Super Speed Razors: The Post World War II Shaving Culture in America to 1955

[mgbbrown]

Thank you so much Killer Cougar! I was just asking my wife if she knew where a sweater my mother knitted for me was stored, and just how nice it would be to wear it again! We are up in the mountains in West Jefferson listening to Bluegrass at the Log House Cafe. They had just played "Coat of Many Colors," which reminded me of her. We saw some Catalin knitting needles in an antique store in town, and will get them tomorrow.

The MGB was my first sports car, and I have been committed to the marque after seeing one at Person Street Pharmacy in Columbia, South Carolina in 1963. I host a thread at the MG Experience in the Original MG Forum called "It Was Done Back Then"- it has many photographs of the restoration. Again, thank you so much! God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[killer cougar]

Love going to West Jefferson and look what you guys made me do. Should be here this week. Paid a little more than most have, but just couldn't wait.

 

[mgbbrown]

West Jefferson in Ashe County is indeed a wonderful place, Killer Cougar, and relatively undiscovered from a developmental standpoint in comparison to its nearby Watauga County and the likes of Boone and Blowing Rock. Once things settle down a bit at the Brown house- I will post some photographs myself. We needed the brief rest there before jumping hook, line, and sinker deeper into the settlement of my mother's estate, which has given me additional information on the life of both parents during the early Super Speed era. I can say that the NOS Made Right Lucite and Catalin shaving brush found in West Jefferson looks far better than it performs- it was one scratchy rascal! A prewar Fat Handled Tech was found at an antique mall in nearby Boone, and does indeed shave as well as some claim. It too will get the Cap and Chris treatment. We will need more details on your very nice 1940's style Super Speed Sir!

If you remember a few pages back, the picture of my father with his 1952 championship Wheat Swamp High School basketball team- I found a gold basketball charm with "1952 Champions" cast into the side of the ball. Sweetheart pillows were a routine gift during the war- he gave two to his mother with "US Navy Mother" patterned into one of the pillows. Richlands High School in rural Duplin County was a one-room brick New Deal building with a wooden gymnasium and adjacent agricultural building. His 1943-1944 yearbook was mimeographed and each picture an actual photograph. My father was voted "most studious." Maybe he did walk that three miles to school each day, but there was a photograph of the school's bus fleet... God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[Mlee]

I was out looking for razors at a local flea market a couple of weeks ago and saw this. It made me think of this thread, so I took a couple of pictures.

After looking at the pictures again, I realize that it's a Triumph, not an MGB. It still made me think, and I looked for Super Speeds the rest of the weekend.

 

[Saxonbowman]

Gorgeous car! There certainly is something awesome about those old British sports cars. Taking care of them is a full time job though.

 

[mgbbrown]

M. Lee; That is a very nicely done TR3! The first picture shows the storage hatch for the spare tire and wheel- it is a rectangular compartment that opens with a key reminiscent of a clock winding key. The upper edge is adjacent and below the rear Lucas Beehive lights. TR3's were also known as Large and Small Mouth TR3's by the size of the front grill- this is a Small Mouth TR3. The cut-away doors were a styling queue from the 1930's. TR3's and their variants were produced from 1955 through 1962 by the Standard Triumph Company in Coventry, England. This car is fitted with a black Connolly hide interior with white piping to match the side curtains. The steering wheel was made by Bluemel Brothers Limited, Wolston, Coventry. The Midlands was the center of the British car industry. MG's were made in Abingdon, near Oxford, with many sub-assemblies and parts manufactured in Birmingham.


Mike; When I purchased my MGB Roadster in 1980- my parents thought I was absolutely nuts! However, it was completely trouble-free to the time I took it off the road following a minor fender-bender on Christmas Eve, 1987. If I remember correctly, I did replace a flat tire and twisted a broken accelerator cable back into working order as the only roadside maintenance required. I did stay on top of things though! God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[Prince of Darkness]

The steering wheel was made by Bluemel Brothers Limited, Wolston, Coventry.

Bluemel were also manufacturers of components for bicycles. I have used their mudguards (fenders) in the past. The brand still exists for mudguards, but it is now a subsidiary brand of SKS and, to the best of my knowledge, no longer manufacture in the UK

 

[Saxonbowman]

Tony, I'm glad you had better luck with your MG than I had with mine. The first car I ever owned was a 1961 MGA purchased in 1974. I had nothing but trouble with it, which was compounded by my efforts to make repairs. I wish I still had it, but it was way beyond my abilities at the time.

