This is my first post after some years as a "lurker" so please be gentle to me 
. As you can see English isn´t my native language, but I hope you´ll find it worth reading anyhow.
As I am writing about the Gillette open combs shaving capabilities I should first introduce my personal shaving preferences so you have those to judge my statements by. I mostly use open comb razors and preferably modern open comb razors of the more aggressive type like Fatip, Joris, Pearl and the "infamous"
Mühle R41. I just bought the ATT H2. I have an extremely coarse beard. I am also more or less obsessed with BBS (I know it´s sad). Even so, I also use vintage open comb razors, most of them are Gillettes. Therefore, I have written this short article where I do a comparison of the Gillette open combs and put the razors in their historical context. I do hope it will be of some help to those who are curious about the vintage open combs, but still undecided on how to start their exploration.
Two Gillette Old Type ABC with an unused ordinary Gillette from about 1919 in the middle
Gillette Old Type (ca. 1904-1929)
When I first shaved with a Gillette Old Type I was surprised. The razor was so mild that I couldn´t possibly achieve BBS even though I tried to the point where I finally got razor burn. In my opinion The Old Type's aggressiveness is best compared with a Fatboy or Slim on setting 4. I wondered why it was so mild. Those who first bought the razors back in those days when it was in production ought to have been accustomed to straight razors. Then the realization hit me. To understand why the Old Type is so gentle you have to put it in its historical context. When it first came into in production The world was a very different place. Cars were unknown to most people. It was uncommon to have cold running water indoors, not to mention hot running water. A shower before shaving? Forget it, what's a shower by the way? Shaving every day was not for everyone and many who shaved daily let a professional barber do the job. Therefore, a razor for domestic use had to provide a not too a painful shave without preparation, hot water or after shave balm. A very extreme example; the First World War with it´s appalling conditions where the soldiers lived in the semi floating mud among the decomposing remains of their fallen comrades. Even there it was an absolute necessity to shave every day to make sure that the gas mask fitted tightly so that it would protect against gas attacks. The Gillette Old Type did the job with flying colors and made Gillette to a truly global brand after the war.
Nevertheless, there are some examples of the Old Type that delivers an extremely rough shave. I have one that's not to be used any more. Every time I tried to use it the razor managed to bite me. A shave with the Muhle R41 is very mild in comparison. I studied the razors head. It looked exactly the same as on its milder siblings, but finally I saw that the cap was a little skewed. The conclusion I came to was that when a razor is about 100 years old, it has made a long journey metaphorically speaking. It has gotten its share of maltreatment, and every blow against a razor head may alter its performance. My recommendation is not to buy an Old Type, even though I have done so on several occasions, but to buy a new Merkur 41 ( European label, also known as the 1904/1906 open comb). It is true that the Merkur handle is made to resemble the German Jugend style ( 1920:s) and not a Gillette Old Type handle but the shave is, in my opinion, indistinguishable from a Gillette Old Type in good condition, a smooth and very mild shave. I would say that it is perfect for those with a lighter beard growth.
Gillette New Improved: New Standard and Tuckaway
Gillette New Improved (ca. 1921-1929)
It is a big step between the New Improved and the Old Type. They have completely different head designs and where produced for very different market segments. The New Improved was manufactured for the top market segment, buyers able and willing to pay a very high premium price. Throughout the whole production time of the New Improved the Old Type where produced as well and directed to the more budget sensitive market segments. The New Improved in all its forms is a beautiful upscale razor designed for those who, during the roaring twenties, had money and optimism, the yuppies of their long gone days. The design is very typical for the era. An Art Deco razor for the Great Gatsby ( I do know he is a fictional figure). The New Improved has a significantly more aggressive head design than the Old Type, possibly comparable to a Fatboy or Slim at setting 7. It is created for people with access to bathrooms and running hot water, which wasn't to be taken for granted in the 1920s. The most gorgeous, in my opinion, of the many New Improved versions is the Tuckaway in silver plating. Do not let the short handle fool you. The Tuckaway is a massive heavy razor that provides an excellent shave. With a feather blade it renders me BBS for about six hours. As the New Improved razor by its owners often was considered as too exclusive to be used, the razors are often to be found in rather good condition, and pre WWII luxury razors tend to be cheaper than de luxe post war razors, The Old Type ABC excluded.
