During WW1 what was the most popular type of razor?

[fine wine]

I have my Great uncle's straight razor. But it has never been honed. He was in the Army in WW1, he was in France. I was wondering what kind of razor did they use then? I find it hard to believe they carryed straight razors with them, because honing stones would surely have gotten broken with all the moving around and the weight would have been a concern and single edge razors were around. I have a few double edge razors in a little case that say property of the us government on them but they date only to the 1920's. So can someone enlighten me on what the common man would have used then...................JR

 

[Proofmark]

I always assumed due to photos that there were a few "Company Barbers" that everyone went to. During my time, rarely did anyone go to the area barber for a haircut, they just hit the guy in the squad bay that did it for a a much smaller fee. I think that unlike today where we shave everyday, I think it was more of a couple of day/ weekly thing unless you were in the upper economic status classes.

Besides, honing isn't stropping and strops can be passed around.. well, so can a honing stone too..

Ok, I got nothing.

 

[CharlieFoxtrot]

By then the Army shaved every day. It was necessary to insure the integrity of the gas mask seal. King Gillette donated a razor and blades to every Doughboy's Dopp kit. Thus hooking an entire generation of men on disposable blades. Pure genius.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

They also issued Ever-Ready SE sets.

 

[Cynomys]

By then the Army shaved every day. It was necessary to insure the integrity of the gas mask seal. King Gillette donated a razor and blades to every Doughboy's Dopp kit. Thus hooking an entire generation of men on disposable blades. Pure genius.

Yep, that's how it happened. There is a nice biography of King Camp Gillette by Russell Adams which gives a lot of good and interesting information about the development of the safety razor and disposable blades. Full title is "King C. Gillette: the Man and His Wonderful Shaving Device".

 

[penned]

My Dad always shaved with a Gillette three piece OC razor that he said was given to him as part of a personal kit as he boarded the troop transport ship to France in WW1. He used the razor every day through 1986 using only Gillette Thin Blades (the brown ones). I learned to shave with this razor, and wish I still had it

 

[johnmrson]

Gillette, Eveready and Gem are the razor companies that I know of that donated razors to the soldiers in WW1.

 

[mblakele]

Donated? King Gillette might have agreed to that, but John E. Aldred was running the company then. Some razors were paid for by consumers, others by government contracts and then issued to troops. Perhaps the contracts gave Gillette lower margins than retail, but annual sales went through the roof. They made so many razors that each "J" serial number represents a block of 100 razors.

 

[fine wine]

I knew when I wrote this thread that my answer would come quickly. Thanks guys.................JR

 

[dpmtherrien]

Not sure what the most popular razor was back then, but contact Phil at luvmysuper, he was around then so he should know.

 

[Mad Man]

My grandfather once told me the closest shaves he and his unit received were from batteries of the Krupp 77mm FK 96 n/A.

That was right before his whole brigade just stood up and walked off the line one day in 1917.

 

[joshuastar]

My grandfather once told me the closest shaves he and his unit received were from batteries of the Krupp 77mm FK 96 n/A.

That was right before his whole brigade just stood up and walked off the line one day in 1917.

That's classic!

 

[Watasha]

My Single Ring is a 1918 military issue set. I reckon a good many U.S. soldiers used them.

 

[WoodfordReserve-Neat]

They also issued Ever-Ready SE sets.

I bet the lather catchers were an enemy sniper's dream. I can vision a trench soldier shaving with that reflective finish..talking about a weeper.....

 

[Marco]

They also issued Ever-Ready SE sets.

Just saved this beautiful illustration on my PC! Thank you for posting, Tom!

 

[fine wine]

My grandfather once told me the closest shaves he and his unit received were from batteries of the Krupp 77mm FK 96 n/A.

That was right before his whole brigade just stood up and walked off the line one day in 1917.

Were did they go?..................JR

 

[Mad Man]

Were did they go?..................JR

Most went back to their villages and towns (ie: deserted!). Pops and 4 others ended up riding all the way through Europe (Eastwards) until he stopped in Budapest, met and married my gran', fathered 7 children and then left and went back to France.

I met him in Lyon in '88. He was more than 90 years old, still lucid and quite irreverent. He had a reputation as a ladies-man, drank the local vin ordinair by the carafe and only spoke of the war once he'd had a skin full. Allegedly he'd "slept" his way back and forth across Europe and the locals told me every now and then some far-flung progeny would turn up to seek him out.

My family (mum's side) fled Hungary during the Cold War. Came to Australia.

 

[CharlieFoxtrot]

That's a great story.

 

[Topgumby]

During WW1 what was the most popular type of razor?

The one furthest away from the trenches, I imagine.

 

[Bubblehead]

U.S. soldiers were issued Gillette and Ever Ready razors in WW1. Don't know what other countries used.