Personna BBS-0

Has anyone here used the Personna BBS-0 razor? I believe it may be a clone of the BBS-1.

Are we talking about the aluminum razor Personna came out with in the 60's to replace their rebranded Star, made in England, had a Tech base plate and a chiseled top cap like the Merkur 37? Never heard of it. ;-)

Seriously, I have one for a while now and it immediately went into my regular rotation ever since I shaved with it. It is a comfortable shaver and when you use the angle it gives you (with the top cap) it definitely becomes a BBS shaver. I was not aware it's official name was BBS-0, but I call it my Pre-Blackbird because of the shape of the top cap. I saw pics of the BBS-1 and that top cap looks more like a rectangular box.

If you find one, get it, you won't be sorry.

John,

I do happen to have the razor in question (Personna DE) but what I don’t have is a BBS-1 so I have absolutely no clue if the BBS-1 was modelled after the vintage Personna.  Perhaps that will be my next unicorn!

I stand corrected, I MAY NOT have the razor in question...

I stand corrected, I MAY NOT have the razor in question...

Yeah, that was the rebranded Star razor that I mentioned in my post. Great shaver, but the one with the chiseled top cap is better.

Can’t remember the source for this photo. I downloaded it quite a while ago. It is supposed to represent the evolution in the development of the BBS-1. Perhaps it’ll offer some illumination.

Can’t remember the source for this photo. I downloaded it quite a while ago. It is supposed to represent the evolution in the development of the BBS-1. Perhaps it’ll offer some illumination.

I believe the "Chinese razor" on the far left looks quite a bit like the Personna I mentioned.

Can’t remember the source for this photo. I downloaded it quite a while ago. It is supposed to represent the evolution in the development of the BBS-1. Perhaps it’ll offer some illumination.

I believe the "Chinese razor" on the far left looks quite a bit like the Personna I mentioned.

There are definitely some similarities there. During the time, it seems that style was quite popular, as it also reminds me of a Gillette Travel Tech I used to have. Very slim heads.

Of course, the “pre-Blackbird” gvw755 has is a bit of a different breed, and an interesting one at that. Equally interesting is how the BBS-1 evolved to be its own distinctive design, with not a lot to connect it to the razor that served as the original inspiration.

The original Chinese razor is a Baili that Razorock sells as the DE1. It is probably the best Tech clone around today and shaves even better than the original Techs.In looking at the BBS-1, the base plate definitely is a modified Tech in origin and the top cap clamps the blade similarly. This is not unusual as many current high end razors take design elements from either the Tech or the New. Seems like Gillette had it right in the beginning.