me it is a thing of beauty. It actually makes me happy when I use it and you can't put a price on that 👍

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So basically, aside from looking slightly different, these two Goodwills shave like a regular NEW LC? Well if that's the case, then I might not even bother looking for one. I do agree about the patent stamps. Some folks even claim that the late US Aristocrats shave different compared to the President and the Diplomat and guess which ones are the better shavers :D. As always, thank you for the information and for saving me the trouble, time and money.

The teeth of the comb are the same on both,
but the gap on the Goodwill is huge compared to the New Long Comb.
Also, the way that the cap and the base plate fit, the New Long Comb curves the blade more.

They're a little bit different to use
and like many things that I like which are a little different from each other,
I'm not sure which one I like better.

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The teeth of the comb are the same on both,
but the gap on the Goodwill is huge compared to the New Long Comb.
Also, the way that the cap and the base plate fit, the New Long Comb curves the blade more.

They're a little bit different to use
and like many things that I like which are a little different from each other,
I'm not sure which one I like better.

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How's the blade support? I've heard that not all Goodwills are - drop the blade and done and some require a little blade adjustment.
 
How's the blade support? I've heard that not all Goodwills are - drop the blade and done and some require a little blade adjustment.

The blade is the piece that locks the cap and the base plate together.

As soon as the cap, blade, base plate, sandwich is made,
there's no jiggling, not even without the handle.

Well, maybe a very little jiggling, but not much.

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I’ve tried every version of Goodwill (except one from Argentina); the one I kept is the American #160. I call it ‘My Precious’.

Did you choose this one because it was superior to the british ones (that would be surprising, but not impossible) or because of some patriotic & mojo feeling, as @BradWorld often says ?

I'm quite curious about these Goodwill, although i've always considered the blade holder design quite weird. But as @romsitsa said, it is not too difficult to find the british ones in Europe, so maybe it's worth to try... 🤔
 
Did you choose this one because it was superior to the british ones (that would be surprising, but not impossible) or because of some patriotic & mojo feeling, as @BradWorld often says ?

I'm quite curious about these Goodwill, although i've always considered the blade holder design quite weird. But as @romsitsa said, it is not too difficult to find the british ones in Europe, so maybe it's worth to try... 🤔

99% of the vintage Gillette razors are not that hard to find, since they were made by the millions, it's just that some are way more common than others like for example the #160 is concidered to be the most common Goodwill model and the British one is a bit more uncommon, but not rare.

I will probably grab the US version first and at some point get the British one as well. A few years ago I came across a #164 reverse stud and it was quite cheap (around $50), but back then I thought it was too expensive. I have no regrets though, since the #164 is basically a nice looking Old Type and I hate Old Types.
 

Hannah's Dad

I Can See Better Than Bigfoot.
Did you choose this one because it was superior to the british ones (that would be surprising, but not impossible) or because of some patriotic & mojo feeling, as @BradWorld often says ?

I'm quite curious about these Goodwill, although i've always considered the blade holder design quite weird. But as @romsitsa said, it is not too difficult to find the british ones in Europe, so maybe it's worth to try... 🤔
The blade holder is ’weird’, but the inserted blade creates proper alignment. I wanted to like the British version more, as I much prefer nickel to gold-plated brass; but there was something about the #160 that screamed ‘keep me, you idiot.’
 
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