 

[mgbbrown]

Kevin; Richard Kimball's Kimball Engineering has acquired the Bluemel patent for the MGB early steering wheel, but I am not sure if he has the rights to the other marques. Nice man- I corresponded with him regarding his initial attempts at casting a valve cover for the MGB, which ended up being wildly successful as his design evolved. I believe these are manufactured at Brooklands. He had just purchased the MGB MK I steering wheel patient, and mentioned it in his correspondence.


Mike; I was fortunate to have been in Scouts with Carl Cason, who learned his skills from his father who raced an MGA, and who purchased my car as salvage in Oxford, as it had been impounded in a drug arrest there. Carl was an MG mechanic, and built the car for he and his wife to tour in, with occasional rally and autocross outings. It had the best of all of his parts, including an overdrive transmission and balanced engine with Hepolite pistons- I am amazed that I lived to tell the tale as it was blindingly quick. When I purchased it, the exhaust consisted of two Cherry Bombs, so the entire neighborhood knew of my whereabouts. Now it will be fitted with an NOS Abarth exhaust, and should sound the part. The engine will be freshened-up if you will, but I do have an NOS head for it and have built up some really nice SU carburetors. We should be well into finishing by this time next year I am hoping. Because it is an historic SCCA rally car- it has to conform to the rules of that time, so I will have to remove the NOS Koni contingency stickers from the competition hardtop Perspex side windows. The SCCA Wire Wheel decals can stay though! God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[Mlee]

M. Lee; That is a very nicely done TR3! The first picture shows the storage hatch for the spare tire and wheel- it is a rectangular compartment that opens with a key reminiscent of a clock winding key. The upper edge is adjacent and below the rear Lucas Beehive lights. TR3's were also known as Large and Small Mouth TR3's by the size of the front grill- this is a Small Mouth TR3. The cut-away doors were a styling queue from the 1930's. TR3's and their variants were produced from 1955 through 1962 by the Standard Triumph Company in Coventry, England. This car is fitted with a black Connolly hide interior with white piping to match the side curtains. The steering wheel was made by Bluemel Brothers Limited, Wolston, Coventry. The Midlands was the center of the British car industry. MG's were made in Abingdon, near Oxford, with many sub-assemblies and parts manufactured in Birmingham.


Mike; When I purchased my MGB Roadster in 1980- my parents thought I was absolutely nuts! However, it was completely trouble-free to the time I took it off the road following a minor fender-bender on Christmas Eve, 1987. If I remember correctly, I did replace a flat tire and twisted a broken accelerator cable back into working order as the only roadside maintenance required. I did stay on top of things though! God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

Wow. When I looked at the pictures again, and realized it was a Triumph, I almost didn't post , I'm glad I did now.

Getting back on topic, I found this at a small antique store today. It's a Z3, which I believe, makes it a TV Special. I'll post better pictures after I clean it up, it's soaking right now.

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[mgbbrown]

Thank you for the excursion into the world of British cars, M. Lee. It was perhaps off-topic, but top-down motoring, as the British say, will hopefully be a reward for years of hard labor. The northern North Carolina Piedmont is a wonderful excursion in any marque.

Nice find as far as your Super Speed is concerned! Your Z3 is a 1954 third quarter production Flare Tip. It is perhaps my favorite of all the ones I have as far as the shave quality and overall good looks. My Z3 came from the estate of Victor Strum, a successful grocery and hardware store owner in Clarksville, Virginia, who started his business shortly after World War Two. Yours looks like it will clean up nicely Sir! Gillette did indeed introduce a TV Special similar to yours in 1958. The 1954 TV Special was a 1940's style Super Speed-Gillette was emptying its parts bin if you will, of the earlier production. God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[Mlee]

Thanks Tony for the education, you are right as always. After posting that I realized I was wrong but I think I did good this time. Two weeks ago, I stopped at a garage sale and asked if they had any double edge safety razors, she said she did but they were in boxes, she said was having another sale in two week and she would get them out for me. I stopped by this morning and asked her if she was able to find them, she said yes and she had kept them in the house for me. She went in and came out with 3 razors, a Black Beauty in a case, a Pink Lady Gillette, and a Supper Speed in a red case. She pointed at the SS and said that one is about 65 years old, recognizing the case, I told her it was made in 1958. She thought for a minute and said that's probably right, she bought it for herself because her dad was tired of her using his. Here's a few pictures of what I found while out with my wife today.

