Skip to content

King C. Gillette Double Edge Razor – The King Is Dead, Long Live The King! A Review

Listen to this article

In mid-2020 the wet shaving world became abuzz much like the mainstream of social media becomes when a Kardashian goes on to a red carpet wearing a new dress. (or almost wearing one). This was the first double edged, safety razor Gillette will have mass produced and sold in retail stores in North America in several decades: the King C. Gillette Double Edge Safety Razor.

Rumors

Facebook groups and shaving forums had multiple posts, YouTube shavers made special videos breaking the news. All of them discussing the rumors about new razor being created by Gillette. Not that Gillette rolling out a new razor is not groundbreaking news: Gillette seems to introduce a new multi blade razor every few months.  The only mention they receive in the wet shaving world is a few snarky comments and they move on with the usual topics.  But this razor was different.

The rumor of this new razor spread like wildfire.  It was like the razor Gods had heard the wet shavers’ prayers.  So many forums, Facebook groups, and shaving videos have shouted out to Gillette asking them to make a safety razor for the American market again for a long time. And it looked like its time had come. Even before the details of this new razor were released it was already being compared to the Gillette Heritage razor (affiliate link) sold exclusively on Amazon.

I am no marketing expert but when the Gillette Heritage razor was introduced (much to same excitement in the wet shaving world) I thought to myself that this was a test of the viability of selling a safety razor to the younger generation and whether there was such a massive market as we wet shavers were promising. After the Heritage sold out online, several times, I believe told Proctor and Gamble a DE razor was worth further testing.

The Dust Settles

As the dust clouds settled and things became clearer we discovered the new razor under the Brand name “King C Gillette.” Named after the company’s founder, it would be sold at Walgreen’s pharmacies across the country along with other men’s grooming products such as beard balm, cartridge razors trimmers, shaving gel, and double edge blade refills for the DE razor.

Almost like a starting pistol at a race, wet shavers have been visiting Walgreens stores across America searching for these razors.  Some searching in multiple stores until they can find this new razor.  When one is found it is displayed on social media like Wonka’s Golden ticket. Within a week several YouTube shavers (Including Kevy shaves in Scotland where they haven’t even been released yet) were giving reviews on the new shaver.

I myself tried to find one several times before I was able to purchase mine.  I even ordered one online through Walgreens.com. I kept checking the status until after a week I received an email from Walgreens telling me my order was canceled because they had run out of stock.  Even though I was a bit upset I consoled myself by the thought that the fact these razors were flying off the shelves in stores and selling out online was beneficial to the hobby.

While at dinner over the Memorial Day holiday I happened to check the Walgreens app on my phone and to my surprise it read there two in stock locally.  Putting my suspicious nature aside after dinner I told my lady I had to stop at Walgreens.  After I explained why I got that “not another razor” look but being the understanding lady she is she went with me.

When I arrived at the shaving aisle at Walgreens in my small Oklahoma town, I could not believe my eyes! It was here! After checking various Walgreens in Dallas and Oklahoma City without luck here it was in Southern Oklahoma! I snatched the box and a box of 10 blades and went to the register with a feeling of satisfaction (and a bigger satisfied feeling when I saved $20 by using my rewards points).

First Impressions

My first impression of this three piece razor was in my hand it felt solid and well built. The handle was heavy and well balanced.  The head and bottom cap fit together well, and the entire shaver was plated very well.  I thought King C. Gillette’s monogram on the top of the head cap was attractive and a nice touch.

I decided since Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start to summer, I would use Stirling’s Coconut and lime shaving soap applied with a Mojo handcrafted shaving brush for this King’s maiden voyage.  The blade in play was a King C. Gillette which I purchased with the razor.

I will admit I did find loading the blade into the razor a bit challenging.  This is no fault of the razor or Gillette’s.  I only have partial vision in one eye (In other words I am blind in one eye and can’t see out of the other) so placing a blade into a three piece razor is a bit daunting for me.  Under normal circumstances, I usually stick with one piece TTO razors for this reason. I hope they will consider trying a TTO razor again in the future. Without too much trouble (or blood) I got the blade installed and the blade alignment was perfect, and I began my shave.

The razor felt well balanced in my hand and heavy, allowing the razor to work efficiently without much effort from me.  The King C. Gillette blade was amazingly comfortable, to my face the Russian made blade felt much like a Gillette Nacet blade, smooth and relaxing. No tugging with limited blade feel. It cut through my three days of growth with little effort.

