A surprisingly good shave from a mild vintage Gillette.

[EclipseRedRing]

I recently acquired this razor, a light blue 1965 Lady Gillette Star razor, and shaved with it tonight. I expected it would be fairly mild so I used a Feather blade and did a full three pass shave. Surprisingly, the result was quite excellent, it is a smooth and well balanced razor, and the extra long handle is nice in the hand and not at all cumbersome. It is not dissimilar to using a Bic Metal disposable, the best of all the disposables in my view, in the way it performs. The build quality is very good as you would expect with a Gillette from this period, and overall it was a pleasure to use. Certainly I prefer this razor to some of my other Gillette razors intended for the male market. Once you get past the idea that it is a ladies razor, and all the macho nonsense that goes along with that, it is a great razor, albeit a mild one. It may suit well those men with sensitive skin or mild beard growth. I often think that mild razors better refine my shaving technique as I believe they require more skill to use, and to achieve a good end result, than more aggressive razors. These days, using a more aggressive razor is seen by many as in some way being an 'upgrade', or 'more advanced shaving', whereas I believe that if anything the opposite is true. Have any other members tried these relatively inexpensive razors themselves and is there some merit in trying mild razors with known sharp blades?

 

[CRshavBer]

I recently acquired this razor, a light blue 1965 Lady Gillette Star razor, and shaved with it tonight. I expected it would be fairly mild so I used a Feather blade and did a full three pass shave. Surprisingly, the result was quite excellent, it is a smooth and well balanced razor, and the extra long handle is nice in the hand and not at all cumbersome. It is not dissimilar to using a Bic Metal disposable, the best of all the disposables in my view, in the way it performs. The build quality is very good as you would expect with a Gillette from this period, and overall it was a pleasure to use. Certainly I prefer this razor to some of my other Gillette razors intended for the male market. Once you get past the idea that it is a ladies razor, and all the macho nonsense that goes along with that, it is a great razor, albeit a mild one. It may suit well those men with sensitive skin or mild beard growth. I often think that mild razors better refine my shaving technique as I believe they require more skill to use, and to achieve a good end result, than more aggressive razors. These days, using a more aggressive razor is seen by many as in some way being an 'upgrade', or 'more advanced shaving', whereas I believe that if anything the opposite is true. Have any other members tried these relatively inexpensive razors themselves and is there some merit in trying mild razors with known sharp blades?

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I have never tried a “lady’s” razor before, but they definitely serve the same purpose. I am interested in the Mist Razor in Global Shave Club which is the only razor they have for ladies. It’s looks mild and beautiful. I prefer milder razors. Gives you a better chance to test out different blades in my opinion.

 

[Timeclo]

I've been meaning to try the same thing, using a mild razor with sharp blade. I hit my one year of wet shaving mark recently and I still have not tried the feather blade. Someday in the near future I'll try it out...

 

[santamariasteve]

Brother Eclipse,

You make sound and sane points. Thanx for the reminders! The only negative would be the handle appear a little long for my preference. But I understand a longer handle is better for shaving legs.

 

[BigJ]

Congratulations!!

I definitely prefer mild/moderate razors paired with sharp blades! So this is not unique to you!

 

[spookmeister]

Congratulations!!

I definitely prefer mild/moderate razors paired with sharp blades! So this is not unique to you!

I've always liked long handles for shaving my legs [emoji23]

Just kidding, it would for the drain...

Sent from my SM-T710 using Tapatalk

 

[Spang]

Thanks for your post on this great razor. The Lady Gillette shares the same head as the same era Flare Tip Super Speed, the only difference being the longer handle. I agree these are excellent shavers; in fact I think the 60s Flare Tip is one of the most underrated vintage razors. Perhaps because they are so common and sort of proletarian, but that also means they are easily found and generally pretty cheap. I also like milder razors and I consider the Super Speed one of the best; I prefer it slightly over the Tech.

 

[Jim99]

I will second the comment about the head on the Lady Gillette being the same as its contemporary flare tip. I gave also heard of a member on another forum using a Lady Gillette on a daily basis.

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I've always liked long handles for shaving my legs [emoji23]

Just kidding, it would for the drain...

Sent from my SM-T710 using Tapatalk

Thank you for providing an example of the macho nonsense to which I was referring; how was it M described Bond in Goldeneye again? Just kidding

 

[spookmeister]

Thank you for providing an example of the macho nonsense to which I was referring; how was it M described Bond in Goldeneye again? Just kidding

It was supposed to say clog not “for” the drain lol.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

 

[ajkel64]

I have a couple of them and should use them more often. I prefer milder razors and paired with a sharp blade such as a Feather they give great shaves. I also like razors with longer handles as I have circulation problems in my hands and fingers. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

 

[never-stop-learning]

is there some merit in trying mild razors with known sharp blades?

Absolutely - this is my preferred pairing, mild razor + sharp blade.

I prefer milder razors.

Amen!

I've been meaning to try the same thing, using a mild razor with sharp blade. I hit my one year of wet shaving mark recently and I still have not tried the feather blade. Someday in the near future I'll try it out...

Mild razor + sharp blade definitely works for me.

Congratulations!!

I definitely prefer mild/moderate razors paired with sharp blades! So this is not unique to you!

Absolutely concur! Mild razors and sharp blades are wonderful together.


Just my opinion and YMMV.

 

[Hak.1963]

@EclipseRedRing , Congrats

I use my Lady Gillette for head shave.
Super smooth and efficient and works very well with different blades.
Best headshaver ever