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Gillette Super Adjustable 109 Acquisition.

I predict you'll have a love affair with your long-handled Gillette Super Adjustable. I have, use, and enjoy all the razors you mentioned. My fav is the Super Adjustable, but only by "a whisker."

In fact, I have the short-handled version (P-4, 4th quarter 1970). I like both handles, but some guys with big hands prefer the longer handle. Some guys with smaller hands may prefer the shorter handle. I find the Super Adjustable shaves similarly to the Slim, and that's meant as a compliment. Nice balance. Attractive appearance. Close and smooth shaver.

I have tough "old man" whiskers and thin skin. I use a setting of 5 on the Fat Boy, and a 6 on the Slim and the Super Adjustables, which suggests the Slim and the Super Adjustable are slightly milder shavers than its elder brother.

Good choice. After you shave with it for a week, please report back and share your impressions. Happy shaving!
Hello santamariasteve!

I'm back to report on my 1st Super Adjustable shave.

To sum it up..... it was excellent! I stuck to basic software products, so Arko Comfort shave cream & Nivea aftershave balm. Every time I get a new razor I use these basic products (which are great performers in their own right) just so I can really get a feel for the razor & not focus on scents etc. I used a 1st use Astra SP which seemed to work really well with the SA, in fact it is the first time I've used an Astra with any vintage Gillettes. So now I've tried the Fatboy, Slim & SA I would say that the Fatboy is my favourite, followed by the SA and lastly the Slim.

I found the SA a tad less aggressive & and more comfortable to use than my Slim, but more aggressive than the Fatboy but overall all three of these razors I class as fairly mild. Pass 1 WTG #7, pass 2 XTG #4 & pass 3 ATG #3 but I had to bump it back up to #4 as it was a bit too mild lol. The only area where I had to do a bit of buffing was just under the RH side of my chin, I always struggle to get that small patch BBS. Only my Rex Ambassador can knock that down with no trouble lol. I think next time I'll stick to the Astra blade on its 2nd use, but I'll probably use higher settings. I have a pretty thick coarse beard which grows quick, so I do have to use fairly high settings, which is a bit annoying as I do prefer a milder feeling shave, if that makes sense haha.

But overall I'm super pleased with the shave, very easy to use and it felt like silk gliding over my skin. The only other thing was I did notice how head heavy it is compared to the other Gillettes. It has been a long time since I've used a LH razor so it took a bit of getting used to again. I would like to get myself a SH super adjustable to see how the weight balance changes. 😃
 
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I hope I will too! That's great to hear the SA is your favourite, I think it could possibly be mine too, depending on the shave lol.

Your SH SA sounds really nice, could I see a photo? Well regarding handle length when I started my wets having adventure I first purchased the new King C. Gillette. I wasn't looking to get into wet shaving but my local food market sold it and it caught my eye, so I bought it and here I am today. My point was the King C. Gillette has a very long handle, and I liked that, but lately all my other razors Gillette, Rex Ambassador & Fine Accoutrements have all been SH. So I think it'll be refreshing to go back to a long handle for a change.

Thats interesting to know the setting you use, I found the Slim more aggressive than the Fatboy on my "baby face" skin haha. I really appreciate your reply and it's excellent to hear how these razors work differently for everyone, just goes to show your skin type, technique, blade, setting & razor choice really change a shave. For sure I'll keep you all posted of how my shave goes, I will go in with low expectations and see what happens lol. Happy shaving to you too my friend!
I don't have a digital camera, so I can't send a picture. The handle of the LH SA is 1/2 inch longer than the handle of the SH SA razor. Otherwise the two razors are identical.
 
I imagine the long handle really helps with head shaving? Yeah I can see that it is bit of an underrated/ underdog razor, its certainly performed excellent for me today. It seems 70 - 80% of people (in the vintage Gillette chats) seems to purely focus on the Fatboy & Slim, don't get me wrong they're excellent but I think the Super Adjustable deserves a bit more recognition.

Re the prices, I'll pm you. But I think i paid a pretty good price for it, considering there were others far more expensive out there with no box and in bad condition. But for everyone else ready I didn't pay over the odds.

You should give your Fatboy a whirl you'll love it I'm sure.
Yea I do t get why it's so overlooked?