I had noticed some reviewers had issues with the knurling on the handle, saying they had trouble gripping it with wet hands.  Personally I had no issues with this whatsoever.  It felt fine and my hand and I had no issue with slippage or with the handle’s diameter.

As for aggressiveness, I would have to personally say King C. Gillette is a fairly mild razor.  Of course, as the old saying goes “Your mileage may vary” but in my opinion given this will be a starter razor for many younger men (and women) who might use this as their starter safety razor I personally think that is a good thing.  If a first time wet shaver was to buy something extremely aggressive (especially in a retail store) for his first shave he might be turned off on trying to use it a second time. So, in my mind, it might be like a modern day Blue tip super speed.

Conclusion

I know a lot of shavers are turned off about this razor for many reasons before they ever even see it in person.  Some are mad because some of its parts are made in China, or Gillette farmed out the production to third party vendors or others are upset because of the “Toxic” commercials a year or so back.  I get and understand all those feelings.  I am not here to defend Gillette or anyone else (these are my own personal feelings no one else’s). But if we want to see DE razors made in the USA (or at all for North American consumers) we have to look past the country of origin of these razors. Sadly, not everything is American made anymore like they once were. If you are going to insist on buying American made razors you will just have to go out and purchase ones made by Merkur, Yaqi, Parker, Edwin Jagger or others like this (see what I am getting at?) and typing your displeasure on a mobile device manufactured in China is not going to further the hobby in a positive way. Who knows if this razor sells well Gillette may expand its distribution into other retail outlets which can be nothing but a positive step for wet shaving? It would also be a great razor to recommend to someone who wants to ditch the cartridge and join our community.  I believe this would make a perfect razor for a father to give his son (or daughter) as a first razor.

Now if we can convince Gillette to recreate the Fatboy…

The King C. Gillette razor is available from a wide variety of sources, both “brick and mortar” stores in the U.S., and online.

Bill Hosler

Bill Hosler

36 thoughts on “King C. Gillette Double Edge Razor – The King Is Dead, Long Live The King! A Review”

  1. I have for many years shaved with a fat handle tech but this razor is far better. Good weight, smooth and to my mind nice and mild. A first class piece of work at a great price, I honestly thought I would not find a better razor then the tech but time marches on and this to me is a real improvement. Just the job for anyone thinking of trying a de razor. I hope to be using this one for a long time.

  2. We would love updates. My husband got the Double edge safety blade tonight. He’s using it now. I love the weight of it. Thank you

    1. Hi Tammy!

      As a matter of fact I am in the process of writing another review and I am using this razor to test them. Stay tuned! 😊

  3. Everyone seems to have lost sight of the original Gillette razor designs. The old Type and Techs in particular were lightweight and provide to this day, some of the finest shaves available.
    With the advent of pot metal (zamack) casting, caps and especially bottom plates became thick, heavy and clunky. This heaviness has spilled over to top tier razors of stainless steel, aluminum and titanium being all made following the unnecessarily heavy and thick head designs.
    Gillette once made great performing razors as give-aways to promote their blade sales. Today, a $30 razor will definitely have an audience. BUT a freebie razor with purchase of a pack of Gillette blades will build a bigger double-edge market, IMO. There is a P&G product, a Gillette razor made in china of lightweight head, plastic handle and stamped bottom plate. It’s about a $5 razor via the on-line Chinese retailers. It shaves remarkably like a vintage Tech. It would be the ideal choice to return to Gillette’s 100 year old marketing strategy of selling blades, and providing a capable promo razor to do it.

  4. Good review. It’s now available in Germany and England (and possibly other European countries as well). I live in Sweden and have one coming my way via an online seller in the UK. I dreaded it potentially being US and Walgreens only, but the one coming my way even has text on the box in Swedish among many languages so I am sure it’s a global roll-out. Also, in these days travellin is not happening to picking it up on a US trip would probably not happen until 2021. I really like the Heritage razor and look fwd to trying this out as well. I guess I got it just because it came out and it’s very cool to see Gillette – the world shaving no 1 – put its name on new DE products. Gillette made and make products all over the world so I don’t really understand the need for US made. The old Rockets made in the UK do not come second to the US Superspeeds and so on – there are many examples of Gillette being global.

