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7 O'Clock safety razor and blade.

7 O'Clock safety razor and blade. That whas the supplied content long ago and that's exactly what I got today.

I could not find alot of info on this razor so all info is more than welcome.
How old is this set?
Is this razor from the pre or post Gillette era? Does this razor have an Gillette New opposite?

 
It looks like a variant of the Raised Flat Bottom New, but the teeth are definitely different and canted at a different angle. Looks like it would make a fine shaver.
 
It looks like a variant of the Raised Flat Bottom New, but the teeth are definitely different and canted at a different angle. Looks like it would make a fine shaver.

Here's a side by side picture of the 7 O'clock with my RFB NEW Importe d'angleterre.
Definitely different but I can confirm that it's a great razor. Paired it with an yellow 7 O'Clock blade and really enjoyed my first shave with it.


Beautiful! I want it.

I understand, but as long as I want it too you can't have it. But I do wish you the best in finding and obtaining one. It's worth the effort.
 
I have a bakelite 7 O'clock. My understanding is that it's an English razor company that was bought out by Gillette right around WWII. I'm not sure if it was before, during, or after.
 
That's a 7 O'Cloc
633935-965fcdb1338dc49ba0b73d6551cd6bfe.jpg
k case but I
633932-8be06d6cf9bedae6ef4baae2bb15907c.jpg
don't think that's a 7 O'Clock razor.
 
I think Gillette, after they took over the company, went ahead and borrowed the name 7 o'clock for a slightly different razor, or evolved the original 7 o'clock razor into what we now think of as the Gillette 7 o'clock razor.

It almost looks like a Raised Flat Bottom New and a short-comb New got together and made a baby.
 
I think Gillette, after they took over the company, went ahead and borrowed the name 7 o'clock for a slightly different razor, or evolved the original 7 o'clock razor into what we now think of as the Gillette 7 o'clock razor.

It almost looks like a Raised Flat Bottom New and a short-comb New got together and made a baby.

Thanks for your info and putting the idea that razor could have sex in my head.

Some people can find data based on patent numbers. Being a British razor, on which site do I have to look? Google results for: patent nos 272629 - 272763 does provide 2 hits. One suggesting it's an 1930's razor.

 
R

romsitsa

Hello,

7 o'clock (Minora, Nacet, etc) brand was used by Gillette to control competition in low priced blade market, the products were actually rebranded Gillette ones.
I firmly belive these were actually produced by Roth&Büchner after Gillette bought the company, just compare the case and razor with an "Rfb" Rotbart.
Although the base looks similar to an ,it's an Old type accepting only New type blades.
The patent numbers are the British patents for the Ne Gillette blade.

Adam
 
@romsitsa

So it should be an after Gillette took over 7 O'Clock razor. Do you happen to know when that event took place?
Never guessed that the patentnumber on the site whas referring to the blades instead of the razor. Knowing that it's kind of obvious as the patentnumber is placed inside a blade.

Will look in to the similarities between this razor and the rotbart cousins.
 
R

romsitsa

Hello,

no, after Gillette took over Roth&Büchner and started the New production. I guess around 1932-35 (the blade on the case looks like a Probak, so it was designed after the Autostrop merger?)
I couldn’t find anything about when 7 o’clock was taken over.

Adam
 
R

romsitsa

Hello,

some SE razors marked 7 o’clock were made by Autostrop, so I was wrong, and a more possible explanation is that Autostrop bought 7 o’clock, then Gillette bought Roth&Büchner and finally Autostrop merged with Gillette. This would better explain the Rotbart razor and Probak blade pictured.

Adam
 
R

romsitsa

Hello, some update.
Autostrop England used the 7 O' clock name (most likely bought the company) from 1913.
The blade shown on the case is a Probak blade made before the unified Gillette-Probak blade was introduced (1933), patents are for the Gillette New.
Autostrop and Gillette England merged in 1933.
So it was most likely made after Gillette and Autostrop merged in the USA, but before they settled on a common blade. 1932-33?

Adam
 
Hello, some update.
Autostrop England used the 7 O' clock name (most likely bought the company) from 1913.
The blade shown on the case is a Probak blade made before the unified Gillette-Probak blade was introduced (1933), patents are for the Gillette New.
Autostrop and Gillette England merged in 1933.
So it was most likely made after Gillette and Autostrop merged in the USA, but before they settled on a common blade. 1932-33?

Adam
Correct that Gillette acquired the 7 O'clock brand since it was owned by Autostrop by the time of the merger in 1930. If you see pictures of the 7 O'clock SE razor cases, the later ones say manufactured by Autostrop on them. 7 O'clock may never have been an independent company from the get go and either a subsidiary of Autostrop or secondary company for Henry Gaisman that later formally merged with Autostrop.
 
R

romsitsa

Highly possible. 7 O’clock and Autostrop had the same factory address, City Rd., London around 1914-15. Valet was trademarked in 1912, 7 o’clock in 1913, but in 1915 it was still advertised as a new, budget razor, so most likeley it didn’t exist before 1913.

According to this entry Gillette and Autostrop factories technically merged in 1937 in Isleworth.
Maybe this is when flat bottom News were introduced as 7 o’clock?

Another interesting aspect of the “rfb” 7 o’clock is that it has no corner notches and has 14 teeth per side.
“Rfb” Rotbarts usually have 13 teeth and corner notches, but there is also a no notch 13 and no notch 14 teeth variant. Like it was the first step from the three hole design to the long slot.


Adam
 
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