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So I have an DE89, Fat Boy, and Super Adjustable 109. The DE89 is a fine razor but it isn't aggressive enough and my eyes were opened when I got the adjustables. I love how the Fat Boy shaves on #4 and, to me, the 109 is more aggressive than the Fat Boy at #4. It turns out that I want another razor. This time I want to get a birth year (4 quarter 1987) and I wasn't wild about the prospect of another Super Adjustable. Then, through some googlin' I found they made the Super Speed till 1988! So, I guess my question is: How aggressive is the Super Speed compared to my other razors? Secondly, why are they so hard to find?!

TL;DR
How does the Super Speeds compare to a DE89, Fat Boy, and Super Adjustable 109? Who has a quarter 4, 1987 they want to get rid of?
 
I find that the Super Speeds I have (D1/1958 Flare Tip and M1/1967 Black Handle) relatively mild. The 67 ever so slightly more mild than the 58 (my birth year/qtr). It isn't using any objective measure, just perception. But regardless you can't go wrong with a Super Speed.

My only adjustable is a I2/1963 Slim which I use on 5 most of the time.

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Which super speeds? Blue Tip? Red Tip? Flare Tip? 1940s? Early 1950s? There are so many. If you want a slightly aggressive Super Speed, I recommend the Red Tip. But only your face can give us the answer.
 
I find that the Super Speeds I have (D1/1958 Flare Tip and M1/1967 Black Handle) relatively mild. The 67 ever so slightly more mild than the 58 (my birth year/qtr). It isn't using any objective measure, just perception. But regardless you can't go wrong with a Super Speed.

My only adjustable is a I2/1963 Slim which I use on 5 most of the time.

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Ideally, I would only be looking for a black handle. Specifically a 1987 model.
 
I have 1947, 1955 and 1976 super speeds. The later the super speed model, the more mild it is.

I believe a 1980's model will be mild, but even a mild SS will shave more aggressively with the right blade. If you get one, maybe try feather blades. The extra sharpness will make it shave a little more aggressively.
 
I have 1947, 1955 and 1976 super speeds. The later the super speed model, the more mild it is.

I believe a 1980's model will be mild, but even a mild SS will shave more aggressively with the right blade. If you get one, maybe try feather blades. The extra sharpness will make it shave a little more aggressively.
I have a Feather in my Black Handle right now. I have better luck with that combo than other I have tried. My preferred blades are GSB'S and Astra SP's. Tomorrow will be shave #18 on that combo. A year ago I would never had tried to do that. I rarely shave with Feathers bu 4th that combo just works.

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Look for a H year Slim Twist or G2000. The Slim Twist was made in England and the G2000 in Germany. There might have been an American made Black Handle Super Speed made in the H year also.
 
The Red Tip is the most aggressive of the three color SS. However, I find the FB or Slim on 9 more aggressive.
 
I can get great shaves with mild razors like a Tech or aggressive ones like an R41. My experience is that the quality of lather is the most important factor in determining shave quality.
 
Hey we have the same birth quarter! AFAIK the late model Super Speeds are pretty mild. I think they may be hard to find because there likely weren't as many made if the popularity of the razor was declining. I wouldn't know the actual manufacturing figures. I think the Knack or Slim Twist might also still have been made back then?
 
Hey we have the same birth quarter! AFAIK the late model Super Speeds are pretty mild. I think they may be hard to find because there likely weren't as many made if the popularity of the razor was declining. I wouldn't know the actual manufacturing figures. I think the Knack or Slim Twist might also still have been made back then?
There is a Super Adjustable 109 with an H4 date code on ebay but I already have one so I was looking for something different. The Black Handle Super Speed looks amazing and would be perfect. I am afraid that it will be impossible to find, however.
 
The black handled super speed flair made in the 1980's is a fine razor. Not aggressive, but with the right angle can handle most whiskers with little fuss. I use one as a travel razor since they are quality, generally inexpensive and not all that hard to find.
 
Which super speeds? Blue Tip? Red Tip? Flare Tip? 1940s? Early 1950s? There are so many. If you want a slightly aggressive Super Speed, I recommend the Red Tip. But only your face can give us the answer.

+1! Super speeds are great razors! Sounds like a Red Tip might be the ticket.
 
How aggressive is the Super Speed compared to my other razors? Secondly, why are they so hard to find?!

The black handle SS is an excellent shaver. I too prefer my FB on #4, and the black handle SS is middle of the road, drifting a little towards the mild side, but efficient. I've gotten some really nice shaves from it.

