Gillette Tech- England

[SchwarzeHund]

Greetings All! I just received a Gillette Tech/ Made In England today. The American lady who sold it to me claims it was found in her father's military bag- but had no idea of the story behind it. It came in what definitely appeared to be the original cellophane (which was turning brown and rapidly crumbling) and a red plastic container- seemingly unopened...I have looked through many a thread and photos here regarding the Techs and didn't stumble upon any handles quite like this one- it appears to my untrained self to be made of a very light aluminum maybe? I attached some photos- if anyone has any info I would love to hear it. The one pic is of the English handle on the left- compared to a US-made pre-war Tech I purchased previously.

It appears to be in mint condition and I'm very pleased to have it- just curious about the handle and what time frame anyone thinks it might have been manufactured. Thanks!

 

[nuclearblast]

Late 50s, early 60s. That head was still produced in the late 50s, the handle was introduced in the early 60s.

That handle/head match is not very common, usually they come with these heads:

http://www.mr-razor.com/Rasierer/Tech/1963 Tech England.jpg

 

[lindley]

Nice find. Really good shape. Looks like it come with the better tech head too, well I would prefer that one over the later head anyhow.

 

[SchwarzeHund]

Thanks for the info, nuclearblast...I'm definitely not liking the handle- it's super lightweight, which I don't particularly care for... I appreciate your help in giving me an idea of the age range- thanks!

 

[missingskin]

As it was all sealed open the blade pack and check the date codes. I agree with edgar 50's / 60's crossover. Looks like it may have been made for a Grooming Kit.

 

[BSAGuy]

Very nice. Congrats.

 

[SchwarzeHund]

Thanks, Gentlemen...

Great tip, missingskin- thank you! There are 2 Gillette Blue blades individually packaged- I opened up the first one and it shows "E 4"- according to my quick check that is the manufacture code for the 4th quarter of 1959...

Very cool! Thanks for all the help and kudos...looking forward to using the English razor head on my older US-Tech handle very soon!

 

[SchwarzeHund]

Just a quick addendum- I had an extremely close & comfortable shave with the English Tech head on Saturday- loved it (with Stirling MITA & the 4th shave on a Personna Red)...I have an Ikon Tuckaway handle coming this week and look forward to seeing how that pairing works for me...

 

[kingfisher]

You can put that head on any handle you like and give it a whirl. I like the original Fat Handle, but it is also great on a Bulldog handle. I'm partial to the ikon Bulldog 2 (85 mm in length).