THE Injector Razor Thread

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Something a little different. DeHaven Diplomat, Schick Pro-line blade. More care required than using a standard injector razor but a very fine two pass BBS shave. Diplomat requires the @twhite adapter[emoji769].

Yesterday's shave, De Haven Model 3 (no adapter required, trimmed Kai Mild .

That's a new one on me, that cool razor. Nice!

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Shantytownbrown]

The bay is my preferred supplier of Japanese Schick II TWIN injector blades. With shipping the total comes out to around $26 or so. Took 11 days to arrive. Rakuten also has a possibility, but shipping can be a pain. Have to specifically request small packet shipping and hope the guy in Japan understands what you're asking. Took me five days of emailing back and forth until I finally threw up my hands and took one for about $10 shipping (~1000 yen) just so I could get my blades already. They arrived about a month later. Supposedly you can get the shipping down closer to 300 yen give or take, but I couldn't figure out the right English words to manage that.

looks like the current going rate is about $30 for a 10 blade key...if you have a particular seller you deal with, do you mind DM me?

Maybe I will put a trade in the BST, i have some vintage personna injector blades someone may want...

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

looks like the current going rate is about $30 for a 10 blade key...if you have a particular seller you deal with, do you mind DM me?

Maybe I will put a trade in the BST, i have some vintage personna injector blades someone may want...

Last time I dug around on eBay there was more than one vendor for the TWIN, and more than one price for the blades. The difference wasn't huge, but it was enough to favor one vendor, all things being equal, which they might not be, over another. Their prices are not static.

I'm considering buying another batch of blades since I don't have enough for another lifetime of shaves, and considering buying from one of the Rakuten vendors as the prices can be a bit better, but then I remember the hassle and the anxiety of the shipping, and how I vastly overpaid on shipping on my first order from that site (on my first Proline blades the shipping was more than the blades). They don't make it easy, or simple, or convenient, or certain.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[sadexpunk]

been a while since anyone posted on here, and a while since i used my injectors, but i started again this week after a spell with gillette DE (slim adjustable). it just reinforced what a difference there is to me, the injectors are faaaaar superior. thats it, im done with the DE, ill stick to SE shaving now.
with that in mind, id like to reconfirm my prior knowledge and ask a few new ones please.

at present i have 5 injectors, down from 10. i sold a G that was too rough, an E2 as i had 2 of them, i foolishly sold a 'gearstick L' as i felt i was replicating it with the 'grip' and returned 2 faulty razors, a golden 500 and a PAL adjustable. shame as id love those in my collection. so my present 5 are.......

could i confirm what i feel i have please from prior knowledge on here?

the obvious ones (to me) are the PAL injectomatic, a J1, and an L (schick grip). i think the other 2 are an E2 with bakelite handle, and a canadian E4 with plastic handle? is that right? the canadian has a date on 1937 on it and what looks to be a light seam along the front of the handle.

1st question. the E2 has a stopper for the spring on the right side, but not the left. so is this one thats 'supposed' to open for cleaning, or one that can open but i shouldnt in case i damage it. i previously had 2x E2's and was told that i could open it if desired, im just not sure if this was the one or not.
the canadian seems to have a central stopper to prevent opening.

2. they need a good clean, but are fiddly to get an old toothbrush into the nooks and crannies. how do you all keep your razors in tip-top condition?

3. the L and J both have twin blades in them. looking back over this thread i believe thats ok isnt it? anything from J onwards (with a few anomolies?). i dont believe i can put twins in the PAL injectomatic.

4. i need to top up on blades, i have no more twins and maybe only 1 more single. am i right in thinking that 'chicks' (yellow packaging in 7's) are the best singles, and japanese are best twins? and if so, wheres the best place to buy? ebay? and which sellers for both? anything/anyone to be wary of?

5. ive also ordered some B20's from connaught. am i right in thinking these will also be fine but will need to be loaded into my magazine myself?

