Hello,
it’s not that easy. 40ies style and flare tip are nick names of two Gillette Superspeed razor designs, but actually none were made in 1940.
The 40ies style was introduced post war, in 1947? the flare tip in 195?. The first tto Gillette, that looks like a Superspeed was the Ranger tech in 1941.
Adam
Hey you looking to get that vintage of a razor to achieve shave nirvana? I own a 46-47 A'crat (US), 48-50 A'crat (US), 47 Milord (US) and 49-52 A'crat Jr (England). If I were to grab just one of that era it would be the A'crat Jr. which is a smooth yet efficient razor. As I have no case for mine, I can not say if it was a #51 or #53 set. Don't get caught up on eras because each "vintage" - Old Types, New Improved, New etc has its strong points etc.i've read where many extol the value of '40 style super speed.
how do they compare to actual 1940 production?
do the accolades also apply to '40's style flare tip?
According to Occam’s mr-razor website, Gillette introduced the first closed comb TTO’s in 1940. That would be the Regent Tech, Milord Tech, and Milady Tech. All were gold plated. The Regent had the fat handle that later Aristocrats sported. The Milord looks exactly like a gold Ranger Tech. The Milady had a shortened handle. My educated guess is that they shave very similarly to the Ranger Tech, which is magnificent and slightly, but noticeably, more aggressive than the 1947 Superspeed. Of course, in 1940 Gillette also sold the pre-war version of the Tech, identifiable by its triangle-shaped slots, and the last variant of the New open comb. If you want to party like it’s 1940 in your shave den, there you go.
Gillette then introduced the Ranger Tech in 1941 as the TTO for the masses, but halted production after Pearl Harbor to focus on making Techs (with bakelight handles) for the troops. The Ranger Tech, along with it’s fancy gold-plated siblings, came back in 1946 with a redesigned head. Then a new handle completed the redesign in 1947 and behold, the Super Speed was born. In 1948, the Super Speed got another head redesign to facilitate Gillette’s new “speed” loaders, identifiable by the “notched” center bar. In 1950, war intruded on production again, but this time Gillette continued to make Super Speeds out of steel, aluminum, and plastic since it couldn’t use brass. We call these razors the Black Tips nowadays. Super Speeds were back to normal in 53-54. So what we call “40’s-style” Super Speeds are really more like “late-40’s-to-early 50’s” Super Speeds.
In 1955, the Super Speeds got another overhaul with the introduction of the “flair tip” design and three different models noted by the color of the handle tip - red for Heavy (Red Tip), silver for Normal (Flair Tip), and blue for Light (Blue Tip). The Red and Blue Tips were discontinued after the Gillette Adjustable (aka the Fatboy) came out in 1959. And I’m going to leave it there.
According to Occam’s mr-razor website, Gillette introduced the first closed comb TTO’s in 1940. That would be the Regent Tech, Milord Tech, and Milady Tech. All were gold plated. The Regent had the fat handle that later Aristocrats sported. The Milord looks exactly like a gold Ranger Tech. The Milady had a shortened handle. My educated guess is that they shave very similarly to the Ranger Tech, which is magnificent and slightly, but noticeably, more aggressive than the 1947 Superspeed. Of course, in 1940 Gillette also sold the pre-war version of the Tech, identifiable by its triangle-shaped slots, and the last variant of the New open comb. If you want to party like it’s 1940 in your shave den, there you go.
Gillette then introduced the Ranger Tech in 1941 as the TTO for the masses, but halted production after Pearl Harbor to focus on making Techs (with bakelight handles) for the troops. The Ranger Tech, along with it’s fancy gold-plated siblings, came back in 1946 with a redesigned head. Then a new handle completed the redesign in 1947 and behold, the Super Speed was born. In 1948, the Super Speed got another head redesign to facilitate Gillette’s new “speed” loaders, identifiable by the “notched” center bar. In 1950, war intruded on production again, but this time Gillette continued to make Super Speeds out of steel, aluminum, and plastic since it couldn’t use brass. We call these razors the Black Tips nowadays. Super Speeds were back to normal in 53-54. So what we call “40’s-style” Super Speeds are really more like “late-40’s-to-early 50’s” Super Speeds.
