Flare Tip Super Speed vs Slim

[econjoe]

I started traditional wet shaving last weekend, and already I'm converting a friend of mine. This weekend I picked up a D2 (1958) Flare Tip Super Speed and a K4 (1965) Slim Adjustable. Both are very smooth opening and closing and the aduster on the slim works great, but the finish on the Super Speed is a little better shape. My question is, which would be the best choice to give to my friend for him to get started?

 

[King camp]

The flair tip,otherwise they will be playing with the adjustment and have a harder time adjusting.

 

[nemo]

The flare would be the best, but it also looks to be the less common Cavalcade of Sports TV Special. Is there banding on the knurled part of the handle?

Nice pickups.

 

[athair]

Yeah, flare tip cuts out a lot of variability while learning. Unless you think you could convince them not to change the setting on the slim for at least a month. Personally I doubt it's humanly possible to withstand the temptation.

 

[MeanGreenZ71]

Buy him another superspeed on ebay or from an antique shop. You could also always order some of the Rimei or Sodial razors on Amazon for $3 or less. Keep in mind they will probably take 2 weeks or so to show up.

 

[econjoe]

The flare would be the best, but it also looks to be the less common Cavalcade of Sports TV Special. Is there banding on the knurled part of the handle?

Nice pickups.

I don't believe there is any banding. Here's a better picture just to make sure I'm looking at what I'm supposed to:


For comparison, here's another flare I picked up this weekend with what I would say is banding:


Is there any information about the different flares? I wasn't aware that some are more common than others since all I know about them is the basic identification and dating found on the Gillette Date Wiki.

Thanks for the help!

 

[nemo]

Well, the flare tip TV Special was a one-year only, maybe not even one year. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Gillette_TV

This general page too: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Gillette_Flare_Tip_Super_Speed

 

[econjoe]

That's a nice surprise, especially since I gave $9 for it today.

Thank you for the information. I would have never noticed the difference with the banding.

 

[Copierguy]

The second Super Speed is later than 1958 but I can't tell for sure by how much. I think it is 1960 or later......??

 

[econjoe]

It's stamped F4, so the end of 1960 according to the ID wiki.

 

[Copierguy]

You are a good friend, he will be starting with a classic.

 

[dcobranchi]

Super Speed. Variation is the enemy of the n00b. Adjustability is just another variable.

 

[dcc]

Slim,shave way better!

 

[trza]

Give him a SS. Figure out which ones you have if you really care about value. But they both look nice, and SS's are excellent shavers to start with and many like to use them as a daily razor even after they gain experience. Almost any other razor you see will not be as friendly to a new shaver.

Save the slim for once you get consistently DFS shaves out of your own SS.

If you guys don't have a good blade sampler, get one. You could both share one that offers 10 of each blade, and not be too bogged down by blades while saving some money. And if you guys compare thoughts, it's possible that you'll each have "extras" appreciated by the other.