6. ive also just bought this from ebay on a whim (cheap so thought why not), im guessing a G, but could i have confirmation please?

it also comes with some blades, dont how how many until it gets here. any idea if these are decent or not?

close-ups show the razor may have a corroded blade in there, but like i say i was really cheap and i thought its was worth a gamble.

many thanks for your help, much appreciated.

 

[Quaznoid]

“It’s almost like cheating” sums up the Schick injector experience. So easy, so intuitive. The angle is built in. The small, light head whips around the face like a sports car. Ridiculously easy. And always BBS. Nothing like it before or since. I would encourage all DE fans to try it, but I don’t won’t to diminish the supply of razors and blades and drive up prices. Keep it between us, okay?

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Hey, there, @sadexpunk. Cool gear.

See how there is no ⬆ tab ⬇ on the left of the spring?

These photos are of my open to clean E-2.

The spring can easily be turned to the left to open the razor for cleaning (or for experimenting with blades not in injectors if you're a crazy B&B "scientist").

That said, I never open mine anymore. I have of course opened it, but there's really no reason to unless you're experimenting.

I don't know yours looks like mine, but if it does...

My favorite two injectors are the E-2 and the L-3 "The Grip" with the fabulous tennis racket handle which might be the best razor handle ever made in terms of function.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Flintstone65]

been a while since anyone posted on here, and a while since i used my injectors, but i started again this week after a spell with gillette DE (slim adjustable). it just reinforced what a difference there is to me, the injectors are faaaaar superior. thats it, im done with the DE, ill stick to SE shaving now.
with that in mind, id like to reconfirm my prior knowledge and ask a few new ones please.

Welcome back!!! I couldn't agree with you more on how great injector razors are.....I'm a huge fan. Let's take your questions one by one, and I'm going to tag an expert or two, as well as point you to some excellent work done by a former member. First, in terms of confirming what you have, you are correct until you get to the Canadian and the E.....and here I will call in @Whiterook -- he will know more about the Canadian and the model E you have there. I will say that the Canadian has the word Eversharp, which should mean that it's a G -- not an E....but I know little to nothing about Canadian made Schicks, so I'll leave that to the experts. As to the model E you have with the golden bakelite and textured head, I think I'm seeing striations on the safety bar, and that would make it an E3 (which should not be opened). No disrespect intended here, but the pics are a little rough to make out details -- and I say that as someone whose pics are often "less than perfect" . Hopefully @Whiterook will weigh-in with much better information. As to your other questions, here we go:

1. 1st question. dthe E2 has a stopper for the spring on the right side, but not the left. so is this one thats 'supposed' to open for cleaning, or one that can open but i shouldnt in case i damage it. i previously had 2x E2's and was told that i could open it if desired, im just not sure if this was the one or not. I think this is an E3 and should not be opened. The canadian seems to have a central stopper to prevent opening. I think this one is a Type G and should not be opened.
   
   
2. They need a good clean, but are fiddly to get an old toothbrush into the nooks and crannies. how do you all keep your razors in tip-top condition? When they first come in, I will soak them in warm (not hot) water with some Dawn dish soap in it. Then I use a soft toothbrush (again with some Dawn on it) and give it a thorough cleaning. Afterward rinsing really well, and drying thoroughly (using a Q-tip for tough to get to spots), I'll put a new blade in (that often gets some gunk out, too), and I'll use some Flitz metal polish on the head to give it a little shine. For the bakelite, I'll use a soft cloth with some mineral oil on it and wipe the oil on the bakelite and then take it off. To keep it looking nice, I make sure I thoroughly rinse the razor when I'm done and carefully dry it off.
   
   
3. The L and J both have twin blades in them. looking back over this thread i believe thats ok isnt it? anything from J onwards (with a few anomolies?). i dont believe i can put twins in the PAL injectomatic. So from Type L and onwards (Type M, N and O) the twins can be used without any issues. I've known of folks that will put them in razors going back to the Type H (Eversharp Fashion Razor). The general rule of thumb is that you cannot use them in models with the Hydromagic lever, and nothing before the "H" -- I'm sure your "J" is fine, but I don't put them in anything other than L's and later....I believe they came out with the L's -- but I could be mistaken. I've heard you should NOT put them in the Injectomatics (i.e., PALs).
   
