I have to admit to being in a bit of a quandary over a razor I picked up a few months ago. I could use the Community's help...
First and foremost; none of my questions are meant to imply that the seller, who is a gentleman, misrepresented the razor in any way, shape, or form. If you recognize the razor and/or its serial number, be assured the seller was upfront and forthright about his own uncertainty as to the date of manufacture. I do not, and you should not, infer that there is any question of this gentleman's integrity.
I'll start with the inner barrel, which has a serial number of 317742. This number, according to Waits, seems to put it firmly in the later end of 1905's production. The color of the knob, as you may note in the last photo below, is a bit more brassy than the handle. On one hand, this could indicate it came from another razor. On the other, I have seen a couple of well-used razors that have a similar difference in coloration due to the wear of being gripped and turned, especially if the user was fastidious about cleaning the blade after each shave.
The handle itself has “PAT.NOV.15.’04” on the lower band and no Gillette trademark on the underside of the base plate. Using Waits again as a source, this puts the period of manufacture of the handle between his claim of the introduction of the Single Ring in 1906 and the start of the use of the Gillette diamond trademark in 1908; however, I note Mr. Razor has a similar Single Ring on his website that he dates as 1905 with a serial number of 337905. I also note our own B&B ShaveWiki has recorded multiple Single Rings with serial numbers starting at 278278.
The guard/cap is the part that perplexes me the most. First, it is thin-edged and sharp-cornered like my 1903/04 Double Ring, 1908 Single Ring, and my 1908 Signature Single Ring. It is also as thin as all three. What's different is the blade posts. While they are the same length and diameter as these three, the ends are somewhat rounder than the "pointy" posts they have. Referring again to Mr. Razor's 1905 Single Ring, the blade posts look to me to be very similar, if not identical. They are certainly not as round as those of my ABC razors. Of note, the cap has a center shaft circle on the top. None of the three mentioned above has this characteristic. The only other Old Type I have with this characteristic is a 1918 "J" serial numbered ball-handled US Army razor; however, those blade posts are significantly shorter. I'm not sure if that means anything, but it is a difference from the three razors I mentioned that bracket 1905.
So perhaps you can see my dilemma? Do I have a 1905 Single Ring on my hands, or to I have a razor made from pieces and parts of others? I'll leave it to the Community to decide; I certainly can't.
All the best!
Rick
Pictures below:
First and foremost; none of my questions are meant to imply that the seller, who is a gentleman, misrepresented the razor in any way, shape, or form. If you recognize the razor and/or its serial number, be assured the seller was upfront and forthright about his own uncertainty as to the date of manufacture. I do not, and you should not, infer that there is any question of this gentleman's integrity.
I'll start with the inner barrel, which has a serial number of 317742. This number, according to Waits, seems to put it firmly in the later end of 1905's production. The color of the knob, as you may note in the last photo below, is a bit more brassy than the handle. On one hand, this could indicate it came from another razor. On the other, I have seen a couple of well-used razors that have a similar difference in coloration due to the wear of being gripped and turned, especially if the user was fastidious about cleaning the blade after each shave.
The handle itself has “PAT.NOV.15.’04” on the lower band and no Gillette trademark on the underside of the base plate. Using Waits again as a source, this puts the period of manufacture of the handle between his claim of the introduction of the Single Ring in 1906 and the start of the use of the Gillette diamond trademark in 1908; however, I note Mr. Razor has a similar Single Ring on his website that he dates as 1905 with a serial number of 337905. I also note our own B&B ShaveWiki has recorded multiple Single Rings with serial numbers starting at 278278.
The guard/cap is the part that perplexes me the most. First, it is thin-edged and sharp-cornered like my 1903/04 Double Ring, 1908 Single Ring, and my 1908 Signature Single Ring. It is also as thin as all three. What's different is the blade posts. While they are the same length and diameter as these three, the ends are somewhat rounder than the "pointy" posts they have. Referring again to Mr. Razor's 1905 Single Ring, the blade posts look to me to be very similar, if not identical. They are certainly not as round as those of my ABC razors. Of note, the cap has a center shaft circle on the top. None of the three mentioned above has this characteristic. The only other Old Type I have with this characteristic is a 1918 "J" serial numbered ball-handled US Army razor; however, those blade posts are significantly shorter. I'm not sure if that means anything, but it is a difference from the three razors I mentioned that bracket 1905.
So perhaps you can see my dilemma? Do I have a 1905 Single Ring on my hands, or to I have a razor made from pieces and parts of others? I'll leave it to the Community to decide; I certainly can't.
All the best!
Rick
Pictures below:
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. I was uncertain of this little guy when it came time for him to leave my case. I noticed as well all the similarities as well between my older ones, but something just wasn't right about it. I think I may have even tried to swap caps with some of my other razors but it wouldn't fit? Have you tried this with some of your others?