So far holding the Fatboy I don't see anything extra special compared to to the slim and black beauty but maybe time will tell once I give it a go
 
The blade gap on my Super Adjustable on setting 9 is slightly bigger than on my Slim. I'd say that's like having 1-2 more settings, but unless someone is using both razor on setting 9, he probably won't feel that much of a difference. The Slim is definitely better made, but shave wise I like my SA a bit more.
The gap on the SA @9 is bigger than the Slim @9, I can feel the difference. And on the Fatboy @9 is even smaller than the Slim. That's why I usually use the SA @8 max . But with SA these are relative things. Half of them sold are with changed gaps. The Aluminium handle starts turning slightly with years and you don't have the original gaps. Another thing to consider is sometimes they were used by some "expert" who used the trigger in the hole overclock it.
 
Hi all, thought I'd share a few images of my 1970 P2 Gillette Super Adjustable 109 which I recently acquired. Very happy to have it's original cardboard box (in pretty good shape) and the blade dispenser is still clear wrapped! The plastic case is in great nick with a nice clear case top too, so I'm pretty happy with it.
It's my first Super Adjustable so I'm looking forward to giving her a whirl tomorrow for the Sunday shave 😊. Oddly, I was never that keen on this razor when discovered it online, so naturally I bought a Fatboy & Slim first, however since seeing this razor in the flesh I really like it! The Fatboy is probably still my favourite but I prefer this one over the Slim, for design at least.
So my question is what can I expect from it? From my experience the Fatboy & Slim shave fairly similar, for me at least, albeit the Slim feels a hair more aggressive than my Fatboy. Can I expect similar performance from the SA or is it completely different? Normally in my other Gillettes I find the Nacet my go to blade, but I'm considering using an Astra SP for my first go with the SA, not sure?
Anyway hope this post was of interest to someone and I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and best wishes & health for the new year! Happy shaving gents :thumbup:
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Wow those are some very fine Gillette adjustables and with original cases too!
 
Hi all, thought I'd share a few images of my 1970 P2 Gillette Super Adjustable 109 which I recently acquired. Very happy to have it's original cardboard box (in pretty good shape) and the blade dispenser is still clear wrapped! The plastic case is in great nick with a nice clear case top too, so I'm pretty happy with it.
It's my first Super Adjustable so I'm looking forward to giving her a whirl tomorrow for the Sunday shave 😊. Oddly, I was never that keen on this razor when discovered it online, so naturally I bought a Fatboy & Slim first, however since seeing this razor in the flesh I really like it! The Fatboy is probably still my favourite but I prefer this one over the Slim, for design at least.
So my question is what can I expect from it? From my experience the Fatboy & Slim shave fairly similar, for me at least, albeit the Slim feels a hair more aggressive than my Fatboy. Can I expect similar performance from the SA or is it completely different? Normally in my other Gillettes I find the Nacet my go to blade, but I'm considering using an Astra SP for my first go with the SA, not sure?
Anyway hope this post was of interest to someone and I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and best wishes & health for the new year! Happy shaving gents :thumbup:
View attachment 1380263View attachment 1380264View attachment 1380265View attachment 1380266View attachment 1380267View attachment 1380295
That is a lovely collection!
 
I find almost all vintage Gillette razors to be way too mild and inefficient in general for my taste and I also like to use adjustable razors on their higher settings and it works really well for me with the Pearl Flexi, Slim and the SA. The aggresivnes and efficiency of the vintage Gillette razors pales in comparison to many of the modern razors.

The only adjustable I don't use on max settings is my Merkur Progress, since 3.5-4.5 is more than enough for me and I haven't really thought about cranking it up to 5 to see if it's going to be any better, but maybe I should try it at least once.

I had an R41 (2013 model) and it was a decent shaver, but it was way too uncomfortable and unpleasant for a full 3-4 pass shave and despite it's highly efficiency, I didn't like it that much.
My experience has been similar. I don’t own a Super Adjustable but I’ve dialed my Slim and Fatboy all the way up. Maxed out they are no where near as aggressive as my maxed out Rex Ambassador or Pearl Flexi. Great razors all the same.
 
My experience has been similar. I don’t own a Super Adjustable but I’ve dialed my Slim and Fatboy all the way up. Maxed out they are no where near as aggressive as my maxed out Rex Ambassador or Pearl Flexi. Great razors all the same.
Agreed, they are pretty mild shavers, I recently also had to adjust mine up to top numbers to achieve the BBS results I get from my Rex Ambassador too. The lower settings just weren't cutting mustard lol. But none the less I love these Gillettes.
 
Wow, just wow !

Season 8 Wow GIF by The Office
 
I love the vintage razors you have some great finds there I am using 2 but they were family heirlooms I love the feel and the nostalgia of using my grandfathers razors. I am sure that you will love the shave of the old Gillettes.
 
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