This may sound a bit morbid, and take it with a grain of salt, but I think vintage razor availability is related to what generation used that razor, and when that generation starts dying off. (I know, I know... This is just my theory). Most of the razors I've found in antique stores were picked up at estate sales, I would imagine, which occurs after someone dies. So, the original owners of a lot of the '60s and '70s DEs would now be in their 60s and 70s, assuming that they bought these when they were in their 20s or 30s. I would suspect you'll start to see a lot more black handle SS and Super Adjustables in the wild, in the next 5-10 years.
 
This may sound a bit morbid, and take it with a grain of salt, but I think vintage razor availability is related to what generation used that razor, and when that generation starts dying off. (I know, I know... This is just my theory). Most of the razors I've found in antique stores were picked up at estate sales, I would imagine, which occurs after someone dies. So, the original owners of a lot of the '60s and '70s DEs would now be in their 60s and 70s, assuming that they bought these when they were in their 20s or 30s. I would suspect you'll start to see a lot more black handle SS and Super Adjustables in the wild, in the next 5-10 years.
That is actually a great point. I didn't even think of that!
 
From what I have read, the fatboy (the 195 adjustable) was the next step evolution in razor for the every man razor. It was taking all 3 of the previous super speeds the Blue tip (Light), the flair tip (regular), and the red tip (heavy).
Each 3 settings on the 195 adjustable correlates to the super speeds. Example the blue tip would be setting 1,2,3, on the adjustable. So the birth year razor your looking for a Black Handle super speed setting 4,5,6, compared to the fatboy, should be in the gap ball park of what your looking for, the aggressive part however might not be the same due to the extra weight of the....Fatboy. I sure hope that came acroos the way it sounded in my head. ha ha ha.
 
The black handle SS is an excellent shaver. I too prefer my FB on #4, and the black handle SS is middle of the road, drifting a little towards the mild side, but efficient. I've gotten some really nice shaves from it.
That's similar to my experience. I typically use a Slim at #5, and my Black-handle SS seems just a tad milder than that.
[edit] I particularly like the weight and grip on the Black-handle SS and the Flare-tip Rocket.

This may sound a bit morbid, and take it with a grain of salt, but I think vintage razor availability is related to what generation used that razor, and when that generation starts dying off. (I know, I know... This is just my theory). Most of the razors I've found in antique stores were picked up at estate sales, I would imagine, which occurs after someone dies. So, the original owners of a lot of the '60s and '70s DEs would now be in their 60s and 70s, assuming that they bought these when they were in their 20s or 30s. I would suspect you'll start to see a lot more black handle SS and Super Adjustables in the wild, in the next 5-10 years.
I think you may have something there. Razors are more personal than, say, an antique radio, a cool car, a decent pocket knife, a set of china, etc. and so might be more likely to be sold off by someone who doesn't actually use one.
 
The black handle SS is an excellent shaver. I too prefer my FB on #4, and the black handle SS is middle of the road, drifting a little towards the mild side, but efficient. I've gotten some really nice shaves from it.

This may sound a bit morbid, and take it with a grain of salt, but I think vintage razor availability is related to what generation used that razor, and when that generation starts dying off. (I know, I know... This is just my theory). Most of the razors I've found in antique stores were picked up at estate sales, I would imagine, which occurs after someone dies. So, the original owners of a lot of the '60s and '70s DEs would now be in their 60s and 70s, assuming that they bought these when they were in their 20s or 30s. I would suspect you'll start to see a lot more black handle SS and Super Adjustables in the wild, in the next 5-10 years.

I dunno - I'm 60 and began shaving in the early 1970s. After all the moves, marriages, and life-in-general, I'm not surprised that I have nothing shave-related from those years. I did have an Old Spice soap mug that finally fell apart last year, but other than that, nothing remains. After DE blades became scarce and injectors became old-fashioned, I and I suspect most of my fellow boomers moved on to the next shaving craze to come down the pike as traditional wet shaving became more or less obsolete. I think for most men, shaving was, and is, not a hobby or pleasurable activity. I'd be no more likely to find a 70s-era razor in my attic than I would to find my old 8-tracks, betamax, or the FM converter from my first car.
 
I dunno - I'm 60 and began shaving in the early 1970s. After all the moves, marriages, and life-in-general, I'm not surprised that I have nothing shave-related from those years. I did have an Old Spice soap mug that finally fell apart last year, but other than that, nothing remains. After DE blades became scarce and injectors became old-fashioned, I and I suspect most of my fellow boomers moved on to the next shaving craze to come down the pike as traditional wet shaving became more or less obsolete. I think for most men, shaving was, and is, not a hobby or pleasurable activity. I'd be no more likely to find a 70s-era razor in my attic than I would to find my old 8-tracks, betamax, or the FM converter from my first car.

Yeah, I'm like you. Whatever I had is long gone. All I remember is a Schick Krona.
 
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