Since 1955 Are All Superspeeds The Same?

[Slamarche]

I have been watching Evilbay and the Superspeeds and there are a lot of them. The Fatboys and Red, Black, Blue Tips seem to sell well to specific needs populations but the rest of them seem rather generic. Is that the case or are there subtle differences in shaving performance with some model years?

 

[AsylumGuido]

No. There are differences between the 50's, 60's and 70's styles of Super Speeds. The the link in my signature for more detailed information.

 

[Slamarche]

Guido, I read your excellent thread but it addresses design changes and the evolution of the model rather than shaving performance. Does the angle of the blade change at all among the models with the exception of the Blue, Black, Red Tips and the Fatboy?

Old Saw addresses some differences in performance with the 1947/48 models but the performance between the 1958-63-66 and newer models is what I was after.

Looks like this could grow to a sizeable collection.

 

[Oldguy]

The Fatboy is not a Super Speed.

Len

 

[Ramaniac]

I have a 49,52,57 SS and I can not see or feel a difference. My fat boy IS different all the way around. It is definately not a SS

 

[Slamarche]

Ramaniac, that is the kind of information I was looking for. Apparently your experience with several model years of Super Speeds are quite similar, performance-wise.

 

[Mr. Scruffy]

I have a 49,52,57 SS and I can not see or feel a difference. My fat boy IS different all the way around. It is definately not a SS

How were you able to determine the vintage on the '49 SS?

 

[Ramaniac]

The color of the box it came in. 1949 was a red box.

 

[Manos]

I was going to start a similar thread, but this one seems to fit my question. Around 1960, Gillette changed the Super Speed head design from the "high profile" to the "low profile" head. We've seen pictures of both in AsylumGuido's excellent reference thread. I'm wondering if members have experienced different shaving results between these two head designs. I've used a late 40's model and a '58 model with the high profile head, and a '65 model with the low profile head. My impression is that the low profile '65 has slightly more tactile feedback than the older high-profile heads. Sometimes I feel the blade gliding over rather than through the mustache hairs when I shave against the grain under my nose, more so with the high profile head than with the low. I'd like to read others' experiences.

 

[Spike]

My 1953 SS (40s style) is slightly less aggressive than my 66 SS and 65 Lady Gillette (which is basically just a long-handled SS). The latter two feel exactly the same.

 

[Manos]

My 1953 SS (40s style) is slightly less aggressive than my 66 SS and 65 Lady Gillette (which is basically just a long-handled SS). The latter two feel exactly the same.

That seems consistent with my observations, Spike. Both the Super Speed and the Lady Gillette of that year have the low profile head. I think that head provides a bit more feedback, which I equate with aggressiveness. Our Wiki razor data base lists no gap size for the sixties Super Speed. Has anyone measured this on their low profile razor?