First experience with a Gillette black beauty

[Djwyman]

So I realize their are probably a million reviews of this razor since it has been around for like 40-50 years but I wanted to share my experience.

For the past 11 months I have owned 3 razors 2 of which share handles (razorock yin & yang 2 heads one handle) the other being a microtouch one. Those razors are within a 1/4 inch or so of each other so both fairly short (well not as short as say a travel or something) compared to a black beauty. Then last week I bought a 49 Fatboy which felt right as rain because it was the same hight as the MTO yet probably close to the weight of the razorock.

Then fast forward to today and I get my new to me plastic bottom 88 black beauty and it is so completely different then all of those razors. It is far longer than the others yet lighter. I figured since my sweet spot on the Fatboy seems to be 6 I would start there on the adjustment, I loaded it up with the blade I know better than any the a Gillette silver blue. First pass felt so weird but went smoothly. The main thing I noticed is my hand was not as close to my face and it felt odd but it didn't hinder my shave at all the second thing was I had to keep a mind not to put pressure on it since it is not as heavy as I am used to having still it did the shaving not me like any of my other razors.

By the second pass I was more in tune with this razor and it was working quite well yet still not quite as at home in my hands as my others but still it wasn't feeling as weird. By this time I was more adjusted to the weight.

By the third pass it felt great.

In the end I like this razor just as I do all of my others but this one is just a completely new experience to me. Tomorrow I plan to turn it up to 7 to see if it still feels comfortable or if it is like the Fatboy were 7 seemed a little more aggressive then I liked with a GSB blade.

I will say that I still think I like the Fatboy better but this was still a great shave and I plan to give this razor plenty of use. I am really enjoying the whole experience of trying different razors. Saturday I shall have 2 more new razors to try.

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[mossy-51]

I have 2 black beauty a gold 69 long handle and a 80 long handle they they seem to shave the same but my fat boy is more maneuverable ..

 

[santamariasteve]

There are shavers who insist the Gillette Black Beauty is the supreme adjustable razor, and I won't argue against that notion. Plus you have the choice of a long handle or a short handle, on a razor that offers a nice appearance and a good balance. It takes a week of daily shaving to fairly judge and get used to a razor. I personally prefer the short handled version, but that's very YMMV.

Caution: Don't get too wild about higher settings. Higher is not necessarily better. I have coarse and tough "old guy's whiskers," and I find a setting of 6 on the Black Beauty is the perfect mixture of closeness and comfort. On a Fat Boy I use a 5 and on a Slim I use a 6. I find the Black Beauty and the Slim to be "fraternal twins."

 

[frstplce]

Even with lots of new gear, I keep coming back to this razor. Just used mine earlier today set on 8 with a Wilkinson Super Sword edge blade. To me it feels like this razor adjusts from not doing much cutting at 1 to mild and efficient at the top end. I'd never call this an aggressive razor by any means.

 

[Cphobes]

Nice razor, I bought one early on in my DE experience, it worked well but I kept looking elsewhere. Recently I had it refurbished and while it's a good razor, it just isn't the best one for me. I have found it harsh in one area on my neck no matter what I try.

I have found two other razors MingShi 2k and the Parker Variant to both be better for me. The Parker Variant has taken the top spot. I will likely keep my Super Adjustable 109 but it will collect dust along with a few others.

-Stephen

 

[Djwyman]

I have 2 black beauty a gold 69 long handle and a 80 long handle they they seem to shave the same but my fat boy is more maneuverable ..

I don't know if I find the Fatboy more maneuverable or not but rather it felt more natural because of the size being more comparable to my other razors.

There are shavers who insist the Gillette Black Beauty is the supreme adjustable razor, and I won't argue against that notion. Plus you have the choice of a long handle or a short handle, on a razor that offers a nice appearance and a good balance. It takes a week of daily shaving to fairly judge and get used to a razor. I personally prefer the short handled version, but that's very YMMV.

Caution: Don't get too wild about higher settings. Higher is not necessarily better. I have coarse and tough "old guy's whiskers," and I find a setting of 6 on the Black Beauty is the perfect mixture of closeness and comfort. On a Fat Boy I use a 5 and on a Slim I use a 6. I find the Black Beauty and the Slim to be "fraternal twins."

I could see why people like it so much I do like it but it has just been such a different experience from my pervious razors. As far as the settings go when I got the Fatboy I started at 5 (my thoughts was start in the middle and go up or down depending on how I liked 5) I will do the same with this one. So far 6 was great.

Even with lots of new gear, I keep coming back to this razor. Just used mine earlier today set on 8 with a Wilkinson Super Sword edge blade. To me it feels like this razor adjusts from not doing much cutting at 1 to mild and efficient at the top end. I'd never call this an aggressive razor by any means.

I can see why it gave me a great shave and I plan to keep at least one of the 2 I just bought (bid on 2 and shockingly won both so may get rid of one.) And use it regularly.

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[BigJ]

Classic razor! Enjoy!

 

[JOYCEfromNS]

Never met a Gillette I didn't like having about a half dozen Fatboy's and even more Slims I prefer the short handled BB over all other Gillette Adjustables. My favourite Gillettes are the OC TTO from the 30's - razors don't get better than these IMO

 

[emwolf]

I learned how to shave on a long handled Super in the 1970's. Thank god it never got thrown away because I still use that exact same razor.