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[mgbbrown]

You certainly did good this time, M. Lee, as you said! TV Specials, particularly the 1958 version, are unique. Not only does the case set it apart from the other Super Speeds in 1958- the handle styling is specific to that release. A cir clip is used to secure the TTO knob to the center rod assembly, whereas through 1955- a cross-headed screw was used. I hold fast still to my theory that the handle was tooled and never made it to the mainstream production, and this was yet another attempt to disguise a cleaning-out of their parts bin. Of course, TV Specials are directly linked to Gillette's Cavalcade of Sports television program, and by the number of survivors that made it to public use- the show was wildly popular. The case, aside from the red styrene base color, is identical to the 1954 version. It is much smaller than the regular Flare Tip case for mailing purposes. My brother and I watched the later CBS Wide World of Sports, hosted by the famous Chris Economaki, that superseded Gillette's program. For us, it was all about automobile racing- especially the fledgling Can Am Challenge Series and the Indianapolis 500, whereas Gillette seemed to focus on baseball, football, and boxing. Sorry to have responded so late to your welcomed post, as it has been more than hectic at the Brown house as one can imagine. God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[dionesius3]

and I watched the later CBS Wide World of Sports, hosted by the famous Chris Economaki, that superseded Gillette's program.God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

All right Tony,

It was ABC's Wide World of Sports not CBS!!!
The agony of defeat is showing in the background even now!

 

[Mlee]

No problem Tony, I knew you would come along sooner or later. I also watched Wide World of Sports, I will never forget watching the snow skier rolling down the hill every Saturday afternoon.

You might have been wrong about CBS , but you were right about the Z3 Flare Tip. I shaved with it a few nights ago and it was a great shave like you said. It was like a '40s style but with a better handle.

 

[mgbbrown]

Dion and M. Lee; Thank you both four your kind words, and yes, it is good to be back, even if only one foot is wet at this juncture. One of the things that I found in our house growing up was the set of alphabet cards that we learned from, as well as the plastic Tab-A-Time clocks that each of us had to learn that skill as well. I am now old and infirm, so I have yet to master the alphabet, and our clocks were then not twenty-four hour military time clocks either. As things begin to settle down here, I will shoot photographs and post vintage ones as well.

One of the joys I have had in this is driving my late mother's Mercedes 240D. Built in 1982, which was the last year for that model- I have everything from the window sticker to its Hazit-Werk tool roll still in its sealed bag. The first aid kit remains unopened and in its recessed container located in the middle of the rear window shelf. The Becker Europa radio sounds just as it did when I was younger. The Continental spare tire never hit the ground, and is still coated in its waxed mold releasing agent. Thankfully, all of the major repairs on the car were done just before she died, and I already have replaced the air compressor. This is truly a noteworthy survivor, and we will cherish driving it. The car was painted at the factory in Brick Red, which is a rust color and quite rare today. The shutters on our house growing up were painted to match the car. First Class Automotive in Raleigh has lovingly maintained it almost from new, and were thrilled to learn that it will stay in the family. The sixteen-inch padded steering wheel is not too unlike the large diameter Bluemels wheel originally on my MGB. God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[ColonelHogan]

Richard Thompson's MGB GT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-ZI5cPvQus

 

[mgbbrown]

Colonel Hogan; Thank you for posting! I am not sure who actually built the 1972 MGB GT KUR 494L, but it is quit a famous car thanks to Richard Thompson. The lyrics do suggest a more than casual acquaintance with MGB's. It can also be seen in the MGB 50th Anniversary procession of cars entering the grounds at Blenheim Palace. The photograph was courtesy of Flicker via Google, so I am unsure of its credits. God Bless! Tony Brown RN mgbbrown

 

[mata_66]

Tony thanks for the beautiful writing that made this one of the most interesting thread i have ever read on any forum. Being an european fascinated by american history you covered both my vintage de razors and history passions wonderfully. What a great read!

 

[KeenDogg]

Tony thanks for the beautiful writing that made this one of the most interesting thread i have ever read on any forum. Being an european fascinated by american history you covered both my vintage de razors and history passions wonderfully. What a great read!

He certainly has a knack for it, doesn't he??? One of my favorite threads. Oh, and pleased to meet you!

Kindly,
Adam