    1. I hope you like the razor! I really like the Heritage. Many people have compared the two but I think there are some differences.

      I kinda knew they were coming to Europe. I have seen someone ask King C. Gillette on their Instagram page if it was coming to England. Gillette responded it would arrive in a month at Super drug. I’ll have to check the package. I never noticed the Swedish content.
      I was lucky enough to pick up an English made Rocket HD last week. I have to admit it might be my new favorite razor (to date 😊)

  5. Is Gillette still sending free Recycling Boxes to people who want to send their blades, razors, and other shaving materials for recycling?

    1. Honestly if they are I haven’t heard about it. But then it takes a long time for news to reach here in Southern Oklahoma 😄

  6. Not “Toxic”, TOXIC (IMHO). Either way, I have a couple of vintage Gillette DE’s I bought on eBay a few years ago (amazingly I was not taken to the cleaners on the price) so I’ll continue to use those and reminisce. Thanks for a great review.

    1. You are welcome. Honestly I am surprised at the reaction to those commercials. Personally, I didn’t like the message either but if you read the history of the company and about King Gillette and the reason he originally established the company you won’t be too surprised.

      I have several old ones I got off eBay (I’m like you I only bought them when the price is right. I think I paid $20 for my 59 Fat boy) I just spent the most I’ve ever spent a few weeks ago I bought a made in England Rocket HD. It’s being shipped from France. I paid $50 for it (Believe me I had to do some fast talking when she seen the credit card statement lol!)

      Thanks for the nice words about the article. I hope you will continue to read them in the future 😊

      1. You’re quite welcome. I just thought it was odd that they were slapping the face of those (most) they were trying to sell their product to (men). I shall read up on King Gillette more. Cheers.

  7. Why would Gillette recreate the Fatboy when people are perfectly content to buy razors that they don’t design or make? Gillette has given no indication at all that they would even make a new razor, let alone bring one of their designs back.

    1. They haven’t indicated they wouldn’t either. The line about the fat boy was a throwaway line to finish the article.

      I don’t think anyone expects them to begin producing a 60 year old razor again. It would be like Chevy beginning to remake their iconic 1957 model again. It’s nice to think about but it isn’t very practical. But that doesn’t mean they can’t produce something new.

      Gillette has marketed two new DE razors to the American market in the last year. They aren’t doing it because it was a slow Friday at the office and decided to sell a safety razor for kicks. They have reasons behind it.

      1. I would like to see a “modern” FatBoy. Not so much an identical replica of the original, but a modern version using the design characteristics that made the original so good. Adjustable, with a thicker/heavier handle.
        I think if they put a little effort in to it, they could do something that would be quite desirable. Like Chevy did with the updated Camaro, or Dodge did with the Charger.

    2. Global Shave Clubs are releasing a Fat Boy replica. It will have the same design, part for part, as the original 1960 model. We have a presale going on with special pricing until the release of the razor in mid-August. Parts are made in the PRC, India, and assembled in Canada!

      1. Hi Sheldon!
        I have been paying close attention to the progress of your campaign. I am trying to come up with a plausible argument to my other half so I can get one! A god one at that! (She is in finance and every expenditure is like going before the Shark tank/Dragons fen 🙂 )
        I was surprised you are only going to have a limited run of 300. I would think something like that would sell for years. Hopefully I can get one!

    3. For reasons unknown, the Gillette 195 has a large cult following. We are led to believe the Fatboy is the Holy Grail of razors. Sure it’s a nice razor, but don’t lose sight of the fact that Gillette replaced it with the more maneuverable Slim and later the Super Adjustable and the Black Beauty.

      1. It’s a good question. I go through phases. Sometimes I prefer my Fatboy, other times. I prefer my skim adjustable. (I am partial to this one. It’s the first quarter if 1966, my birth year.) Then there are times I like my TV special… it is like picking your favorite child sometimes.

        I think part of the popularity is nostalgia. I think a lot of the guys who are into vintage razors are also loved retro everything. Like Rockabilly, rat rods..etc. Or they want to be Don Draper from Madmen so they are looking to the 1950s and early ’60s. Other guys who love the 60’s will probably go for the skims or black beauties. (or have beards. Dirty hippies 😀)
        It might also just be a trend. Maybe next everyone will want a tech. It’s hard telling.

