A couple of months ago, I purchased a plastic Baggie full of what I thought were simple razor parts at a local thrift store. So far in that Baggie of parts, I have resurrected an old type 1916, a 1920'sball end, and tonight after reading something in one of the posts about a telescoping styled handle, I reassembled an old vest pocket model. Or at least I believe it is. From what I have seen on the Mr.Razor website it is either a vest pocket model or a 4 piece traveller. In either case it does not have the carrying container. Can anyone tell me what the differences are between the two models? I can email photos but I cannot upload them. I have already determined it is one of these models by disassembled the handles and they are identical to Mr. Razors 1920 Vest Pocket Model. Any help would be appreciated.
1920 Vest Pocket model Gillette
- Thread starter Morman Bridge
- Start date
Just for reference, I believe these are the two that you're asking about below:
There doesn't appear to be a whole lot of difference between the two handles there. In looking at those photos more closely, though, I noticed that either there's some very strange tricks of the light going on in the Vest Pocket image or it actually pictures the razor with two different handles. Aside from the finish looking different, which could easily be the light, the neck of the handle in the picture in the top center looks different than in any of the other shots. There it looks like it has a flute that stands up from the handle diameter below it, very similar to Gillette's Pocket Edition handles. The rest of the photos in that image show a neck with just a small groove cut down into the handle, which also matches the handle shown in the 4-Piece Traveler. Here's a side-by-side of what I'm talking about:
Anyway, to get back to your question, if we're talking about strict historical accuracy I would hesitate to say that any match-up out of a baggie of loose parts was a correct original match. For one thing, these styles are fairly uncommon to find as proper Gillettes, and without the case you'd really have no way of knowing that it wasn't just a Gillette head matched with a random two-piece handle. I find a good number of this same style of travel razor in the wild with non-Gillette heads. Usually they're marked as being from Germany or Austria if they're marked at all. The M.E. Meyer that's mentioned on the outside of the Vest Pocket case could very possibly have been the actual maker of the Gillette-labeled sets through a licensing arrangement where Gillette provided them the heads. But they do also appear to have been making their own razors apart from these.
There doesn't appear to be a whole lot of difference between the two handles there. In looking at those photos more closely, though, I noticed that either there's some very strange tricks of the light going on in the Vest Pocket image or it actually pictures the razor with two different handles. Aside from the finish looking different, which could easily be the light, the neck of the handle in the picture in the top center looks different than in any of the other shots. There it looks like it has a flute that stands up from the handle diameter below it, very similar to Gillette's Pocket Edition handles. The rest of the photos in that image show a neck with just a small groove cut down into the handle, which also matches the handle shown in the 4-Piece Traveler. Here's a side-by-side of what I'm talking about:
Anyway, to get back to your question, if we're talking about strict historical accuracy I would hesitate to say that any match-up out of a baggie of loose parts was a correct original match. For one thing, these styles are fairly uncommon to find as proper Gillettes, and without the case you'd really have no way of knowing that it wasn't just a Gillette head matched with a random two-piece handle. I find a good number of this same style of travel razor in the wild with non-Gillette heads. Usually they're marked as being from Germany or Austria if they're marked at all. The M.E. Meyer that's mentioned on the outside of the Vest Pocket case could very possibly have been the actual maker of the Gillette-labeled sets through a licensing arrangement where Gillette provided them the heads. But they do also appear to have been making their own razors apart from these.
- Thread starter
- #3
Thank you Porter, I've looked more closely at my razor handle, and it seems to exactly resemble the handle for the traveller 4 piece, except the finish is brass or so it appears. The other heads that were in the batch of parts seem brass or gold , but they all match the handles I put them on, and I have two that are silver colored that only fit the ball end razor handle and this handle, they both have silver colored Gillette guards too. I think you must be correct in saying this handle may be a mismatch for these heads. I was hopeful I had a match. In hindsight it is unrealistic to ressurect so many properly matched razors out of a bag of random parts. I thank you sir. I am going to return to that store and see if they have a tin or leather pouch that would match one of those sets, just in case. Anyway your input has been very helpful. Again thanks.
No problem. I most often find these in cases that are the same basic shape as the Vest Pocket tin, but are chrome or nickel plated and have blue velvet interiors, if that helps your hunt there at all.
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