 

[Djwyman]

Never met a Gillette I didn't like having about a half dozen Fatboy's and even more Slims I prefer the short handled BB over all other Gillette Adjustables. My favourite Gillettes are the OC TTO from the 30's - razors don't get better than these IMO

I would love to try one of those (the 30s TTO OC that is) one day but unless I find someone slipping on eBay or find one in a thrift shop I don't see me having one anytime soon. They all seem to go for $200+ and my wife would probably make me eat a razor if I paid that I will probably just get a 3 piece open comb at some point as those seem to go for reasonable rates.

I learned how to shave on a long handled Super in the 1970's. Thank god it never got thrown away because I still use that exact same razor.

That is awesome to have what you started with that far back. Hell I know I don't even have my sensor exel from the 90s though I have thought about getting another one because I don't recall it being a terrible shave.

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[Badgerstate36]

Ive got an '80 Black Beauty and its a great shaver. I personally like mine set to 4. Any higher than that and I tend to get nicks and cuts.

 

[KeenDogg]

I would love to try one of those (the 30s TTO OC that is) one day but unless I find someone slipping on eBay or find one in a thrift shop I don't see me having one anytime soon. They all seem to go for $200+ and my wife would probably make me eat a razor if I paid that I will probably just get a 3 piece open comb at some point as those seem to go for reasonable rates.

That is awesome to have what you started with that far back. Hell I know I don't even have my sensor exel from the 90s though I have thought about getting another one because I don't recall it being a terrible shave.

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I learned on an Excel. It was a nice shave. Of course, I had about 6 hairs!

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[Djwyman]

I learned on an Excel. It was a nice shave. Of course, I had about 6 hairs!

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Haha me too and I probably used a half a can of shave cream to slather on my face. I looked like Santa before that shave with some brut after shave aftwards.

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[G.W.]

Haha me too and I probably used a half a can of shave cream to slather on my face. I looked like Santa before that shave with some brut after shave aftwards.

Oh man, me too. I remember getting hollered at to quit wasting the shave foam. And we used Brut too.

 

[Djwyman]

Oh man, me too. I remember getting hollered at to quit wasting the shave foam. And we used Brut too.

Lol heck yeah

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[Djwyman]

Ok so shave 2 update. As I stated yesterday I used a GSB blade and had the razor adjusted to 6. Today I turned it up to 7. At 6 it was a very smooth shave almost too smooth I like a little bite. On my Fatboy 7 has too much bite and 6 maybe a hair under just the right amount if that makes sense. For the BB I think 7 with a GSB anyway it is the perfect amount of bite vs smooth for me. Just for kicks tomorrow I will try 8 on it.

With all that said I do plan to play with both razors with some other blades and such but before I do that I have some more razors coming this weekend to try first stupid RAD LOL.

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[Djwyman]

Today I got a second one in the mail. I had bid on the 88 forgetting that I had put a low-ball bid on the 82 that I didn't think would hold up. Well several days after winning the 88 I get an email letting me know I won the 82. So now I am at a crossroads as to what to do with 2 plastic bottom diamond knurled black beauties. On the one hand I have the 88 which the handle has no paint loss at all neither does the numbers but the head has some hard water stains and rust stains I have been unable to get rid of so far. It also is pretty hard to do the 1/4 lock compared to the 82 and my Fatboy. On the 88 the head is almost perfect for a 35 year old razor and the 1/4 lock works the same as my Fatboy so I assume 2/3 would be normal and the 88 is not. The bad though is some of the numbers and the handle are showing some metal where it should be black. The 82 also gets bonus points for being pretty close to my birthday razor (a D1 for since my birthday is Feb 83) at a C2. The 88 gets bonus points for being the last year though...so should I try to keep cleaning the 88 get it better and keep it, touch up the 82 paint and keep it?, Keep both? Or get rid of both(not really)?

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[Esox]

Hell I know I don't even have my sensor exel from the 90s though I have thought about getting another one because I don't recall it being a terrible shave.

I still have mine, and some blades. Goes to show how much it got used lol. I changed to electrics shortly after that and then the Mach 3 so the Sensor got put away. I should try it sometime.

I really like the Black Beauty. A gold one in excellent condition is on my need/want list.

 

[Djwyman]

I still have mine, and some blades. Goes to show how much it got used lol. I changed to electrics shortly after that and then the Mach 3 so the Sensor got put away. I should try it sometime.

I really like the Black Beauty. A gold one in excellent condition is on my need/want list.

I want a gold one as well

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[Djwyman]

Shave 3 but with the 82 tonight ( had to take the new stallion out for a spin). Instead of going to 8 like I said I was yesterday I instead opted for a new blade since it was a new razor and I don't like taking a used dirty blade out of a razor to put in another razor. This time though instead of a silver blue I opted for an Astra SP. Since I had not used an Astra in a black beauty yet I dialed it to 6 as my starting point. The verdict is I don't need to try any higher with the Astra OMFG! my face feels like hair never grew on it before (except for my big gotee) I don't know how else to say it that is the smoothest my face has felt since puberty. I am really happy with this combination. That being said if the mail I am expecting tomorrow comes I will not be using the black beauty for several nights as I have a 40s SS and a Tech that I will know more about when here to try. Besides my Fatboy is feeling neglected and I need to try it with an Astra too.

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