In 1955, the Super Speeds got another overhaul with the introduction of the “flair tip” design and three different models noted by the color of the handle tip - red for Heavy (Red Tip), silver for Normal (Flair Tip), and blue for Light (Blue Tip). The Red and Blue Tips were discontinued after the Gillette Adjustable (aka the Fatboy) came out in 1959. And I’m going to leave it there.
Hello,
it’s not that easy. 40ies style and flare tip are nick names of two Gillette Superspeed razor designs, but actually none were made in 1940.
The 40ies style was introduced post war, in 1947? the flare tip in 195?. The first tto Gillette, that looks like a Superspeed was the Ranger tech in 1941.
Adam
flair ... Flare ... FLARE !In 1955, the Super Speeds got another overhaul with the introduction of the “flair tip” design
flair ... Flare ... FLARE !
According to Occam’s mr-razor website, Gillette introduced the first closed comb TTO’s in 1940. That would be the Regent Tech, Milord Tech, and Milady Tech. All were gold plated. The Regent had the fat handle that later Aristocrats sported. The Milord looks exactly like a gold Ranger Tech. The Milady had a shortened handle. My educated guess is that they shave very similarly to the Ranger Tech, which is magnificent and slightly, but noticeably, more aggressive than the 1947 Superspeed. Of course, in 1940 Gillette also sold the pre-war version of the Tech, identifiable by its triangle-shaped slots, and the last variant of the New open comb. If you want to party like it’s 1940 in your shave den, there you go.
Gillette then introduced the Ranger Tech in 1941 as the TTO for the masses, but halted production after Pearl Harbor to focus on making Techs (with bakelight handles) for the troops. The Ranger Tech, along with it’s fancy gold-plated siblings, came back in 1946 with a redesigned head. Then a new handle completed the redesign in 1947 and behold, the Super Speed was born. In 1948, the Super Speed got another head redesign to facilitate Gillette’s new “speed” loaders, identifiable by the “notched” center bar. In 1950, war intruded on production again, but this time Gillette continued to make Super Speeds out of steel, aluminum, and plastic since it couldn’t use brass. We call these razors the Black Tips nowadays. Super Speeds were back to normal in 53-54. So what we call “40’s-style” Super Speeds are really more like “late-40’s-to-early 50’s” Super Speeds.
In 1955, the Super Speeds got another overhaul with the introduction of the “flair tip” design and three different models noted by the color of the handle tip - red for Heavy (Red Tip), silver for Normal (Flair Tip), and blue for Light (Blue Tip). The Red and Blue Tips were discontinued after the Gillette Adjustable (aka the Fatboy) came out in 1959. And I’m going to leave it there.
Great info!I can say with 100% certainty Gillette was still selling 1pc open comb razors in 1940. This would be the main reason they didn't use the Aristocrat name for the 1pc tech until 41 at the earliest and used the name Regent instead since it would have conflicted and possibly caused confusion among the buying public. This probably is the reason why they didn't introduce the nickel plated 1pc techs until 41 so as to not undercut their lower priced Senator sales while reducing discontinued inventory.
The proof is in American Magazine Vol 129 1940 Jan. - Jun.Pg 9 where these is an ad for the Aristocrat Deluxe and Sheraton.
For the Senator there is an ad for one in American Magazine Vol 130 1940 Jul. - Dec. Pg 64
To get full versions is difficult since copyrights still applies for these 2 issues but you can get enough to infer through google books by searching Gillette and the razor name. If both terms show up on the same page then it is an ad for that model.
flair ... Flare ... FLARE !
They wouldn't spend money on advertising the razors if they weren't still selling them. Whether they were still producing them or selling down existing inventory in 40 is another issue.Great info!