I have come to realize that I love adjustable razors, I gathered up the collection and decided to snap a picture. and thought about some thoughts and observations which I will list here.
Favorite Modern Adjustable DE (fixed plate): Hands down the Rex Ambassador is my go-to razor, the build quality of this razor is amazing. My go-to blade in this razor is a Perma Sharp or a GSB, I have tried approx 20 different blades in this razor and they all just work, it is not partial to any particular style of blade. I originally had some buyer's remorse due to the price but it quickly faded away after the first week of usage. If you were ever on the fence on this razor, just pick one up you can't go wrong.
Favorite Modern Adjustable (interchangeable): Rockwell 6C - this one just works, I had the 6S a while ago and really prefer this model over the stainless model, plate 4 is my go-to plate and it shaves like a dream.
Favorite Vintage Adjustable (fixed Plate): Gillette Slim Adjustable, I have mulled this one over for a while and I really think the Slim is the most efficient and comfortable vintage adjustable that I have used, the Super 104 would be my follow-up razor.
Favorite Vintage Adjustable (Single Edge): Schick Adjustable, holy cow they had it right when they built this thing, This is my go-to SE razor, it shaves like a dream, I get a dozen drama-free shaves out of it using a modern Schick SE blade. I have a few of the adjustable models in rotation, one of them I have paired with a vintage Personna 74 (SE) and it is still delivering smooth shaves with more than 20 shaves on the blade.
Favorite Modern Adjustable (Single Edge): The Supply Company Single Edge, I think the company did a nice job with this plate style adjustable, there is a lot of blade feel but it is well built. I have not really done a lot of plate changing on it, so I am pretty much using it as a fixed style razor.
Close Seconds and thoughts on some of my other Adjustables.
Rockwell Model T: I really really wanted to love this razor, I was hoping for a shaving experience like the 6C, but it is not even close, much more blade feel on this one and a lot of audio feedback. It's not a horrible razor but it could be so much more.
Parker Variant: This is a great razor, but it seems to be blade specific, it pairs very well with really really sharp blades, the Feather, GSB, and Nacet make this razor perform like a dream. The razor has a lot of audible feedback but performs very well. This razor turns into pure junk with a less than sharp blade.
Gillette Fatboy: I own a few of these, I had a very hard time picking the winner of the Gillettes, they are all very similar and have very subtle differences. I feel that this razor is very close to the Slim, The slim just seems a tad more usable. The Black Beauty adjustable's shave great and pair well with almost any blade, you seriously can't go wrong with a vintage Gilette Adjustable.
Vikings Blade Adjustable (Emperor Meiji): An impulse late-night Amazon buy, overall, really not a bad razor. This thing has a lot of weight behind it, one side of the razor is a straight bar and the other side is a semi-open comb. this razor works pretty well with a sharp blade.
Global Shave Club Fat Guy: I know that generally this razor is looked down upon since it is a direct rip off copy of the Gillette Fat Boy, As I mentioned earlier I have a few Fat Boys and really wanted to see just how close this was to the original, they pretty much nailed it, it is literally identical to the Gillette version, I really am unable to tell the difference between the this and the Original. I have heard that the build quality varies and I am pretty sure that I ended up getting a pretty decent one because it is a really good shave.
Parker Adjustable Single Edge: I was really excited when this was announced, the build is not bad, it sort of looks like the PAL adjustable from back in the day. The build quality is not bad but the 5 adjustment positions leave a lot to be desired. positions 1-3 are very very mild and don't really work that great, 4 and 5 are almost identical. This razor had a lot of potential but I think Parker should have spent a little more development time with this one.
I really don't know why I love Adjustables so much, I don't really change the settings around a lot. I think I just like the mechanics of the razors, My first Adjustable was a Fat Boy and I instantly knew that I was hooked. I have had so many over the years, I think I have always been on the hunt for the perfect shave. After all of the shaves and all of the razors I can say without a doubt, I have picked my winners. Below are my picks.
My Overall #1 DE Adjustable: The Rex Ambassador, hands down this is my favorite razor of all time, I will grab this 10 out of 10 times when I go to grab an adjustable. I have no regrets about purchasing this razor and I would do it again in a heartbeat.
My Overall #1 SE Adjustable: The Schick adjustable, it is very hard to beat this one, this is my go-to SE razor, it just works. I have 3 of them and they all perform identical, there is no variance between the models, such amazing build quality. This is why I am always on the lookout for more!
