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40's style vs true 1940

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?
 
R

romsitsa

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
 
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

thanks for the info, i'm learning tons....
i am interested in quality of shave ... true 1940 vs the '40s style?
 
There is no true 1940 Super Speed. The 40s style was made from 47-54. I've never tried a 47 (one without the notched alignment bar), but have heard they're more aggressive. The no date code version 48-early 50 is ever so slightly more mild than the ones with the date code to me, but it's a very small difference to me. Black Tips a also 40s style, to me the steel handle ones shave the same as the date coded ones. The aluminum handled ones are lighter and balance a little more head heavy, again a very slight difference to me. Hope this helps.
 

tankerjohn

A little poofier than I prefer
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.
 
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?
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.
 
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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.

Brilliant as always...
 
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 informative post! :a14:Historical aspects of the DE razor is just one of many things that allure me toward vintage razors. Love the history!
 
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

+1! Great explaination!! :a14::a14:
 

nemo

Lunatic Fringe
Staff member
flair ... Flare ... FLARE !

Yes, oh yes please ..... sigh. Flare because of the flared tip. Thanks, Rudy.
And since we're on the topic, they were introduced first quarter 1954 with the Z1
 
Took me a while, but I finally found a ‘47
Super Speed. I’ve given away a 48-50 and a Z1. All were effective. I just prefer the handle on the 47-54.

The larger heavier red tips feel so good also.
 
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.

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.
 

tankerjohn

A little poofier than I prefer
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.
Great info!
 

tankerjohn

A little poofier than I prefer
flair ... Flare ... FLARE !
giphy.gif
 
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