  8. I would love them to make a butterfly razor again as I am not a fan of the 3 piece ones. I have a Merkur one. Probably the best shave of my 3. I even have my father’s, from early 60’s Gillette DE butterfly razor. But that is for not used. I was unaware of the Heritage razor. Thanks for bringing that up.

    1. That’s what I’m hoping for too. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. I’m not a fan of three-piece razors either (I didn’t put it in the Article because it was too embarrassing but the first time I tried to use the razor it didn’t even take a single whisker off. Then I realized I had the bottom plate on upside down 🥺) I still use my Fat boy or my Slim adjustable as my daily driver)

      Out of the two new Gillettes, I actually prefer the Heritage razor. I just felt the head gave me a better save but you know the disclaimer YMMV.

      I’m thinking if these conditions to sell we will see a TTO in the future. I’m sure Gillette has models they Intend for other countries that could easily be soId here If they deem the market warrants it. 😊

      1. There are already many Super Speeds and similar vintage razors available for sale. I have several iterations of Super Speed that look to be as-new; none I paid more then $20 for. Why would I want to pay more for a ‘modern’ razor of lesser quality?

        1. I get ya. My daily drivers are either a 1959 Fatboy, 56 red tips, 66 slim or my English Rocket HD (among others I won’t mention in case the Mrs. is reading this).

          Thing is. I didn’t know about any of these until I got the wet shaving itch. My first razor was a Rockwell R-1 I got off Amazon.
          It wasn’t until I got that razor that I started to discover my eBay finds. That’s why I called the KCG a ”gateway drug”.

          You got some fella walking through walgreens to buy some cartridges for his razor and it disgusts him to pay that much for those blades. If he sees the the razor maybe he will pick it up and check it out. He can’t do that with a vintage razor.
          Then again if they do start to like the vintage razors ill never find another bargain again 😁

        2. I think Gillette(P&G) possibly brought out there recent razors due to the New Wilkinson sword TTO that was released earlier???

          1. I kinda was wondering that too. I’m actually surprised they didn’t just rebrand the Wilkinson Sword razor with the Gillette logo instead of creating a whole new product.

            I haven’t tried the new Wilkinson. Hopefully it’s a nice razor.

  9. Interesting article but FULL of spelling errors, grammar errors and run-on sentences. Please have someone competent proofread prior to publication.

  10. I love this razor! The size and weight are pretty much exactly what I like in a razor. And I have no issues with the knurling either. I’ve had no problems with gripping the handle, which is a big deal for me due to having reduced feeling in my fingers from working in a meat processing plant many years ago. I really like the look of the razor also. It has an elegant quality to it, and the logo on the top is a nice touch.
    Paired with the included blades, it gives me a very good shave, with no weepers, cuts, etc. It is indeed a mild razor, but gets the job done quite nicely for me. The first time I used it, I actually had to double check to make sure I had put a blade in it – it is that mild.
    Hopefully, with the success of the Heritage, and now the King C Gillette, they will realize there is a viable market for DE razors. I would love to see them do an open comb version, and a modern Fatboy would be really cool!

    1. Thanks for the kind words 😏 Yes i realized the errors when I first read it myself. Having low vision makes it difficult to catch all of ones mistakes. I’ll try harder in the future.

  11. When I saw this on the self at my local Walgreens, curiousity got the better of me. I have been expirementing with this razor for a week now. I have been using the Wilkinson Sword Classic blade. It is a good razor. It won’t replace my adjustable, but it will be a good alternative when I need to switch up my routine. What I like most about this razor is its weight. I find it to be moderately agressive. I can have a baby’s butt smooth shave after three passes. This razor should be a good option for most beginners.

    1. I have been thinking about trying it with a different blade too. I really like Gillette Platinum and silver blues. I have been thinking about giving them a try. Let me know how it works out!

      1. The Wilkinson Sword Classic is my preferred blade. But the Gillette Silver Blue is a very smooth blade. I wouldn’t hesitate to give it a shot with this razor.

        1. I used a Silver Blue today and I was thinking I bet that might make the KCG a bit more aggressive. Might be worth a try! It works great in every other razor I’ve used it in.

          1. I just love Gillette Platinum. It works well for me. In my opinion, and its only my opinion, the Heritage is a much better razor. I think that this will be “it” for now.

Comments are closed.