Very nice looking razor. I am really liking the looks and functionality of the 3 piece razors with the longer screw post. Sounds like a nice aggressive shave as well.
Safety Razor Of the Week, 10/5 10/11 The Gillette Richwood
- Thread starter thirdeye
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What great posts you are producing. Thanks!
The Bostonian came in both silver plate and gold plate and the boxes are either chrome coloured or gold. I do not know what the boxes are made of, but I have a notion that the gold at least is a brass box with varnish to prevent tarnish. I don't think that the silver coloured boxes are actually silver.
And yes, they are really unique in that the bottom of the box rises and lowers as you open and close the box lid. And so when you open the lid, the razor rises and is presented.
Here's a picture of a gold Bostonian and its box:
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I agree, I've not seen a New Improved with this shape of guide pins before.
Since Guido says this is a 1928 vintage and I don't have any that new, is it possible that they changed something later in the life of this product or is it possible that this is the cap from an old ABC model? I don't really think the latter is the case because the cap looks too thick to be from an Old Style.
Guido, had you noticed the guide pins before?
Regards,
Tom
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- #24
What great posts you are producing. Thanks!
The Bostonian came in both silver plate and gold plate and the boxes are either chrome coloured or gold. I do not know what the boxes are made of, but I have a notion that the gold at least is a brass box with varnish to prevent tarnish. I don't think that the silver coloured boxes are actually silver.
And yes, they are really unique in that the bottom of the box rises and lowers as you open and close the box lid. And so when you open the lid, the razor rises and is presented.
Here's a picture of a gold Bostonian and its box:
Now this is a first for me. I have never seen a Gold Tone Bostonian until now. I had never even heard of it. This is to cool. Now I have something else to put on my wish list...
IMy thought, like stated, is that at some point in time the top cap was switched or replaced by an owner because this pin type was only produced by ABC.
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Now this is a first for me. I have never seen a Gold Tone Bostonian until now. I had never even heard of it. This is to cool. Now I have something else to put on my wish list...
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- #26
....
So without a case how can you possibly know which razor you have? I ask because it is one of my recent scores.
Beautiful razor BTW. I really enjoy the info you give with your razors of the week.
Not to put too fine a point on it; the various razors were all the same, but marketed differently and that's where the boxes come in. And so in a way, I suppose it's not really the model of the razor, it's the model of the box and the set that they came with.
The Bostonian box is completely unique as it has a mechanism in it that raises the bottom of the box when you open the lid. When the lid is open the razor sits at the level of the top of the box and when you close it, it lowers to the bottom.
And yes, they are beautiful razors and for me, they shave like a dream. I find they shave very similarly to the slant.
No, I hadn't noticed anything before. Does anyone know if the cap from an Old Type will even work with the New Improved? I do have this Old Type Standard which has the conical pins.
I had thought there was a difference in the length of the threaded post which would make for a bad fit if mixed. Mine fits like a glove and is the best shaving razor I own. I guess it isn't beyond the realm of possibility that I may have switched them, but when it was first brought up I thought of the late production date of my New Improved for being a reason for a different pin shape. I do not have them on me right now so I can't compare.
Guido, you are correct; you can't put an old style ABC cap on a New Improved . . . The New Improved has the extended center post.
Apparently the spherical studs must have either been a design change in the latter part of the life of the product line or, perhaps they had tooling for two different types of locating studs and they were both used on occasion???
Another Gillette mystery? You know, having spent many years in a manufacturing environment, this type of thing doesn't surprise me at all . . . Minor product changes can be made for many reasons and to expect to be able to find a record of them 90 years later is highly unlikely.
Regards,
Tom
Apparently the spherical studs must have either been a design change in the latter part of the life of the product line or, perhaps they had tooling for two different types of locating studs and they were both used on occasion???
Another Gillette mystery? You know, having spent many years in a manufacturing environment, this type of thing doesn't surprise me at all . . . Minor product changes can be made for many reasons and to expect to be able to find a record of them 90 years later is highly unlikely.
Regards,
Tom
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- #31
You have got to be kidding now Tom mistaken even. I have been in manufacturing for years and this never happens. How the heck could we maintain our ISO 9002 Reg? 
That what I was thinking. So, I guess I can just say I have a RARE conical pinned New Improved and leave it at that. Heck, I might be tempted to list it on eBay as such for $3000 if it didn't look so good on my shelf.
Heck, I might be tempted to list it on eBay as such for $3000 if it didn't look so good on my shelf.
Don't forget to make a nice little holster out of leather for it and burn the words New Improved on it
Don't forget to make a nice little holster out of leather for it and burn the words New Improved on it
I just received my 1921 New Standard Silver yesterday. The thing is a beauty. I had my first shave with it today, and it felt a bit harsh. I may not have tightened it down enough, since I'm afraid to crack the handle.
Those of you that have used this razor, have you found that you can tighten the handle against the head to make it less aggressive? Is this where the handle cracks tend to happen? I was lucky enough to get one near mint, and I don't want to do damage.
Those of you that have used this razor, have you found that you can tighten the handle against the head to make it less aggressive? Is this where the handle cracks tend to happen? I was lucky enough to get one near mint, and I don't want to do damage.
I love these razors! What does the chippendale set look like?
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- #38
The Chippendale set has engraved stripes on the case and blade box. It is also Gold.
Hmmm... for the past year-and-a-half I've thought that this razor was a Gillette Chippendale, with the end-cap design that matches the diamond-pierced handle (the serial number on the handle top-plate pegs the year of manufacture at 1921).
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