   
4. I need to top up on blades, i have no more twins and maybe only 1 more single. am i right in thinking that 'chicks' (yellow packaging in 7's) are the best singles, and japanese are best twins? and if so, wheres the best place to buy? ebay? and which sellers for both? anything/anyone to be wary of? Blades are a personal thing, but here's my 2-cents: Chicks (yellow packages) are the best blades for me. I get them from Amazon (multiple package deals lower the cost per blade), and I can actually find them in my family-owned pharmacy (which are more expensive, but I prefer to support them and buy them their). As far as I know, the Japanese twins are the ONLY twin injector blades out there. They are expensive, difficult to find these days (I usually get mine off ebay), and they aren't really necessary. All of the injector blades are long-lasting, which is one of the things I really like about them. There are also Personna (aka Ted Pella blades), and Schick Proline B blades (which you mention below). The Personna's are cheaper than the Chicks, but I don't like them near as much....others like them just as well, and some people prefer them over the Chicks -- you'll have to find out where you are on the spectrum.
   
   
5. I've also ordered some B20's from connaught. am i right in thinking these will also be fine but will need to be loaded into my magazine myself? Yes and yes. I like the B20's (Schick Proline B -- the 20 represents the number of blades you get in the cartridge). You will have to load them into an injector cartridge that has a key (i.e., a Chick injector cartridge that is empty or almost empty). I've never loaded them into an injector casing, I buy them to hand-load into my earliest Schicks (the Magazine Repeating Razors -- Type A, B andC). I like these blades a lot.
   
   
6. ive also just bought this from ebay on a whim (cheap so thought why not), im guessing a G, but could i have confirmation please? Yep, it's a Type G, and this is a good time to mention some B&B threads that have lots of information on specific models. It's the "dummies" series for various Schick/Eversharp models. For example, here's the one for Type G's:
   Schick Type G Razors for Dummies. There is also this one: Schick Type E Razors for Dummies. If you look around B&B, you'll find there is a "Dummies" thread for nearly all of the different razor "Types".

I'm going to close out my long-winded reply with two more things:

1. I know this goes against the "enablers" credo that we all take when signing on to this hobby and forum, but I would say that you can buy every single model (and I have every letter with the exception of "I" and "J"), and ultimately you'll find slight differences and potentially find several favorites; but they will all -- and I mean from the VERY first Type A all the way to the VERY last Type O -- give you an excellent shave. So head down into the rabbit hole, if you must -- and goodness knows that I did; but I would not expect to find the variation and differences between the injectors that you'll often find in the DE world.
   
   
2. And lastly, I apologize for any typos, but I don't have time to re-read this post (I've got to get to work).

 

[garyg]

Looks like the experts have answered the questions, but I will add that dental floss can be employed to great effect in cleaning the head of an injector. It will bring out some crud that survives the soak and toothbrushes.

 

[nvpliers]

Also, to help remove water in tight places, something like a "Metro DataVac Electric" works wonders. Picture compressed air, only not from a can, but from an electric powered device. Much more powerful than can stuff. For me, it serves multiple uses, including blowing water from razors.

 

[sadexpunk]

thank you very much everyone, especially @Flintstone65 for that comprehensive reply.

1. i was sure id been told it was an E, especially after looking at that schichtech page which said that G's didnt start til 1946 (mines got 1937 on it) so i trawled through a few pages and found all the bumph on page 79, some good knowledge from billy (@Scooby Doo). he did indeed verify the canadian razor as being an E4, ill copy and paste below.

