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Do I need a Black Beauty?

I have a fatboy and a slim. From what I gather, the slim and the BB have pretty much the same head. I just got the 2 former ones within the last month. The BB seems to be more desirable lately than the slim on the auction blocks.

On this forum, some people swear by the BB, some the other 2. I have also read here that the BB is not made as well, and with some aluminum, and later models with nylon on the baseplate.

I know I dont “need” another razor to go with my umteen other ones. But other than having it in my collection, is it really worth getting BB? Maybe a 109 because of the longer handle?

And for reference, I have, among others, pre and post war techs, a red tip superspeed, a Baili 177, Weishi 9306 long, king c gillete, merkur 33c, maagards v3,v3m, v3a, baili 131, many schick injectors, ming shi futur clone, merkur progress, several GEMs, Supply V2, and on the way: ming shi 3000s and weishi adjustable (yintal branded).

thanks
 
The BB is great. I have one. But it's pretty identical to the slim, which I also have. If you already have the slim, the BB is going to feel pretty much the same. The only differences are, the alu handle on the BB feels a lot lighter and it is also longer. When it comes to balance, I'd have to give this to the slim.

IMO, going from a slim to a BB is a waste of money.
 
The BB is great. I have one. But it's pretty identical to the slim, which I also have. If you already have the slim, the BB is going to feel pretty much the same. The only differences are, the alu handle on the BB feels a lot lighter and it is also longer. When it comes to balance, I'd have to give this to the slim.

IMO, going from a slim to a BB is a waste of money.
Kinda what i thought. Thanks.
 
And no, the BB is not poorly made. It's very well made. The one I have still looks pristine and performs great. In fact, it's a lot better than those modern ones.
Thanks. I thought I read somewhere here or perhaps on another forum that the BB was more prone to mechanical issues because gillettes QC went downhill around the time the BB was introduced, and that they cut corners with material to decrease production costs. But it is neither here nor there since i have a fatboy and slim.😄
 
Thanks. I thought I read somewhere here or perhaps on another forum that the BB was more prone to mechanical issues because gillettes QC went downhill around the time the BB was introduced, and that they cut corners with material to decrease production costs. But it is neither here nor there since i have a fatboy and slim.😄
I don't know about mechanical problems since mine is fine. However these TTO have been around for decades, mechanical problems are bound to happen in some. But since you have a functioning slim, stick with that one. Don't waste money on the BB. Slim just feels heavier and more solid.

Not that the BB is bad, it just feels like a downgrade because of the lighter weight. Unless you like lightweight razors.......

I think gillette when a step backwards with the BB when it came to material choice and balance.
 
I don't know about mechanical problems since mine is fine. However these TTO have been around for decades, mechanical problems are bound to happen in some. But since you have a functioning slim, stick with that one. Don't waste money on the BB. Slim just feels heavier and more solid.

Not that the BB is bad, it just feels like a downgrade because of the lighter weight. Unless you like lightweight razors.......

I think gillette when a step backwards with the BB when it came to material choice and balance.
Thanks.
Yea, i will pass on the BB.
My slim arrived in good mechanical shape. My fatboy just needed some work to get the bars even across each side, and the same on both sides. I used pliers, screwdrivers, and a vice! I got it about 90 to 95% and it shaves well. Dont know how close it is to original spec, but i got it to approx 1 click more agressive to my slim and about the same on 1 to a tech, which I based on the gap chart on this forum. I just eyeballed it! 😄I like mild so a 1 on the fatboy works well, but i have dialed up to 2 and 3 for the second 2 passes, respectfully.
I wrapped electrical tape around the pliers, but I still managed to badly scratch one of the doors!!! Bummer, since it now shows brass. It had been in great cosmetic shape. But i would rather have straight bars that shave well rather than a museum piece that looks nice.
 
I have a Fat Boy, a Slim, a BB SH, and a BB LH.

I love them all. No clear preference. If I had a preference it would be more subjective than objective. The gaps are SLIGHTLY different. I use the FB at a setting of 5. I use the others at a setting of 6. I'm "a set it and leave it" shaver. I have tough and coarse "old man whiskers."
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
You do need a Black Beauty. I was not going to buy one but now I have several. They are great razors and give a really great shave. I will always buy them of the price is right for me.
 
BB on 9 has more gap than both Slim and Fatboy, so if you want a more efficient razor, I think you're going to like it. The only thing I don't like about the BB is that it's handle is made out of aluminum, but in terms of shaving it shaves me slightly better than my Slim.
 
As discussed, the BB is not all that different from a Slim, somewhat lighter with different materials. Unless you like the looks, it's redundant.

On the other hand, I did not see a Schick Krona in your list!
🤔
 
I have multiple Slims, a Super 84 and Super 109. Up through 1976, the Supers had brass baseplates and unfortunately the Super 84 was short lived. I don’t own a nylon baseplate Super but I have heard they shave the same as the 109s. As far as durability, the nylon baseplate Supers still display a rich dark appearance even on the worst examples I’ve seen on auction so the nylon baseplate idea Gillette had to same money appears to have been successful. Brass handles can take much more abuse than aluminum ones of course, but the majority of us take more care with our acquisitions than the common shavers back in the day.

All of my razors are in mint condition. I find the Supers provide a better shave experience than my Slims. I lend this to some gap changes between the models and a light handle with the Supers. The Supers are perfectly balanced but are so called, head heavy. All of my “head heavy” razors round up the top of my shavers in the Super 84, Old Type and Gibbs. I also think the Supers are just beautiful, they look like a Slim in a tux.
 
I learned to shave on a Black Beauty when I was a teen. I thankfully still have that same razor in my den and it's a delight. I prefer the Slim over all the Gillette adjustables I've tried, but the BB is very close second. It hasn't stopped me from picking up many razors I don't need.
 
Need? Probably not. But I think the real question is, do you want one? I love my Fatboy and my Slim. I am planning to pick up a Black Beauty at some point, if only to add to the Gillette adjustables collection. They are many “out there” and they’re not very expensive, so why not? Enjoy!
 
Thanks all. As i said none of us “need” another razor, lol. But since the BB is an adjustable, minor gap differences dont bother me since I am a mild razor guy. I doubt I will go above 3 on my fatboy, that is, at least the way my fatboy shaves after fixing the guard bars.
I really dont have a preference among long and short handle razors, since both work for me. But a 109 would at least give me variety as opposed to the 84.
I know, I will probably get one eventually. I thought we werent allowed to talk prices, but people seem to be doing so. So my reason for not getting a BB so far is that the prices havent been right. I cant see paying more than I paid for my slim just a few weeks ago. I think I got a fair price for my fatboy last week, certainly more money than the slim, though. Strange that the BB goes for more than the slim right now considering the BB was in production much longer.
Literally every day it seems there are at least 5 new listings each for the fatboy, slim, and BB.
I like to dial up with adjustables, plus I think they are cool. I must admit in general the TTO is kind of a gimmick. A few seconds saved every blade change?
So I need a Schick Krona? I havent researched them as I focused on injectors for Schick, with an e, g, several i and j variants, an l, and an m. The dummies thread was helpful for that.
 
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