Gillette Slim and Fatboy Vintage Razors - Crikey!

todras

todras

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Just a quick rant of sorts about these two razors. Having recently had a pair of them restored out of a sense of posterity more than anything, I made the decision to set my daily go-to the Stainless steel fixed position ''Above the Tie Colossus R1' aside for a week or two to give the Slim and the Fatboy a serious run.

I am about a week in, and to be quite frank I am astonished at the performance of both of these restored Vintage razors. Prior to having them serviced and re-plated there was a fair bit of 'play' in the mechanical aspects of both razors, quite understandable as they are 50 years old or so. The work done on both of them, whatever specifically it was has removed all trace of the mechanical wear and tear, they are tighter, more fluid when opening and the threads now glide smoothly and exactly. The adjustment dial now has a firm report when moved and locks in readily.

I own a long handled Merkur Progress, it is a fantastic adjustable piece and I get some really good shaves out of it despite it being somewhat aggressive at a low setting. However when I compare it side by side to both the Vintage Slim and the Fatboy I am tempted to say it is not really in the race when it comes to quality of shave. I base my comparison on using only Feather blades in all 3 adjustable's. I find that both the Fatboy and the Slim have blade gaps that are set lower than the Progress, in that I mean the gradient begins at a lower setting equating to (for me) the perfect efficiency being at 7 in both the slim and fatboy while in the Progress it is at 3.5 maximum before the shave is too aggressive (efficient).

These are my thoughts currently, I still love my progress and certainly the ATT razor but these two 50 or so year old razors, now being restored, are delivering truly superb shaves now I have attenuated the dial to the position that affords the best shave.
 
Would be helpful to put in who restored them :). Also I would be curious as to how they preformed new. Is it possible that the restoration/service improved on the factory set up? Is it possible to reset the gap to make the progress less aggressive
 
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Both of these razors were restored by Dave at Restored Razors in New Zealand as I have mentioned a few times now. Restoration was $180 for both in Bright Nickel and took around 6 weeks there and back.

Rami said:
Is it possible to reset the gap to make the progress less aggressive
Click to expand...

The Progress is not overly aggressive I am just appreciating having the adjustment scale ramp up to a higher efficiency up the dial a little more than with the Progress where 4 to 5 on the dial is fairly aggressive. It's also a case of your kilometers may vary i.e. my beard-growth, skin sensitivity, I use Feathers in my razor, etc so I tried to avoid making blanket statements in that regard.
 
todras said:
Both of these razors were restored by Dave at Restored Razors in New Zealand as I have mentioned a few times now. Restoration was $180 for both in Bright Nickel and took around 6 weeks there and back.



The Progress is not overly aggressive I am just appreciating having the adjustment scale ramp up to a higher efficiency up the dial a little more than with the Progress where 4 to 5 on the dial is fairly aggressive. It's also a case of your kilometers may vary i.e. my beard-growth, skin sensitivity, I use Feathers in my razor, etc so I tried to avoid making blanket statements in that regard.
Click to expand...

Thanks mate, sorry, with the whirlwind of life I sort of missed that.

In regards to the progress I was more curious whether adjustable razors can be tweaked in general, this was just a convenient example.
 
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I'm looking forward to get my 3 Gillette Fatboy fixed up soon after New Year Eve, one Fatboy will be send off to Dave at Restored Razors in New Zealand for a complete repair & replated and two Fatboys will be send off too @FatBoy58 soon. I prefer to allow @FatBoy58 to enjoy Christmas and New Year Eve with his family and friends first before I send him the two Fatboys for minor repair and any cleaning required, so in the mean @FatBoy58 you just relax put you're feet up and have a beer (y) and spend extra time with you're family and friends ;)
 
Interesting read @todras and an indication of how different we all are. Personally I feel that my Mergress XL set on 5 gives me a far better shave than either a Fat Boy or a Slim. Different strokes for different folks!
 
nsavage said:
Interesting read @todras and an indication of how different we all are. Personally I feel that my Mergress XL set on 5 gives me a far better shave than either a Fat Boy or a Slim. Different strokes for different folks!
Click to expand...

@nsavage that's because the Mergress XL has more weight than the Fatboy & Slim as you'll get a much better shave with some extra weight without applying pressure at all ;), the Fatboy is heavier than the Slim which offer a much better shave with some extra weight than the Slim ;)
 
Princess @alfredus on the other hand thinks the Progress set on 2.5 gives the perfect shave and everything above 3 is killer...

Similarly the Fatboy on 5+ should be classified as a weapon :D
 
todras said:
Just a quick rant of sorts about these two razors. Having recently had a pair of them restored out of a sense of posterity more than anything, I made the decision to set my daily go-to the Stainless steel fixed position ''Above the Tie Colossus R1' aside for a week or two to give the Slim and the Fatboy a serious run.

I am about a week in, and to be quite frank I am astonished at the performance of both of these restored Vintage razors. Prior to having them serviced and re-plated there was a fair bit of 'play' in the mechanical aspects of both razors, quite understandable as they are 50 years old or so. The work done on both of them, whatever specifically it was has removed all trace of the mechanical wear and tear, they are tighter, more fluid when opening and the threads now glide smoothly and exactly. The adjustment dial now has a firm report when moved and locks in readily.

I own a long handled Merkur Progress, it is a fantastic adjustable piece and I get some really good shaves out of it despite it being somewhat aggressive at a low setting. However when I compare it side by side to both the Vintage Slim and the Fatboy I am tempted to say it is not really in the race when it comes to quality of shave. I base my comparison on using only Feather blades in all 3 adjustable's. I find that both the Fatboy and the Slim have blade gaps that are set lower than the Progress, in that I mean the gradient begins at a lower setting equating to (for me) the perfect efficiency being at 7 in both the slim and fatboy while in the Progress it is at 3.5 maximum before the shave is too aggressive (efficient).

These are my thoughts currently, I still love my progress and certainly the ATT razor but these two 50 or so year old razors, now being restored, are delivering truly superb shaves now I have attenuated the dial to the position that affords the best shave.
Click to expand...
I agree @todras - I love my Slim and Fatboy and usually use a Feather or Permasharp on setting 6 and find they give outstanding shaves. The build quality and performance on these (and to be honest, almost all vintage Gillettes) is something to be wondered at, in comparison to the more recent dross Gillette has turned out. They were overengineered and built to last several lifetimes!!
 
I have the pleasure to have both. The 195 is another classic Gillette razor (I compare to a 57 Chevy) just darn neat. The Slim is also nice in the hand. Not my best shaver's but I still enjoy taking each for an occasional spin just for posterity.
 
I prefer the shave from a progress over the fatboy, slim and black beauty.

I find the progress hefty weight is great and it is also balanced perfectly. The thicker handle is also nice and the blade angle is so intuitive.
 
I have the super adjustable, a delta echo slim, a razor emporium refurbished 60 Fatboy and rate them in that order with regards shaves. The Fatboy wins hands down regarding coolness, but the all black slim is not far behind........... Black beauty is the ugly duckling, but proof looks can be deceiving, delivers a great shave.

Sold the Progress and replaced it with the Progress Eskimo........ clinical and soulless it's now moved on to a new home as well.
 
On topic discussion of personal opinions on the qualities of the Slim, Fatboy or other adjustables welcome. Please keep on topic
 
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