All the G Types had the 2 Patent Numbers that you are talking about & they were all made in the USA from 1946 onwards...The other one you are talking about is a Canadian Type E for sure..There was no G Types made in Canada..When Eversharp took over the Company on 1946 they stopped making all the Type E s in the USA when they introduced the G Type..The Type E s were continued to be made in Canada however through to the 1950s

The USA Made Type E s & Canadian Type E s are far smoother than the G Types in my experience..The USA Made Type Es are not any more aggressive than the Canadian Models..Here is the thing..There were many Type E Models...E 1, E 2, E3, E4 & E 5..The Early Type E 1 & E 2s that opened were the most Aggressive...As they moved through the timeline they got Milder until the Type E 3 & the difference were only cosmetic after that..Your USA Type E will be more Aggressive than the Canadian One because it will be an Earlier Model.

i then put up a pic of it and the reply was.....

The Canadian One is a Later Type E 4 that's is identified by a Grooved Comb & No Tabs on the Spring the same as the G Type..The one on the Right is a Type G 1 that is Identified by the 2 Patent Numbers ..That Canadian Type E 4 with a Seamed Handle is a Rare Bird cause there wasn't as many of them made. .The Type E 4 is far milder than the earlier Type E 2..

'the one on the right' that billy is talking about must have been the G that i didnt get on with, too rough for some reason.

thanks for the info on cleaning and blades, ill go trawl the bay for some now, see if i can find some of those japanese twins too.
i also agree that they all give great shaves, theyre light and manoeuvrable and for me, smoother than DE. i find from my current 5, the 2 E's (if thats what they are) are my go to razors that can shift a few days growth and still be smooth, the L, J and PAL cant really deal with much more than a days growth but are just soooooo smooth. it really is a pleasure shaving with them.

thanks again

 

[Mick]

Easy clean = any Schick hydro magic

 

[Flintstone65]

thank you very much everyone, especially @Flintstone65 for that comprehensive reply.

1. i was sure id been told it was an E, especially after looking at that schichtech page which said that G's didnt start til 1946 (mines got 1937 on it) so i trawled through a few pages and found all the bumph on page 79, some good knowledge from billy (@Scooby Doo). he did indeed verify the canadian razor as being an E4, ill copy and paste below.

All the G Types had the 2 Patent Numbers that you are talking about & they were all made in the USA from 1946 onwards...The other one you are talking about is a Canadian Type E for sure..There was no G Types made in Canada..When Eversharp took over the Company on 1946 they stopped making all the Type E s in the USA when they introduced the G Type..The Type E s were continued to be made in Canada however through to the 1950s

The USA Made Type E s & Canadian Type E s are far smoother than the G Types in my experience..The USA Made Type Es are not any more aggressive than the Canadian Models..Here is the thing..There were many Type E Models...E 1, E 2, E3, E4 & E 5..The Early Type E 1 & E 2s that opened were the most Aggressive...As they moved through the timeline they got Milder until the Type E 3 & the difference were only cosmetic after that..Your USA Type E will be more Aggressive than the Canadian One because it will be an Earlier Model.

i then put up a pic of it and the reply was.....

The Canadian One is a Later Type E 4 that's is identified by a Grooved Comb & No Tabs on the Spring the same as the G Type..The one on the Right is a Type G 1 that is Identified by the 2 Patent Numbers ..That Canadian Type E 4 with a Seamed Handle is a Rare Bird cause there wasn't as many of them made. .The Type E 4 is far milder than the earlier Type E 2..

'the one on the right' that billy is talking about must have been the G that i didnt get on with, too rough for some reason.

thanks for the info on cleaning and blades, ill go trawl the bay for some now, see if i can find some of those japanese twins too.
i also agree that they all give great shaves, theyre light and manoeuvrable and for me, smoother than DE. i find from my current 5, the 2 E's (if thats what they are) are my go to razors that can shift a few days growth and still be smooth, the L, J and PAL cant really deal with much more than a days growth but are just soooooo smooth. it really is a pleasure shaving with them.

thanks again

That's awesome info, and I definitely learned some things! Thanks!!!

 

[Whiterook]

Wow! I get here late and all the questions have been answered. Welcome back! Do Check out BBS-1's Dummies threads because they are quite comprehensive. I agree with Fed on the twins in that I would only use them in types L through O. I know others have done otherwise but I personally won't risk damage to my razors. Besides, I like the Chicks better than the twins! You might also be interested in the new Parker Adjustable Injector razor. It's very easy on the wallet.