Gillette New Short Comb to the left and Gillette New Improved "New Standard" to the right. Notice the likeness.
Gillette New Short comb with Gillette New Long comb to the right, notice the difference.
Gillette New (ca. 1930-1947)
The Black Friday in October 1929 plunged the whole western world into political, social and economical chaos. Businesses and individuals went bankrupt. Among the companies that survived, but just barely, was Gillette. Everyone seemed to be broke, and most people where. The new times required simpler and above all cheaper designs. The production of the Old Type ceased and the New Improved was simplified and became the Gillett New Short Comb. It is basically very much the same head as The New Improved, but it is more suited for mass production. The aggression ratio is approximately the same, but the head is less heavy. Gillette also introduced the Gillette New Long Comb, a developed and more aggressive version of the Gillette New Short Comb. My very personal opinion is that the Gillette New Long Comb is the best razor Gillette ever made ​ (OK I really do stick my chin out here but it is only my personal opinion so take it for what it is worth). Compared to today's aggressive open comb razors the Gillette Long Comb is milder, just about a Fatboy or Slim on setting 9, which means that it's still a pretty aggressive razor that delivers a really close shave. I can achieve BBS for about eight hours with it, compared to 12 hours with the Muhle R41. The Gillette Long Comb is the razor I would recommend to someone who wants to try an open comb for the first time and has got his shaving technique sorted out. It is common and was produced in numerous different versions (probably in a contionous process to cut production costs) with almost identical shaving properties.
In the years after WWII Gillette New was taken out of production and replaced by different variations of the Gillette Tech and other mostly mild closed comb TTO safety razors. By the way, if you look at an early Tech you´ll see that the baseplate is a modified New Long Comb.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
. As you can see English isn´t my native language, but I hope you´ll find it worth reading anyhow.As I am writing about the Gillette open combs shaving capabilities I should first introduce my personal shaving preferences so you have those to judge my statements by. I mostly use open comb razors and preferably modern open comb razors of the more aggressive type like Fatip, Joris, Pearl and the "infamous"
Mühle R41. I just bought the ATT H2. I have an extremely coarse beard. I am also more or less obsessed with BBS (I know it´s sad). Even so, I also use vintage open comb razors, most of them are Gillettes. Therefore, I have written this short article where I do a comparison of the Gillette open combs and put the razors in their historical context. I do hope it will be of some help to those who are curious about the vintage open combs, but still undecided on how to start their exploration.Two Gillette Old Type ABC with an unused ordinary Gillette from about 1919 in the middle
Gillette Old Type (ca. 1904-1929)
When I first shaved with a Gillette Old Type I was surprised. The razor was so mild that I couldn´t possibly achieve BBS even though I tried to the point where I finally got razor burn. In my opinion The Old Type's aggressiveness is best compared with a Fatboy or Slim on setting 4. I wondered why it was so mild. Those who first bought the razors back in those days when it was in production ought to have been accustomed to straight razors. Then the realization hit me. To understand why the Old Type is so gentle you have to put it in its historical context. When it first came into in production The world was a very different place. Cars were unknown to most people. It was uncommon to have cold running water indoors, not to mention hot running water. A shower before shaving? Forget it, what's a shower by the way? Shaving every day was not for everyone and many who shaved daily let a professional barber do the job. Therefore, a razor for domestic use had to provide a not too a painful shave without preparation, hot water or after shave balm. A very extreme example; the First World War with it´s appalling conditions where the soldiers lived in the semi floating mud among the decomposing remains of their fallen comrades. Even there it was an absolute necessity to shave every day to make sure that the gas mask fitted tightly so that it would protect against gas attacks. The Gillette Old Type did the job with flying colors and made Gillette to a truly global brand after the war.
