Gillette Bulldog Razors - US and Canadian

[quailrunner]

[FONT=&amp]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]
Hi,

I need your help in identifying two Gillette Safety Razors (see photos).The dark or tarnished razor has a serial number of D737983, corresponding to 1917, and a Nov 15, 04 date on the razor.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]The clean or polished razor says “Made in Canada,” “March 7, 1905,” and 738057. Also on the razor is “Bull-Dog.”
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]By appearance, both razors look very much alike. Could both of them be Bulldogs, one from the US and the other from Canada? And if so, what would be the production years of both razors?
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Any information would be greatly appreciated.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Jerry[/FONT]

 

[ScottinAZ]

as I understand it, and I could well be off base, the serial number is used to date the razor accurately. The other number is the patent date, for which the design is protected from. IIRC, the 1904 date would be accurate for a US patent, and it could well be that the 1905 date is the Canadian patent date for the same design.

 

[alex2363]

[FONT=&amp]
View attachment 377202[/FONT]View attachment 377203
[FONT=&amp]
Hi,

I need your help in identifying two Gillette Safety Razors (see photos).The dark or tarnished razor has a serial number of D737983, corresponding to 1917, and a Nov 15, 04 date on the razor.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]The clean or polished razor says “Made in Canada,” “March 7, 1905,” and 738057. Also on the razor is “Bull-Dog.”
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]By appearance, both razors look very much alike. Could both of them be Bulldogs, one from the US and the other from Canada? And if so, what would be the production years of both razors?
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Any information would be greatly appreciated.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Jerry[/FONT]

These razors were made for the WW1 era in 1914 to 1919 and also sold to the public. The D737983 is the serial number that makes it a 1917 razor. and [FONT=&amp]Nov 15, 04 date[/FONT] is the patent date. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/US_Gillette_Dating_Information

1917	D516475‑D999999 E1‑E449207	Military Sets		Aldred reorganizes Gillette as a Delaware corporation. Annual sales exceed 1.1M razors.
1918	E449208‑E999999 F1‑F999999 G1‑G999999 H1‑H999999 J1‑J7344

The Canadian system had a unstructured dating system that we are still trying to figure out, here is a date chart that is still being worked on a daily basis. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Gillette_Canada_Dating_Information

Other members may have more insight and can contribute more info soon.

 

[quailrunner]

[FONT=&amp]
View attachment 377202[/FONT]View attachment 377203
[FONT=&amp]
Hi,

I need your help in identifying two Gillette Safety Razors (see photos).The dark or tarnished razor has a serial number of D737983, corresponding to 1917, and a Nov 15, 04 date on the razor.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]The clean or polished razor says “Made in Canada,” “March 7, 1905,” and 738057. Also on the razor is “Bull-Dog.”
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]By appearance, both razors look very much alike. Could both of them be Bulldogs, one from the US and the other from Canada? And if so, what would be the production years of both razors?
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Any information would be greatly appreciated.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Jerry[/FONT]

Thanks for the response. According to Krumholz's Gillette book, it appears the Bulldog was produced around 1915, so the 1917 date on the dark tarnished razor (D737983) could very well be correct. The other razor says Bulldog right on it, so I'm sure it is a Bulldog, but the Canadian serial number is a bit confusing. Does anyone know if the 738057 Canadian serial number might correspond to a date around 1915? I'm hoping that both razors are Bulldogs.

 

[elmerwood]

Can you try to get a picture of the Canadian model where it says "Bull Dog"? I've never seen one thats said that. Sounds neat.

 

[alex2363]

Can you try to get a picture of the Canadian model where it says "Bull Dog"? I've never seen one thats said that. Sounds neat.

That was my next question.............

 

[quailrunner]

Here is a photo of the Bull-Dog name on the bottom of the razor handle of the US Bulldog razor.

Jerry

 

[elmerwood]

Ohh wow. Never have I seen that before. Maybe someone with a Canadian one can share photos to see if they were all like this.

 

[quailrunner]

If the other razor I have pictured is a Bulldog, then it is Canadian since it says made in Canada on it. AND, it does not have Bull-Dog printed on it like the one from the US.

Jerry

 

[elmerwood]

I don't think the one with "Bull Dog" on the handle is the US version. The Canadian ones will have the March date code on the bottom like in your picture above.