Favorite Modern Adjustable DE (fixed plate): Hands down the Rex Ambassador is my go-to razor, the build quality of this razor is amazing. My go-to blade in this razor is a Perma Sharp or a GSB, I have tried approx 20 different blades in this razor and they all just work, it is not partial to any particular style of blade. I originally had some buyer's remorse due to the price but it quickly faded away after the first week of usage. If you were ever on the fence on this razor, just pick one up you can't go wrong.
Favorite Modern Adjustable (interchangeable): Rockwell 6C - this one just works, I had the 6S a while ago and really prefer this model over the stainless model, plate 4 is my go-to plate and it shaves like a dream.
Favorite Vintage Adjustable (fixed Plate): Gillette Slim Adjustable, I have mulled this one over for a while and I really think the Slim is the most efficient and comfortable vintage adjustable that I have used, the Super 104 would be my follow-up razor.
Favorite Vintage Adjustable (Single Edge): Schick Adjustable, holy cow they had it right when they built this thing, This is my go-to SE razor, it shaves like a dream, I get a dozen drama-free shaves out of it using a modern Schick SE blade. I have a few of the adjustable models in rotation, one of them I have paired with a vintage Personna 74 (SE) and it is still delivering smooth shaves with more than 20 shaves on the blade.
Favorite Modern Adjustable (Single Edge): The Supply Company Single Edge, I think the company did a nice job with this plate style adjustable, there is a lot of blade feel but it is well built. I have not really done a lot of plate changing on it, so I am pretty much using it as a fixed style razor.
Close Seconds and thoughts on some of my other Adjustables.
Rockwell Model T: I really really wanted to love this razor, I was hoping for a shaving experience like the 6C, but it is not even close, much more blade feel on this one and a lot of audio feedback. It's not a horrible razor but it could be so much more.
Parker Variant: This is a great razor, but it seems to be blade specific, it pairs very well with really really sharp blades, the Feather, GSB, and Nacet make this razor perform like a dream. The razor has a lot of audible feedback but performs very well. This razor turns into pure junk with a less than sharp blade.
Gillette Fatboy: I own a few of these, I had a very hard time picking the winner of the Gillettes, they are all very similar and have very subtle differences. I feel that this razor is very close to the Slim, The slim just seems a tad more usable. The Black Beauty adjustable's shave great and pair well with almost any blade, you seriously can't go wrong with a vintage Gilette Adjustable.
Vikings Blade Adjustable (Emperor Meiji): An impulse late-night Amazon buy, overall, really not a bad razor. This thing has a lot of weight behind it, one side of the razor is a straight bar and the other side is a semi-open comb. this razor works pretty well with a sharp blade.
Global Shave Club Fat Guy: I know that generally this razor is looked down upon since it is a direct rip off copy of the Gillette Fat Boy, As I mentioned earlier I have a few Fat Boys and really wanted to see just how close this was to the original, they pretty much nailed it, it is literally identical to the Gillette version, I really am unable to tell the difference between the this and the Original. I have heard that the build quality varies and I am pretty sure that I ended up getting a pretty decent one because it is a really good shave.
Parker Adjustable Single Edge: I was really excited when this was announced, the build is not bad, it sort of looks like the PAL adjustable from back in the day. The build quality is not bad but the 5 adjustment positions leave a lot to be desired. positions 1-3 are very very mild and don't really work that great, 4 and 5 are almost identical. This razor had a lot of potential but I think Parker should have spent a little more development time with this one.
I really don't know why I love Adjustables so much, I don't really change the settings around a lot. I think I just like the mechanics of the razors, My first Adjustable was a Fat Boy and I instantly knew that I was hooked. I have had so many over the years, I think I have always been on the hunt for the perfect shave. After all of the shaves and all of the razors I can say without a doubt, I have picked my winners. Below are my picks.
My Overall #1 DE Adjustable: The Rex Ambassador, hands down this is my favorite razor of all time, I will grab this 10 out of 10 times when I go to grab an adjustable. I have no regrets about purchasing this razor and I would do it again in a heartbeat.
My Overall #1 SE Adjustable: The Schick adjustable, it is very hard to beat this one, this is my go-to SE razor, it just works. I have 3 of them and they all perform identical, there is no variance between the models, such amazing build quality. This is why I am always on the lookout for more!