+1I personally can’t stand Bic blades, and have had some uncomfortable shaves with them.
+1I personally can’t stand Bic blades, and have had some uncomfortable shaves with them.
Thank you; that's why I'm here. I think I earned some respect, or possibly fear, for the Tech. I treated it like my Red Tip--a mild shaver that won't bite no matter how much pressure I apply--and just breezed through. Being able to cut me is actually a good sign, as it means there's room for me to grow.I think what he was saying is that if you got all cut up from a Tech, that’s a problem. They are usually quite mild relatively. But the Tech can, and will bite if you have poor technique, an incompatible blade, or a bent baseplate. I personally can’t stand Bic blades, and have had some uncomfortable shaves with them. Make sure your angle is right, and you are using very minimal pressure. The Tech can deliver a superb shave when wielded correctly. Underestimating that the Tech won’t shave you close could have led you to shave too quickly with a new-to-you razor, and that lack of attention to technique could have caused the poor shave results. Don’t give up on the Tech yet. It has lots to offer.
Definitely get some vintage techs. They’re so worth itI received a Gillette Super Blue last week as a way to cheaply try a modern incarnation of the Gillette Tech. I've had 2 shaves with it so far using Personna lab blues and I love it. It's mild, efficient, easy to use and provides great feedback when shaving. No wonder this design has been in production since 1939. The only problem now is that I'm tempted to buy a vintage copy. That brass construction is tempting
I've been hearing a lot of good things about Back Roads Gold, uh, prices? I have a few razors that need some touching up.It's another early Christmas for me today, yippee!
I purchased yet another Gillette Flat Bottom Tech and sent it off to Chris at Back Roads Gold for palladium plating, along with an antique Gillette blade bank. I also sent him three NEW/Tech caps for replating. One (also in palladium) for my 1939 RFB (whose original cap aligns blades skew), and two in mirror nickel (one for another FBT and one for my 7 0'clock FBOC).
Chris said palladium was just a tad lighter/brighter than mirror nickel. I thought my eyesight was pretty good... but they look exactly the same to me.
There's no way I can compete with Chris's pics, so here they are:
I can only say that I'm MORE THAN PLEASED.
USPS First Class International normally takes a week (give or take a couple of days) to get from the US to me in the UK. This time it was 14 very long days.
Naturally, I planned to shave with my new palladium plated Fat Handled Flat Bottom Tech on its day of arrival. So, after admiring all of Chris's work and playing around with my new toys... off for a shave!
SOTD
Brush: Shavemac 20/46 Silvertip 2-Band
Soap: Canada
Razor: BRG Gillette Flat Bottom Tech
Blade: King C. Gillette (5)
ASL: Clubman VIBR
A superb shave.
Back Roads Gold magic: My newly palladium plated Flat Bottom Tech (yes, another FBT) performs even better than all the others.
I'm really loving the Canada soap now (fourth shave on the books) and am down to three seconds loading time.
The rest of the team performed admirably too (of course).
Happy shaves guys.
THIS PAGE, scroll down.prices?
It's another early Christmas for me today, yippee!
I purchased yet another Gillette Flat Bottom Tech and sent it off to Chris at Back Roads Gold for palladium plating, along with an antique Gillette blade bank. I also sent him three NEW/Tech caps for replating. One (also in palladium) for my 1939 RFB (whose original cap aligns blades skew), and two in mirror nickel (one for another FBT and one for my 7 0'clock FBOC).
Chris said palladium was just a tad lighter/brighter than mirror nickel. I thought my eyesight was pretty good... but they look exactly the same to me.
(...)
Now this one was a surprise I got 2 of them one in a grooming kit the other a day later on it's own once I knew what to look for, this one has the same aluminium spiral handle as the razor I showed above but with a twist, it has a etched Gillette logo on the top cap same how the Ball End Techs have. I've never seen this combination/variant before. Parts used from different times & different razors.
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There's more, the underside of the top cap it hasn't got the long blade bar like all the British Ball End Techs have & like most other Ball Ends too, instead it has the twin tabs like the Flat Bottom Techs & the older Pre War Techs, also the whole head, the top cap & baseplate is all brass nickel plated too. Never seen this combination before, if I have I probably thought it was a mix matched razor, I'm not going to say the difference in the top cap makes it too different to the Ball End Tech but it certainly shaves much better for me, this version has become one of my favourite Tech variants overnight. The plating used on this one is different, quality stunning finish.
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The one in the grooming kit is of higher quality, doesn't really show in pictures, the handle is a little longer & has a better/different finish too. Different razors must of been used for different kits depending on the price & so on. Never seen anything like this before.
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The (regular) shorter handle version, this one is in worse condition compared to the unused one in the grooming kit, well just the top cap, so I will be using this one regularly.
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I tried getting one of those from Asia, but Covid shipping restrictions prevented me ftom the sale. Congrats on the score.Looking at all these fabulous razors I can‘t remember if I posted this before. But this one is one of my absolute favorites - the French market 1950 hollow fat handle. This handle is just real nice and the razor is the one I use the most of all in my den - love that thing!
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Well, you should get some vintage Techs. They're really not expensive at all if you're patient. Check out the BST forum here. You can find some user grade examples in good shape.I received a Gillette Super Blue last week as a way to cheaply try a modern incarnation of the Gillette Tech. I've had 2 shaves with it so far using Personna lab blues and I love it. It's mild, efficient, easy to use and provides great feedback when shaving. No wonder this design has been in production since 1939. The only problem now is that I'm tempted to buy a vintage copy. That brass construction is tempting
Interesting razor. I think all fat handles are hollow, does that one feel very different?Looking at all these fabulous razors I can‘t remember if I posted this before. But this one is one of my absolute favorites - the French market 1950 hollow fat handle. This handle is just real nice and the razor is the one I use the most of all in my den - love that thing!
Sorry about the late reply, the case is generic like most of the British grooming sets had, it's black smooth leather with a brush at the bottom (nylon hair) it's one of them brush-cases I'm sure you must have seen them around, this one is nice, most of the ones I've seen are brown in colour and they usually have one of them Ball-end techs that come with a aluminium baseplate & handle, I never one like this in black before, glad it was unused the case & razor are both in superb condition. I now know what case to look out for if I wanted to find that particular tech razor for friends.Nice Tech but even more so the zippered case! Looks like a generic (not Gillette) case? Would love to find one of those for my travel set!
Any pics of the exterior? Is it leather, leatherette or?
Thanks! Yes I know these ones. I wonder if it would be possible to remove the brush part?Sorry about the late reply, the case is generic like most of the British grooming sets had, it's black smooth leather with a brush at the bottom (nylon hair) it's one of them brush-cases I'm sure you must have seen them around, this one is nice, most of the ones I've seen are brown in colour and they usually have one of them Ball-end techs that come with a aluminium baseplate & handle, I never one like this in black before, glad it was unused the case & razor are both in superb condition. I now know what case to look out for if I wanted to find that particular tech razor for friends.
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I put a lighter on top so you can get an idea of the size, it's tiny but very neat looking.