Wow, an absolutely splendid review, kudos!
What a great review, and indeed a great series: Thank you.
I am very surprised to learn that about the blade exposures: I looks like the black handle has more exposure than the red tip. To the extent that this correlates to aggressiveness, the newest black handle is more agggressive than the red tip followed by the 1947 - 48 original.
I now have to try my black handle to see how I fare with it.
Will the gap may be larger, there is one fact that I did not put in. The head style changes just a little so it has a lower profile than the earlier modles.
I tried to find a picture I had some time ago to show this but then forgot to even make mention of this fact.
The lower profile tamed the blade angle and bit making it less aggresive as well.
Right, thanks! I should have thought of that. I generally get better shaves from the "tall" headed razors of the earlier years. (I generally have been unable to get great shaves from superspeeds, but that's a different matter entirely; the red tip seems to be the best)
I may be wrong, but I believe that the head style changed in 1959. The 1958 superspeed still had the "tall" head but interestingly, the screw used in the mechanism in previous year models was eliminated in favour of a clip. And so 1958 turns out to be a transition year in terms of the design of the superspeed and coincidentally, that was the year that the fatboy was introduced as well.
thanks awesome info...This is very new to me cause these razors are way before my time and trying to catch up with all vintage Gillette razors out there..sorry not try to offend anyones age...lol...again thanks and I LOVE THIS FORUM!!!!