 

[BradWorld]

I just got the new Parker PAL copy in last night. Haven't had a chance to shave with it yet. But I took it out of the box and gave it a good look. I am quite impressed with the initial observation of build quality and design. I cant wait to try it. Probably Thursday morning. Yippie!!!

 

[sadexpunk]

that does look nice, i must agree. and a decent price too, altho it becomes more expensive to ship to UK, so ill probably wait to see if it becomes available over here.

Wow! I get here late and all the questions have been answered.
not so fast @Whiterook! still got a few things you could confirm if you dont mind (if nobody beats you to it )
my 'E2/E3'. something tells me in the back of my mind that i was told previously it was an E2 but i cant find where. @Flintstone65 thinks it may be an E3 and shouldnt be opened, but sadly my previous pics werent good enough. so..... heres 2 or 3 close-ups.

youll see theres no tab on the left hand side to stop the spring opening. is that on purpose then so it can be opened to clean it? (even tho it may make sense not to)
and on that subject, ive looked at the Type E for dummies page but that seems to contradict the schichtech page somewhat when it comes to type E, unless im misinterpreting. the dummies page lists 6 columns/variants. am i to assume then that these would relate up to an E6?
yet the schicktech page only goes up to E5, and also mentions E1/2 with moveable spring for washing, yet E2-5 having a fixed spring. so E2 in both camps? is this a mistake or were there two different models of E2? (gets confusing down this rabbithole doesnt it )

next, that photo i put up of the 'eversharp schick blades with krona edge' ^^^ that are on their way to me with the G type. are they any good? as good as chicks?
and these 'chicks'. chinese schicks. all the sellers i see on ebay are based on US. i assume that theyre still bonafide chinese schicks yep? all in yellow packs of 7, one seller selling multiples of these, buy 2 packs, 5 packs, 6 packs, 10 packs, whatever you want. these are fine yep? im on the verge of plumping for £40's worth to save long term postage, thats why i ask.

i think im going to hold off on the twin blades for now, ive spent enough just lately
however, on this subject, i looked back on past emails between myself and billy (@Scooby Doo, has he left the forum now?) where he states.....
The PAL Injectomatic cant be beaten with a Chinese blade..The Twin blades don't Fit in E & G Types..They do not any PAL Injectors either..The heads are too tight and it will damage them..The original twin instructions tell you that anyway...They are fine for all Schick injectors after the G Type...Your Championship Schick is fine..
another interesting viewpoint on which types will accommodate the twins, although as @Whiterook says ^^^ it would seem that the L was the first type that officially used them, a fact borne out by the schicktech page. when the twin in my J1 needs changing again, ill just stick a single back in there. firstly to be on the safe side, and secondly i dont really find any noticeable improvement over singles anyway, and also im not topping my supply up with any more for now.
billys message also reminded me that i also had a championship model, i must have sold it. why did i do that???

thanks for your help, much appreciated.

 

[Flintstone65]

that does look nice, i must agree. and a decent price too, altho it becomes more expensive to ship to UK, so ill probably wait to see if it becomes available over here.

Wow! I get here late and all the questions have been answered.
not so fast @Whiterook! still got a few things you could confirm if you dont mind (if nobody beats you to it )
my 'E2/E3'. something tells me in the back of my mind that i was told previously it was an E2 but i cant find where. @Flintstone65 thinks it may be an E3 and shouldnt be opened, but sadly my previous pics werent good enough. so..... heres 2 or 3 close-ups.
View attachment 1198693

