Engraved New Improved - one more ID attempt.

[amishmotorboat]

I posted this before and nobody knew what it was.
All the Cavalier stuff floating around lately got me curious again.
While there were several engraved New Improved razors, this one doesn't appear to be any of them. To top it off, the handle is one of those oddballs that appears to be a factory mix of bostonian and tuckaway handles.

 

[Merkur25]

Wish I could help you out.....im stumped on this one.

 

[amishmotorboat]

One more thing - you'll notice that the Gillette logo is missing from the bottom. It is instead on the other side of the bottom plate, indicating, IMO, that this was meant to have engraving.

 

[whydert]

I have the New Improved version of it and it's called ALGONQUIN

 

[amishmotorboat]

I have the New Improved version of it and it's called ALGONQUIN

Doesn't that have a handle that comes apart like a single ring, like with a long shaft on the knob that goes up inside the barrel?

 

[whydert]

Pictures!

 

[amishmotorboat]

Yes, same engraving,(edit: ack, nope, different engraving too) but different than Algonquin. Where yours is put together like a Bostonian, this was meant to have a different handle.

 

[whydert]

Of course, I can see the difference.

 

[amishmotorboat]

Oh, I see that I misunderstood you. You said you had the new improved version of it. But it was my understanding that new improved is a head style , like a tuckaway is still a new improved.

 

[whydert]

Oh, I see that I misunderstood you. You said you had the new improved version of it. But it was my understanding that new improved is a head style , like a tuckaway is still a new improved.

Of course you are right regarding the style!

 

[highball]

Interesting razor, I have never seen this type of engraving

 

[amishmotorboat]

thats a fraken razor, some kind indian steel made head. or chinese made alot of that handle type design too.

Sorry Alex, but that doesn't appear to be the case (being a clone). The engraving on the cap and bottom plate match each other, and the bottom plate is stamped Gillette. The engraving is very similar to the algonquin, and we've seen that handle before, which is a mix of Bostonian and Tuckaway. However, the frankenrazor bit might be accurate. These handles have appeared with New heads in the past, not New Improved.

 

[amishmotorboat]

Upon further thought, it seems plausible that this is indeed the correct handle. The handles of this type we've seen (both in red & black sets) remain unexplained. Due to the fact that 3 of them have shown up, they are almost certainly made this way by Gillette, but are quite rare. The head is also a rarity, as nobody seems to be able to place it. How likely is it that two for the most part unheard of razor parts came together by chance?

 

[Merkur25]

Sounds like something for mythbusters.....

All seriousness I think that it is a correct set and not a mismatch. I have seen the handle already. The New Standard head correctly matches that handle for the year so it has to be correct. No doubt in my mind. No way is that a knock off.....not that good, plus the Gillette stamp is a dead giveaway.

 

[nemo]

That cartouche on each piece was meant for the owner's ititials although this particular set never made it to the jeweler. Nice find! I wonder if perhaps Gillette would actually do the engraving if asked, this was often done by fountain pen manufacturers during this time period (Parker, Sheaffer, etc)