Interchangeability

[esky15]

Had been curious with this for a bit and couldn’t find a satisfactory answer on the Google machine.

Are 3 piece razors interchangeable between brands?

Say I love the handle I have, but want to try out a different baseplate/head combo, could I shop for replacement heads and screw it into the handle?

The only thing I can really think of that should stop me is if the screw post is too long to go into the handle all the way. Or if I was to mix and match a top with a base, that the posts/holes are mismatched in size and it allowing some play in the razor.
Is there something I’m missing or?

 

[Blackland Razors]

The vast majority of razors are interchangeable. Rarely you'll run into issues like you pointed out, but probably 99% of the time you'll be fine.

 

[Multum in parvo]

A silicon O-ring might even solve the screw post issue. Fatips have a different thread size but nearly everything else works.

 

[kingfisher]

Most DE razors have a standard screw size, and therefore most handles will fit on most razors.

You can't just willy-nilly, randomly choose top caps and baseplates, though. Some combinations work together pretty well, but others can create a shaving monster.

 

[emwolf]

Most handles are easy to swap. Fatip razors are metric or something so a standard handle won't work. As @kingfisher said, some baseplates and top caps can be changed, but definitely not all.

 

[Atlantic59]

There are several different thread sizes commonly used. So long as the threads match, you can interchange handles.

Older Gillette razors use UNC 10-32 threads.
Most modern razors use metric M5 x 0.8 threads.
Fatip and some older razors use more unusual metric M4.5 x 0.75 threads.

The metric M5 x 0.8 is similar enough to the 10-32 that interchange may be possible.

The length of the post can be an issue, but this can be solved by using a thick M5 washer, usually made of nylon.

 

[BigSpender]

They are not as interchangeable as you might think.

It's not just about the post thread diameter. Posts and handles also vary by how deep the post can go into the handle.

And the diameter of the top of the throat of the handle varies, too. The old Gillettes were narrower than most modern DE razors, the size of a M5 washer - many of the razors had an indentation in the base plate that would fit an M5 washer, too.

A wider handle throat will not fit on an old Gillette, although a M5 washer or O-ring might help.

A narrow, M5 handle* will fit on a modern razor designed for a wider handle head, but it might not provide as firm a mating of the two pieces of the head as a proper handle.

I recently purchased an open comb razor, apparently a rebadged Pearl, with a mismatched handle. The head took a M5 handle, but the razor came with a wider handle. The result was that even when the handle was fully tightened, the two pieces of the head never came fully together. I discovered this on my first nightmare shave. When I replaced the original handle with a M5 handle, it shaved very nicely.

Note: The Baili three-piece razors use M5 handles, so you can use them on old Gillette razors, etc.

As to Fatip, some handles from other razors work OK, some don't. But the ones that do probably have a loose thread fitting, with I am not sure is good in the long run. Some of the newer (pretty) Chinese junk razors have these wide fitting handles, which are the only thing semi-usable on them -- they are designed by imbeciles.**

Sometimes swapping top caps or base plates improves a razor, especially if it is too mild; sometimes it is impossible.

Moral of the story: Even if you get a bum razor, save the parts. Or, better yet, get one really good razor and stop.***

-=-

* I am not sure what Atlantic59 is talking about, but I assume it makes sense. However, I am simply referring to the M5 washer size mating on the end of the handle and baseplate. You sometimes can see an indentation for a M5 washer on old Gillette razors.

Given the sad condition of some Old and New Type Gillette handles (especially the ones that are split clear through, but come with (surprise) mint condition razors), it is nice to have some modern handles that fit them. Most generic handles won't. Find a cheap rebadged Baili three-piece, throw away the head, and you're back in business. Baili seems to have studied the old Gillettes when designing their razors. I have a clean nickel-plated Old Type head mated to a chrome Baili BD176 handle. An alternative is to find a clean handle from a 40s Tech razor.

** Frankly, I suspect at least some of these Chinese handles are not a standard anything, but rather are designed to be loose so they will fit a wider variety more easily, or some such reasoning.

*** (OK, maybe two.)