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Gillette Fatboy
Lets get the obvious out the way...its an American 50's icon and like cars of that era it prefer's a straight
highway rather than a mountain pass, but who shaves when they are driving anyway?
Its heavy, over engineered and becoming increasingly more expensive to find on the auction sites.
This particular fatboy is known as an Executive as it is gold plated, some have different knurl patterns on the handle
but other than that I don't think there are any other differences.
I own a few other adjustables and this is the one I always turn to if I want a safe stress free shave .
It's built like a safe (~80g) and will no doubt last another 50 years but I love it for that, it is not as well proportioned
as it's younger brother the Slim but it is the only razor I own that I can use with very little or no added pressure.
The handle is just right with enough girth and knurl for a comfortable grip, it's top heavy like most razors but that heft means you can
hold it between your'e fingertips and lean it against your'e face and just pull for a downward pass. The head profile is very similar to
many of the single piece TTO razors I own so manouvrability is not a particular issue for me.
As with all adjustables the dial can be a blessing and a curse, I usually shave with it on 5 as a default setting for all my main passes,
if I want something a little closer I will dial around that datum setting usually 4 and then 6/7. (mowing grass analogy apply's here)
The real joy of course is being able to buff against the grain safely by dialing down to 2 or 3 with little or no irritation, that is where
this razor really comes into it's own for me. A fatboy and feather is one of my favorite combinations, probably not the best starter razor
because of the irressistable urge to touch that dial before you're technique is sound but certainly a must have for every collector and shaver.
Dave at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.safetyrazors.co.uk">http://www.safetyrazors.co.uk</a><!-- m --> did a great replating job on this one, unfortunately I don't have a before
picture but the plating on the doors and saftey bars was at least 80% missing. Certainly worth considering a re-plate
if your'e favourite razor is looking a little tired, you will find his prices more than reasonable.
Lets get the obvious out the way...its an American 50's icon and like cars of that era it prefer's a straight
highway rather than a mountain pass, but who shaves when they are driving anyway?
Its heavy, over engineered and becoming increasingly more expensive to find on the auction sites.
This particular fatboy is known as an Executive as it is gold plated, some have different knurl patterns on the handle
but other than that I don't think there are any other differences.
I own a few other adjustables and this is the one I always turn to if I want a safe stress free shave .
It's built like a safe (~80g) and will no doubt last another 50 years but I love it for that, it is not as well proportioned
as it's younger brother the Slim but it is the only razor I own that I can use with very little or no added pressure.
The handle is just right with enough girth and knurl for a comfortable grip, it's top heavy like most razors but that heft means you can
hold it between your'e fingertips and lean it against your'e face and just pull for a downward pass. The head profile is very similar to
many of the single piece TTO razors I own so manouvrability is not a particular issue for me.
As with all adjustables the dial can be a blessing and a curse, I usually shave with it on 5 as a default setting for all my main passes,
if I want something a little closer I will dial around that datum setting usually 4 and then 6/7. (mowing grass analogy apply's here)
The real joy of course is being able to buff against the grain safely by dialing down to 2 or 3 with little or no irritation, that is where
this razor really comes into it's own for me. A fatboy and feather is one of my favorite combinations, probably not the best starter razor
because of the irressistable urge to touch that dial before you're technique is sound but certainly a must have for every collector and shaver.
Dave at <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.safetyrazors.co.uk">http://www.safetyrazors.co.uk</a><!-- m --> did a great replating job on this one, unfortunately I don't have a before
picture but the plating on the doors and saftey bars was at least 80% missing. Certainly worth considering a re-plate
if your'e favourite razor is looking a little tired, you will find his prices more than reasonable.