Nevertheless, there are some examples of the Old Type that delivers an extremely rough shave. I have one that's not to be used any more. Every time I tried to use it the razor managed to bite me. A shave with the Muhle R41 is very mild in comparison. I studied the razors head. It looked exactly the same as on its milder siblings, but finally I saw that the cap was a little skewed. The conclusion I came to was that when a razor is about 100 years old, it has made a long journey metaphorically speaking. It has gotten its share of maltreatment, and every blow against a razor head may alter its performance. My recommendation is not to buy an Old Type, even though I have done so on several occasions, but to buy a new Merkur 41 ( European label, also known as the 1904/1906 open comb). It is true that the Merkur handle is made to resemble the German Jugend style ( 1920:s) and not a Gillette Old Type handle but the shave is, in my opinion, indistinguishable from a Gillette Old Type in good condition, a smooth and very mild shave. I would say that it is perfect for those with a lighter beard growth.
Gillette New Improved: New Standard and Tuckaway
Gillette New Improved (ca. 1921-1929)
It is a big step between the New Improved and the Old Type. They have completely different head designs and where produced for very different market segments. The New Improved was manufactured for the top market segment, buyers able and willing to pay a very high premium price. Throughout the whole production time of the New Improved the Old Type where produced as well and directed to the more budget sensitive market segments. The New Improved in all its forms is a beautiful upscale razor designed for those who, during the roaring twenties, had money and optimism, the yuppies of their long gone days. The design is very typical for the era. An Art Deco razor for the Great Gatsby ( I do know he is a fictional figure). The New Improved has a significantly more aggressive head design than the Old Type, possibly comparable to a Fatboy or Slim at setting 7. It is created for people with access to bathrooms and running hot water, which wasn't to be taken for granted in the 1920s. The most gorgeous, in my opinion, of the many New Improved versions is the Tuckaway in silver plating. Do not let the short handle fool you. The Tuckaway is a massive heavy razor that provides an excellent shave. With a feather blade it renders me BBS for about six hours. As the New Improved razor by its owners often was considered as too exclusive to be used, the razors are often to be found in rather good condition, and pre WWII luxury razors tend to be cheaper than de luxe post war razors, The Old Type ABC excluded.
Gillette New Short Comb to the left and Gillette New Improved "New Standard" to the right. Notice the likeness.
Gillette New Short comb with Gillette New Long comb to the right, notice the difference.
Gillette New (ca. 1930-1947)
The Black Friday in October 1929 plunged the whole western world into political, social and economical chaos. Businesses and individuals went bankrupt. Among the companies that survived, but just barely, was Gillette. Everyone seemed to be broke, and most people where. The new times required simpler and above all cheaper designs. The production of the Old Type ceased and the New Improved was simplified and became the Gillett New Short Comb. It is basically very much the same head as The New Improved, but it is more suited for mass production. The aggression ratio is approximately the same, but the head is less heavy. Gillette also introduced the Gillette New Long Comb, a developed and more aggressive version of the Gillette New Short Comb. My very personal opinion is that the Gillette New Long Comb is the best razor Gillette ever made ​ (OK I really do stick my chin out here but it is only my personal opinion so take it for what it is worth). Compared to today's aggressive open comb razors the Gillette Long Comb is milder, just about a Fatboy or Slim on setting 9, which means that it's still a pretty aggressive razor that delivers a really close shave. I can achieve BBS for about eight hours with it, compared to 12 hours with the Muhle R41. The Gillette Long Comb is the razor I would recommend to someone who wants to try an open comb for the first time and has got his shaving technique sorted out. It is common and was produced in numerous different versions (probably in a contionous process to cut production costs) with almost identical shaving properties.
In the years after WWII Gillette New was taken out of production and replaced by different variations of the Gillette Tech and other mostly mild closed comb TTO safety razors. By the way, if you look at an early Tech you´ll see that the baseplate is a modified New Long Comb.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
!
