Gillette Super Speed

“The trouble with trying to start with a vintage razor is that you don’t know what you’re getting until you got it. You could end up with something that has been dropped, is bent, is worn beyond proper usefulness, etc. I’m not opposed to vintage Gillette razors. I have a SuperSpeed that is used occasionally just to use it, but it doesn’t come close to the shave I can get with my Muhle R89, and it’s miles from how well my Merkur 37c performs. I keep it because it was made in Q3 of 1953. That’s when I was born as well. I had a Slim Adjustable as well and sold it because it just didn’t do anything special for me. Butterfly razors have moving parts mechanisms that can get sticky or stuck. Multiply that if your vintage razor is adjustable. You have plenty of time to kneel at the altar of vintage razors, but don’t start doing that until you are well experienced with DE shaving and don’t mind investing time and money in buying (and cleaning and restoring) old razors. The last thing you want is to have your first experience with DE shaving be screwed up because you bought a vintage razor that was not in perfect condition. My point is that when you are just starting out, you want a razor that you know is in perfect condition. You can’t know that buying a vintage razor unless it’s from one of the rehab specialists, and then it’s going to cost you much more than a 34c or an R89, both of which are excellent razors.”