Shimming an Old Type

Hello all,

I have a 1918 Gillette Old Type, one that was sold to the Army for a WWI doughboy to use. With a modern blade in it, I feel way too much blade for my liking. At least, I am assuming it is a blade feel. I "ride the cap" when shaving with it; that is, keeping the handle away from my face, risking missing whiskers versus exfoliating my face! I've tried Red Personna, Green 7 O'clocks, Perma-Sharps, and the Gillette Silver Blue (best to date). All give me more of a harsh feel than I like from my shaves.

My question is in regards to shimming. Do I put the shim next to the cap or next to the baseplate? Any tips would be greatly appreciated! As it is now, this razor is used infrequently and is in danger of becoming collected rather than used! Thanks again

When shimming a blade, you put the shim between the blade and the baseplate. This effectively increases the blade gap, usually making it more aggressive which doesn't sound like what you want to do. I wonder if you could put the shim on top of the blade and make it feel more forgiving?

Have you used any other open comb razors before? I found that I just don't get along with most OCs I've tried. The Old Type I have is the exception though, oddly enough. I have to use a VERY light touch or I'll get irritation, but if my technique is spot on, it delivers a great shave. Good luck with yours! It would be a shame to have to let that beauty go. I saw the pics after the Delta Echo treatment and it looks awesome!

When shimming a blade, you put the shim between the blade and the baseplate. This effectively increases the blade gap, usually making it more aggressive which doesn't sound like what you want to do. I wonder if you could put the shim on top of the blade and make it feel more forgiving?

Have you used any other open comb razors before? I found that I just don't get along with most OCs I've tried. The Old Type I have is the exception though, oddly enough. I have to use a VERY light touch or I'll get irritation, but if my technique is spot on, it delivers a great shave. Good luck with yours! It would be a shame to have to let that beauty go. I saw the pics after the Delta Echo treatment and it looks awesome!

You can certainly try the shim on top, that's the method that really transforms the Shake Sharp.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

As already said, shim from underneath the blade to make the razor head more effective/aggressive, and try to shim above the blade to make it less so.

Also, the width of the shim could potentially affect blade geometry, at least in my mind. If I use the widest possible shim underneath a blade, it should preserve the original geometry quite closely. Whereas if I make the shim narrow, it could possibly create more blade curvature, especially if there is more than just one shim. Reversely, a narrow shim on top of the blade could potentially flatten the blade slightly, depending of course on how much the head shape allows it to do so.

In the end, we are talking about tenths of a millimeter here, which may or may not make a difference. Worth a shot, though.

When shimming a blade, you put the shim between the blade and the baseplate. This effectively increases the blade gap, usually making it more aggressive which doesn't sound like what you want to do. I wonder if you could put the shim on top of the blade and make it feel more forgiving?

Have you used any other open comb razors before? I found that I just don't get along with most OCs I've tried. The Old Type I have is the exception though, oddly enough. I have to use a VERY light touch or I'll get irritation, but if my technique is spot on, it delivers a great shave. Good luck with yours! It would be a shame to have to let that beauty go. I saw the pics after the Delta Echo treatment and it looks awesome!

Thank you for the compliment to the razor and for the tips!  I have used the Maggard V2 OC and used it as my primary razor for 5 months before a Slim adjustable came home. I also have NEW short comb that shaves great for me, but when I got it I had already sold the Maggard and am unable to compare, memory not being reliable!

I will experiment over a few weeks and try to post back what worked for me.

Today I shaved with the shim under the cap, above the blade. Seemed like an easier shave, less irritation, but I still had to be attentive, as that razor likes to bite me if I don't give it my undivided attention! Overall, great shave. Other than attention, also seemed to keep that angle shallow, but maybe not as much as before. I'll try a few more shaves and then maybe try a second shim. I will also try putting just one shim under the cap, but most folks indicate that will make the razor more aggressive, and if that mean uncomfortable, then I will stop immediately. Who wants an uncomfortable shave?!

It’s good to try different options, and shims are easy to make. I recently used as many as three shims under the blade to make the razor slightly more aggressive and, mainly, more efficient. Perhaps it was a bit overkill — that’s about a 0.3 mm difference, total — but it worked. (I now regularly use 1– 2 shims in that razor.)

Hopefully you’ll soon find what works best for that particular razor, so that you can enjoy your shaves more. Keep us posted.

A brief update: two shims under the cap gave the best shave to-date with the Old Type. I got a close shave, no irritation or nicks, and none of the harsh feel I tend to associate with this razor. I could still feel the blade, but would not call it harsh, which is how I can best describe what it felt like on my face. My New SC has some blade feel, but I can get comfortable shaves with it. This Old needs all my attention, and I love the idea of the history of this razor that is 99 years old.

Nice work. I usually put the shim near the base plate. I've only shimmed my PAA DOC and not an old type. Yet another Gillette razor I don't need, but will probably get one to try out at some point.

I use one shim with my 1921 Big Fellow.