help dating ball end techs

[DanInFla]

got three techs today, all three are ball end, one gold and two silver.

i looked on the wiki with the date codes and couldn't see that the dates matched with the years they were produced, or i am just not reading it right. the gold tech does not have a date code, and the top plate does not have the Gillette logo, the two silvers have the date codes of L3 and J2.

 

[mblakele]

You found L = 1966 and J = 1964, yes?

The model names on the wiki date-codes page are not exhaustive. The Tech was manufactured from 1939-73 (http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/Gillette_Tech). But the date codes didn't start until 1950 (V), and wrapped around in 1975 (V again).

So the NDC ball-end gold should be 1939-49, but that's a broad range. You might be able to date it more closely by comparing it to http://mr-razor.com/Rasierer/Tech/Tech.htm - but you may not be able to determine the exact year.

 

[Ray-Vigo]

With the earlier Techs: the quick method is to check the holes in the safety guard. If they're rounded off rectangles, it's probably 1945-50 period, if they're triangular, then probably 1938-41 period. That's not perfect, but it can be helpful for a rough out. WWII era razors seem to appear with triangle guards, but often have "contract" type features or war-period "blackout" treatment instead of plating.

 

[T Rick]

With the earlier Techs: the quick method is to check the holes in the safety guard. If they're rounded off rectangles, it's probably 1945-50 period, if they're triangular, then probably 1938-41 period. That's not perfect, but it can be helpful for a rough out. WWII era razors seem to appear with triangle guards, but often have "contract" type features or war-period "blackout" treatment instead of plating.

According to what I've read from Mr Razor and AssylumGuido, the triangular guards should be about '38-'45 and the rounded rectangular guards (nice description! ) are '46 and newer, with the date codes beginning in '51 (there were some limited date codes in '50, only the V-3 and I've so far only heard of them being on a Super Speed though other models may have been included).

 

[Ray-Vigo]

According to what I've read from Mr Razor and AssylumGuido, the triangular guards should be about '38-'45 and the rounded rectangular guards (nice description! ) are '46 and newer, with the date codes beginning in '51 (there were some limited date codes in '50, only the V-3 and I've so far only heard of them being on a Super Speed though other models may have been included).

This is true, though I'm not sure the relative numbers of plated vs contract produced during WWII. Certain plating materials were strategic during the war, which led to a lot of the "black out" type consumer products. But that's basically the breakdown. As a rule of thumb, the triangle vs rounded rectangle is what I use to look for razors. I prefer the early stuff to the later stuff.