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Lucky or unlucky

I’m my honest opinion, it’s not worth sending out for a full restore. There are other fish in the sea in better shape and far less costly then restoring what you have. Now on the other hand what you have there is a 4 dollar razor with a little elbow grease will be a confident daily shaver for years to come.

Larry

I’m thinking you are right Larry. I spent the afternoon cleaning it. So far it’s cleaning up pretty well but as of now there is still some discoloring. I’m going to try cleaning it a bit more before I make a decision. Right now I’m a bit apprehensive about shaving with it.


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I spent the afternoon cleaning it. I tried Bar keepers friend it did some good but I think I have to get a new can. It was all clumped up like the powder got wet.

I made some progress using a toothbrush and toothpaste. It took a lot of the discoloration off but I still have a long way to go. As it is right now I’m a bit apprehensive about trying to shave with it with that discoloration.

On the bright side my razor is now minty fresh! Lol
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Esox

I didnt know
Staff member
They are discoloration as far as I could tell with my limited vision. It is straight but the TTO mechanisms seem to be a bit loose. They open and close the barn doors but the whole things feels a bit loose compared to my Fat boy and Super speeds


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My US made SS is the same. Theres no resistance on the TTO mechanism inside so it operates freely. That may be a drawback on yours being as corroded as it is. Once its all cleaned out that might become even more noticeable. See the thread below and you might be able to tighten it back up.

Gillette Sheraton - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/gillette-sheraton.579845/

If you ever see a made in England Gillette TTO, there are British Flare Tips as well, the difference between them when opening and closing them is remarkable. The British ones are so smooth they almost feel like they're operated hydraulically.

Toothpaste can do a good job on something thats already pretty clean. It will polish slowly and gently. You'll need something a bit more aggressive than toothpaste to clean that razor up. Brasso works well too if you have any of it laying around, but any polishing compound will do the trick.
 
My US made SS is the same. Theres no resistance on the TTO mechanism inside so it operates freely. That may be a drawback on yours being as corroded as it is. Once its all cleaned out that might become even more noticeable. See the thread below and you might be able to tighten it back up.

Gillette Sheraton - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/gillette-sheraton.579845/

If you ever see a made in England Gillette TTO, there are British Flare Tips as well, the difference between them when opening and closing them is remarkable. The British ones are so smooth they almost feel like they're operated hydraulically.

Toothpaste can do a good job on something thats already pretty clean. It will polish slowly and gently. You'll need something a bit more aggressive than toothpaste to clean that razor up. Brasso works well too if you have any of it laying around, but any polishing compound will do the trick.

I seen a British red tip on a Kevvy shaves video recently. Apparently they are known to be more aggressive than the US red tips too.


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Esox

I didnt know
Staff member
I seen a British red tip on a Kevvy shaves video recently. Apparently they are known to be more aggressive than the US red tips too.


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I've not used any Red Tips so I cant say. I did compare a US made SS Flare Tip to a made in England Flare Tip, and Techs as well, here:

British vs USA Made Razors (PIC HEAVY) - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/british-vs-usa-made-razors-pic-heavy.522133/

While the geometry looks virtually identical, they sure dont shave the same. They dont feel the same in the hand either. The British razors feel more substantial somehow. Its difficult to explain but instantly noticeable in hand.

Gillette razors are grouped in generations. The first generation TTO razors came to market in the mid 1930's, I believe. The early TTO's are extremely efficient and my Gillette Regent Tech made around 1940-1945 has as much blade exposure, if not more, than my Muhle R41 or Fatip Grande.

Gillette Regent Tech.

Little blade gap and generous blade exposure.

Regent.jpg


My D2 (1958) Flare Tip SS.

Increased blade gap, decreased blade exposure.

D2SS.jpg


A general rule of thumb is, the older the Gillette Razor, the more efficient and unforgiving the shave. The newer the razor, the more forgiving and less efficient they become.

I also have a 1971 Lady Gillette that shaves even milder than my post war Tech.
 
I spent the afternoon cleaning it. I tried Bar keepers friend it did some good but I think I have to get a new can. It was all clumped up like the powder got wet.

I made some progress using a toothbrush and toothpaste. It took a lot of the discoloration off but I still have a long way to go. As it is right now I’m a bit apprehensive about trying to shave with it with that discoloration.

On the bright side my razor is now minty fresh! Lol
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What your looking at is the raw brass material used to make the razor. It wouldn't harm you in the least even tho it looks like it would. What I would do is give it a spray of scrubbing bubbles cleaner and let it sit for 10 min and then rinse (works exactly like barbacide) to disinfect it. Or you could give it an rubbing alcohol bath for 30 min or so. After that, give it a shot....if you like it, at least you know that when you finally find the one your looking for you know it will shave as you expect. There was a red tip on here for sale for 25 dollars from a board member recently...so my previous post holds true with finding a WAY better one for cheap and it would cost you WAY less then sending it out to be restored. BTW I have 2 Gillette New short combs that look way worse then that and Ive shaved with them.

As long as nothing is bent.. and the bars look straight....and the doors close like they should....there shouldnt be any doubt that it will shave you and work as intended.

Larry
 
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KeenDogg

Slays On Fleek - For Rizz
Shave with it, see if you like it. Then you can either send it off for a full replate or place a want ad in the BST for a nicer example. Murph could tell you if it is salvageable. Best of luck!
 
You never know what is hiding under the crud. Why not buy an ultrasonic cleaner for the same price as a "tune up"? add in some flitz for polishing and if necessary, a bit of red paint. Then you would have a razor, an ultrasonic cleaner and some polish for around the same price as sending it out.

Unless you mean to have it replated.

I enjoy cleaning razors - especially $4 ones. :)

-jim

Because a tune up is a bit more in depth than a cheap ultrasonic.

If you're up for a project it might turn out nice, but it's hard for me to tell. That thing is in ROUGH shape.
 
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