All things considered, what makes an outstanding DE razor?

[santamariasteve]

What makes an outstanding DE razor? I believe 4 things: It must feel good in the hand. It must give a smooth shave. It must give a close shave. And cosmetically it must look attractive.

All things considered, I believe 5 DE razors meet this criteria best: The Gillette NEW Improved--Standard from the 1920's. The Gillette Sheraton from the 1930's. The Gillette Aristocrat from the 1940's. The Gillette Super Speed from the 1940's. And the Gillette Slim from the 1960's.

Admittedly, all this is somewhat subjective. But this is the way it seems to me

 

[Teppanyaki]

I would have said the Gillette New except I think the fat handle from the Tech works better.

I have toyed with the idea of buying an Aristocrat at some point . . . like I need another razor! I rationalize not buying it by thinking that it would be harder to shave under my nose with a TTO.

 

[mswofford]

What makes an outstanding DE razor? I believe 4 things: It must feel good in the hand. It must give a smooth shave. It must give a close shave. And cosmetically it must look attractive.

All things considered, I believe 5 DE razors meet this criteria best: The Gillette NEW Improved--Standard from the 1920's. The Gillette Sheraton from the 1930's. The Gillette Aristocrat from the 1940's. The Gillette Super Speed from the 1940's. And the Gillette Slim from the 1960's.

Admittedly, all this is somewhat subjective. But this is the way it seems to me

Hi Steve; I like your criteria. Following that I would like to add "easy to maintain". I have enough Gillette NEW short combs to show ageing sequence from NIB to deplated and they all look good to me. If you neglect shaving for a week (Gasp!) they will handle the job. Price is $10-$60; not rare. My Weber PH also meets that standard. I bought a brand new Gillette SS in 1967. After using up the included blades I retired it. Nice enough razor but too hard to keep as clean as I want.

 

[Shutterbug57]

My top picks would be:
- The Gillette NEW Deluxe with the common bar handle from the 1930's. (or the President if you can find/afford one)
- The Gillette Aristocrat/Sheraton/Senator from the 1930's.
- The Gillette Red Tip SuperSpeed from the 1950's.
- The Merkur 38HD Barberpole Classic from the 2010's.

Honorable mention to the pre-war Fat Handled Tech, but it fails IMHO in attribute 4 (looks).

 

[onotoman]

Anything not made from Zamak (zinc alloy), sorry, couldn't resist

 

[deafficianado]

All of the vintage Gillettes are outstanding.

 

[tictoc]

I like all the Gillettes with barber pole handles!

 

[Rothman]

I prefer adjustables. You can emulate most any razor out there with a single piece. The vintage Gillette adjustables are hard to beat on most points. Fatboy for a heavier handle, Slim or black beauty for a longer handle. Very mild to fairly aggressive. All bases are covered. It's impossible to find a razor more versatile than an old Gillette adjustable. I would put that up to any test that could be made to prove versatility of a safety razor.

 

[NingYupOwaDat]

If modern razors had the same build quality as vintage Gillettes the EJ DE89 would be the most complete razor out there for me.

 

[aihpcfl]

What make an outstanding DE? 1. At the right angle it cuts whiskers, and the angle is easy to find. 2. At the wrong angle it doesn't cut skin. 3. It does #1 and #2 very well with any standard DE blade. 4. It does #1,#2, and #3 for a lifetime and more.