British Flare Tip Rocket "S" Stamped

[Rusty Blade]

I asked this question some time ago and no one seemed to know the answer. I thought I would ask again, just in case someone missed my first posting.

Does anyone know the date of the Made in England Flare Tip Rocket with an "S" stamp for a date code? Does anyone know what the "s" stands for? Sorry for the poor quality of the pics...low light and an incompetent cameraman.

 

[nuclearblast]

Late '50s/early '60s most likely, I don't think the early Flare Tip Rockets had the ''S''.

What does it mean ... that's a very good question indeed, unfortunately I don't think we have an answer yet.

 

[dionesius3]

It obviously means "Superior" because that is what these English made Gillettes are!

 

[Rusty Blade]

I have an American made flare tip rocket and the British one is heavier, more solid. It is a wonderful razor to use. Still very curious about the "S" stamp.

 

[Seneca]

According to this 2009 thread there is no way to date a British Gillette. Still doesn't help you with the "S" however.
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/115272-British-Flare-Tip-Rocket

 

[Seneca]

The people who have worked to make this site what it is are truly amazing. There is a whole section on the wiki on how to decipher markings on UK Gillettes. You may find something here.

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Gillette_England_Dating_Information

 

[Rusty Blade]

I recently posted this question on The Shaving Room, a UK shaving forum hoping someone in the British scene might know the answer. One gent posted that he thought the "S" stamp denoted the change to a smaller head that Gillette made to this razor back in the early 60s. He said it shaves "just a frog hair less aggressive" than the earlier larger head model. Seems like a reasonable explanation.

 

[nuclearblast]

What about the ''A''? Another different head?

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ather-s-Gillette-Rocket-Date-Code-quot-A-quot

 

[Rusty Blade]

Good question. I will ask the gent on The Shaving Room if he has any ideas on the "A" stamp.

 

[Rusty Blade]

The gent on The Shaving Room directed me to another thread that has more information on the various stamps on the bottom of the British Flare Tip Rockets. Quite interesting.


http://theshavingroom.co.uk/community/index.php?threads/flare-tip-rocket-trifecta.34650/#post-482948

 

[Nick_O]

There's a comment in that thread that has me thinking.

"I bought a rocket from a Canadian seller on eBay and although not mentioned in the description it was marked on the base with an 'A'. Since then I have identified a few more on eBay. They all have something in common - Canadian sellers. Whilst it isn't a large enough sample size to be statistically accurate yet, I now cautiously propose a theory that Rockets marked with an 'A' were made for the Canadian market. At the time before NAFTA came into being and the UK joined what was then known as the Common Market (now EU), the UK had tariff free trade with the overseas dominions, Australia, Canada and New Zealand etc. Hence the reason why Gillette exported to these countries from the UK."

I just picked one up at an antique shop with the "A" marking, and it just so happens that I too am in Canada. I dunno, maybe there's something to it.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[ACITceva]

There's a comment in that thread that has me thinking.

"I bought a rocket from a Canadian seller on eBay and although not mentioned in the description it was marked on the base with an 'A'. Since then I have identified a few more on eBay. They all have something in common - Canadian sellers. Whilst it isn't a large enough sample size to be statistically accurate yet, I now cautiously propose a theory that Rockets marked with an 'A' were made for the Canadian market. At the time before NAFTA came into being and the UK joined what was then known as the Common Market (now EU), the UK had tariff free trade with the overseas dominions, Australia, Canada and New Zealand etc. Hence the reason why Gillette exported to these countries from the UK."

I just picked one up at an antique shop with the "A" marking, and it just so happens that I too am in Canada. I dunno, maybe there's something to it.

Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

Just bumping this old thread to add my experiences: Last weekend at a Canadian antique store I found and purchased a Rocket Flare Tip (made in England) - when I got home I noticed the "A" stamped on the bottom.

It still doesn't "prove" anything of course but it adds to the evidence trail for anybody trying to figure this out...

 

[alex2363]

Just bumping this old thread to add my experiences: Last weekend at a Canadian antique store I found and purchased a Rocket Flare Tip (made in England) - when I got home I noticed the "A" stamped on the bottom.

It still doesn't "prove" anything of course but it adds to the evidence trail for anybody trying to figure this out...