Razor: Timeless .68 Gap and the British Gillette Aristocrat #16
Blade: Astra SP X2 (3)
Soap/cream: Asylum Royal Fougere
Brush: Razorock Synthetic
Aftershave1: T.N. Dickinson's Witch Hazel
Aftershave2: Asylum Royal Fougere
Cologne: Asylum Royal Fougere
So first of all you all know the point of this shave today. But first the scent of this is a favorite of mine and I really enjoy it. So anyways on the the results of the comparison.
British Gillette Aristocrat #16
So the best to my knowledge this is a Rhodium Plated Razor which as far as I can tell was ahead of its time a little in the Gillette arena. These razors where sold at a premium. From what I understand buying one of these back then would be like buying a razor from Art of Shaving today. You are buying a razor with beauty, fine craftsmanship, and something with a little flair over a regular razor at the time. And honestly it shows. The razor is beautiful, but it wasn't just extra time that went into the looks of the razor. This is the most efficient and effective Gillette razor I have ever used either vintage or modern. I went into this expecting to be disappointed, to be honest I don't get my best results from my modern razors. This was the first vintage razor to challenge that, and honestly I am very happy with the results. If I ever run across a razor in this good of shape it is going to be very hard not to pull the trigger. Thank you Chris (cmh737) for allowing me to use this razor, and asking me to do this review.
Timeless .68 Gap with Pineapple handle, scalloped head and baseplate
Well first of all the name is a mouthful LOL. Especially when explaining all the pieces I selected. This razor is currently in my den my favorite razor. Not because I spent the most money on it. But because it also provides me with the easiest and best shave. It always blows me away that the .68 gap provides such an amazing shave. The geometry on this razor is perfect! Honestly it does such a great job. This razor has never drawn blood. The craftsmanship shows and this is an heirloom piece to me. There isn't really much more to say. I love my Timeless.
So the questions:
If I owned the Aristocrat and not the Timeless do I need a Timeless?: No I do not.
Which provides the better shave?: Both can provide similar results, but I give the nod to the Timeless. I believe it gets the same result (BBS) more effectively and efficiently
If I could only own one which would I choose?: If I am buying razor for collecting purposes and to display I would pick the Aristocrat. If I want razor for daily use that I can also hand down I would pick the Timeless.
If funds are available should you buy the Timeless if you already own the Aristocrat?: This is hard to answer. Because the shave quality is NOT going to be astronomically different. So really only you can answer this question. So I would answer it this way which is the inverse of this question. If I found an Aristocrat in this condition and at a price point I was comfortable spending I would probably buy it. Not considering rarity, collectability, etc. I would feel comfortable spending around $100-$150 on an Aristocrat in this condition. With that being said I also do not regret spending the amount I did on my Timeless.
So there's the review written out. I hope you all enjoyed this journey! I sure had a good time doing it.
SOTD Pic:
Video:
https://youtu.be/zxt75mGPEWQ
Homefront:
As mentioned previously we are heading out camping today for a week. I will be back in town on next Friday. I did pack some shave gear so a shave will for sure happen out in the wilderness. I hope you all have a great week!