Thread: Reviewing the Aristocrat/Diplomat/President group

Hiya,

There's a group of three Gillette DE razors that are very similar in style and shaving performance. They're called Aristocrat, Diplomat, and President. The first two are completely gold plated and the President has a Rhodium plated handle. I'm not sure what the head's plated with, and it doesn't shine quite like the handle.

I won't go into the various little features making em cosmetically different from each other, since that doesn't effect the shave.

As a reference point, I'll use a fatboy set on #4, with either an Iridium or Feather blade as my perfect set up.

All three of the classy named razors are very good for me as far as aggressive nature. They feel about a 5-6 Gillette setting, which is very bearable for my face. Any razor past that point I won't even use anymore. Heh, I got that outa my system a while ago. Yeah, these are right in the middle of the 5&6......nice.

They all have some decent weight to em, and the balance is better than average. The knurling pattern is easy to grip, and all of those razors feel good in my hand. They are a pleasure to use as a great change of pace.

To my eye, they're some of the nicest looking razors made by anyone at any time. The gold plate on the Aristocrat/Diplomat is surprisingly durable and there's some nice examples still to be found. User grades are normally very reasonable and will give someone a good idea of what that trio is about.

Oh, I should mention the exact era I'm talking about here. These Aristocrats started around the late 40s, and most are impossible to date. One though has an easy ID. The 1946-47 was made without a notch, and that's how it can be dated. Heh, that one shaves the same as the notched one. The Diplomats were mostly dated, and I believe were made around 1953 and for a few years after.

The President is dated in the same manner as the Diplomat, but I'm not sure when in the 1950s those were made. It's got that very shiny Rhodium handle and that's the one to try if you don't like a gold razor. Sadly, those things are a bit pricy, and that sometimes includes even user grades. Heh, no big deal though since they all shave the same. Actually, I should say they all shave basically are the same, although not all shave exactly alike. I've found a couple more aggressive than others, which I think is because of a little tiny quality control quirk during production runs.

I've used somewhere around 35-40 different razors and lots of different blades over the years. If I hadn't found the daily combo I use now, I would be shaving much more often with one of the three types mentioned. I have nothing bad to say about em. Even the doors open and close better on these things than most other Gillettes.....they are quality razors that should be included on the DE journey.

Martin

First pic is an early- mid 1950s Aristocrat. Next is a 1953 Diplomat, and the last is a 1955 President.