 

[mblakele]

Congrats, both razors look like nice example of the Gillette_Bulldog. The clean-looking one is probably nickel-plated, from something like a military set #18. Click on the image for the full ad in google books.



Gillette Canada definitely made bulldogs too. That one is probably silver plated, and looks tarnished. If you want to clean it, try the foil treatment from http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Safety_razor_maintenance#Silver_and_Silver-Plated_Razors.

 

[alex2363]

Here is a photo of the Bull-Dog name on the bottom of the razor handle of the US Bulldog razor.

JerryView attachment 377243

It seems that the Canadian bull dogs did have the whole word marked on them. here is a link. http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...rling-on-a-Gillette-Bulldog?highlight=bulldog

 

[tacchini]

those are a pair of beautys, it would be great to see how that black tarnished one comes up after the foil and baking soda treatment.

 

[RaiserLiebe]

I have a beautiful silver bulldog that responded very well to foil and baking soda.
Did I mention it shaves like a dream? Don't put it in the cabinet- use and enjoy!

 

[chongo gordo]

I hope to get a Bulldog some day. Just a great looking razor and I really like the Old Type heads.

 

[MacDaddy]

Here is a photo of the Bull-Dog name on the bottom of the razor handle of the US Bulldog razor.

I'm pretty sure you got that one backwards. That's the Canadian razor that you've got pictured there, not the American one, right? For one thing, I've only ever seen the "BULL-DOG" inscription on Canadian Bulldogs. For another thing, it's the Canadian patent that has the March date, which is showing in the photo. But also in your first post you said that it was the American one that was tarnished almost black, and that looks like the other one there in your shot.

As for the date on the Canadian, as other folks have mentioned that's harder to pin down. But from what I think we've assembled I wouldn't have any trouble saying that yours should be in the right range to include the Bulldog's production dates.

 

[alex2363]

I'm pretty sure you got that one backwards. That's the Canadian razor that you've got pictured there, not the American one, right? For one thing, I've only ever seen the "BULL-DOG" inscription on Canadian Bulldogs. For another thing, it's the Canadian patent that has the March date, which is showing in the photo. But also in your first post you said that it was the American one that was tarnished almost black, and that looks like the other one there in your shot.

As for the date on the Canadian, as other folks have mentioned that's harder to pin down. But from what I think we've assembled I wouldn't have any trouble saying that yours should be in the right range to include the Bulldog's production dates.

Porter, have you actually seen a Bull Dog razor with the markings ' Bull Dog' on it? I linked the thread that pertained to reverse /knurling/spiraling Bull Dogs and a member
Brian/ Blue-eyedson did ask about the Bull dog markings but nobody ever answered him. http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...on-a-Gillette-Bulldog/page2?highlight=bulldog


Blue-EyedSon

Vacumatic PhD


Join DateAug 2009LocationGAPosts2,009Images51

I was wondering about the name of the razor being imprinted on the handle as well. I can clearly see the "dog" in one of the photos. Do other Bulldog razors have this imprint as well?​

Brian
​

 

[MacDaddy]

Porter, have you actually seen a Bull Dog razor with the markings ' Bull Dog' on it?

Yes. I would swear I've got one myself, but I don't seem to be able to put my hands on it quickly right now.

The Canadian plant did double-lined inscriptions there on the smooth ring above the knob pretty commonly. Here's a crop of one of Achim's images showing a standard Single Ring where you can see the patent date and "GILLETTE" on a second line:



And here's a Canadian Bulldog from this thread with the "BULL-DOG" inscription on the second line:

 

[alex2363]

Yes. I would swear I've got one myself, but I don't seem to be able to put my hands on it quickly right now.

The Canadian plant did double-lined inscriptions there on the smooth ring above the knob pretty commonly. Here's a crop of one of Achim's images showing a standard Single Ring where you can see the patent date and "GILLETTE" on a second line:

View attachment 377474

And here's a Canadian Bulldog from this thread with the "BULL-DOG" inscription on the second line:

View attachment 377475

Why isnt there more of these? It seems that these should be considered rare not scarce. I have not seen many.

 

[MacDaddy]

Why isnt there more of these? It seems that these should be considered rare not scarce. I have not seen many.

The Bulldogs are less common compared to other Old Types, as are Canadian Old Types compared to American ones. You're just seeing the intersection of the two here. Whether you call that "rare" or "scarce" makes little difference in the grand scheme of things.