View attachment 1198694

View attachment 1198695

youll see theres no tab on the left hand side to stop the spring opening. is that on purpose then so it can be opened to clean it? (even tho it may make sense not to)
and on that subject, ive looked at the Type E for dummies page but that seems to contradict the schichtech page somewhat when it comes to type E, unless im misinterpreting. the dummies page lists 6 columns/variants. am i to assume then that these would relate up to an E6?
yet the schicktech page only goes up to E5, and also mentions E1/2 with moveable spring for washing, yet E2-5 having a fixed spring. so E2 in both camps? is this a mistake or were there two different models of E2? (gets confusing down this rabbithole doesnt it )

next, that photo i put up of the 'eversharp schick blades with krona edge' ^^^ that are on their way to me with the G type. are they any good? as good as chicks?
and these 'chicks'. chinese schicks. all the sellers i see on ebay are based on US. i assume that theyre still bonafide chinese schicks yep? all in yellow packs of 7, one seller selling multiples of these, buy 2 packs, 5 packs, 6 packs, 10 packs, whatever you want. these are fine yep? im on the verge of plumping for £40's worth to save long term postage, thats why i ask.

i think im going to hold off on the twin blades for now, ive spent enough just lately
however, on this subject, i looked back on past emails between myself and billy (@Scooby Doo, has he left the forum now?) where he states.....
The PAL Injectomatic cant be beaten with a Chinese blade..The Twin blades don't Fit in E & G Types..They do not any PAL Injectors either..The heads are too tight and it will damage them..The original twin instructions tell you that anyway...They are fine for all Schick injectors after the G Type...Your Championship Schick is fine..
another interesting viewpoint on which types will accommodate the twins, although as @Whiterook says ^^^ it would seem that the L was the first type that officially used them, a fact borne out by the schicktech page. when the twin in my J1 needs changing again, ill just stick a single back in there. firstly to be on the safe side, and secondly i dont really find any noticeable improvement over singles anyway, and also im not topping my supply up with any more for now.
billys message also reminded me that i also had a championship model, i must have sold it. why did i do that???

thanks for your help, much appreciated.

Okay, I own four E2's and one E3, and after getting off my lazy behind and walking into my den, I have now confirmed and submit my final assessment (unless and until @Whiterook corrects me) that you have an E2. I basically have that particular variant of E2 (same colored handle, same textured head, and same little stop to the left of the spring. So it can be opened (IMO) to be cleaned, although I've read in various places that the "safest" thing to do is to only open and clean your razor before you're going to do a blade change, rather than after every shave. So I rinse the razor really well after every shave, but I don't really clean the razor until I do a blade change....if that makes sense.

Now let's talk about blades.....the yellow package Schicks that you mention on ebay, are what I use.....and yes, I stock up on stuff like that as well. The Schick Krona blades are vintage blades, and while I LOVE vintage razors, I don't mess with vintage blades.....so someone else will need to weigh-in there. And I think you're making the right call by not replenishing your twins; I don't believe I'll be replenishing mine either -- there's just not enough of a difference (to me) between the "Chicks" and the twins.

 

[Whiterook]

If we follow Appleby Sensei then a round spring and smooth safety bar mean it is an E2. E3 introduced the grooved safety bar. Now it gets complicated as I then have at least three variants of the E2 in my pile. I speak strictly of US production since that is a focus of my collection. First, the early E2 variant with opening spring, which I believe is what you have. The next version has two tabs which prevent the spring from opening. Finally we have the E2 variants with a pinned spring. I am not sure why Appleby Sensei did not give each of these their own number, but he did not do so.

 

[Sinnbad11]

How do you guys feel about the differences between a type g and a type I (capitol i)? I searched but couldn't find a direct comparison and I have been considering picking up an I2.

 

[Whiterook]

How do you guys feel about the differences between a type g and a type I (capitol i)? I searched but couldn't find a direct comparison and I have been considering picking up an I2.

The I2 is a great choice! I think it is a tad milder than the G, but these days I have a hard time telling them apart. I think the I/J are probably at the sweet spot for most people. If you would prefer a longer handle go with the J version.

 

[Sinnbad11]

The I2 is a great choice! I think it is a tad milder than the G, but these days I have a hard time telling them apart. I think the I/J are probably at the sweet spot for most people. If you would prefer a longer handle go with the J version.

I will likely pick one up at some point. The g is my favorite, I'm working on picking up every variant of it. Sometimes, however, I could go with a touch milder shave, when it gets below 15 degrees my face can be a bit sensitive.