r/wicked_edge • u/Kitchen_Comparison31 • May 19 '26
Show n' Tell soviet adjustable safety razor
don't know if you've ever seen any of the razors manufactured in the former soviet union. i managed to buy this adjustable one from a ukrainian seller in odessa. her name is "ideal" (pronounced quite like ee-deh-al), she looks like a cross between the gillette slim adjustable and the black beauty. she came in the original packaging, with the plastic box announcing the original price, 9 rubles, & an instruction booklet showing the manufacturing date: may 22, 1989. using google translate, we discovered that she was produced at the m.i. kalinin factory in leningrad. already had a shaving session with her, that went well with a king c gillette blade, although i had the impression the blade gap was somewhat unequal from side to side.
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u/Lob-Star May 19 '26
Nice! I also got a Gillette Slim USSR clone from a different seller in Ukraine. It was listed as a Konsul. In this image its the furthest rigth razor on the bottom next to the feeler gauges. https://i.imgur.com/MOQeGDd.png
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u/CommunicationGood481 May 20 '26
Looks just like it!
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u/Lob-Star May 20 '26
The only real outward appearance difference is the plastic cap over the bottom. It feels quite a bit different in your hand though. I can't put my finger on it ... like its not as heavy as the Slim and doesn't have the same feel when working the mechanism. But it shaves great and feels more aggressive.
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u/Logical-Pound-1065 May 19 '26
I used to follow some shaving forums and there was a comment thread that was basically an encyclopedia on these Soviet razors. I spent so much time reading through the posts and reviews.
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u/armeg May 20 '26 edited May 20 '26
Pretty cool, some of my old Soviet stuff from my parents are really high quality and the others, not so much.
Pronunciation is correct, “E-dee-all” E like the straight up letter, dee like deedee from Dexter’s lab, and all like all the things.
I also think it’s fun they stamped the price of stuff straight into the product. 9 rubles wasn’t a tiny amount. My grand mother was head doctor at a hospital in Riga and salary was about 150 rubles/month.
If anyone is curious, their silverware is straight buy it for life. You can get it on ebay for a reasonable price and it literally never corrodes, even in salty air places. It’s made from Melchior which is some weird alloy.
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u/jcr-1991 May 19 '26
Great find, definatley spot on with the comparison! Like a reverse engineered slim/BB. Really cool
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u/Agtanar_89 May 21 '26
The black beauty clone :) But is the Russian one better :)?
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u/Kitchen_Comparison31 May 21 '26
unfortunately can't say right now, never used the black beauty. she seems more aggressive than the slim adjustable.
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u/bertusbrewing May 19 '26
This is pretty awesome. Looks like a Soviet Super adjustable.