The Canadian Tech '1932' Marking. Anyone Know It's Origin Or Significance?

[Alum Ladd]

It's pretty well known that Canadian Techs are all marked (as far as I'm aware) with the 1932 stamp on the baseplate.

However, I've never seen an actual explanation for it's significance.

It doesn't seem to be a Tech patent number date. the Tech was patented in 1938-9 I believe.

Other Gillette Canadian razor examples don't have this marking. It seems confined to Canadian Techs.

I think the Gillette Canadian Montreal plant certainly pre-dated 1932, so it's not some founding date.

Does anyone know the significance of the universal Canadian Tech '1932' marking?

 

[md1234]

That's a good question and one I don't know unfortunately. I am pretty sure the plant made Single Rings, News, the Goodwill and the Techs so it was operating before 1932. All I know is that the no date code fat handle is one of my favorites!

 

[Alum Ladd]

That's a good question and one I don't know unfortunately. I am pretty sure the plant made Single Rings, News, the Goodwill and the Techs so it was operating before 1932. All I know is that the no date code fat handle is one of my favorites!

Yep. I got very lucky on the UK bay and found a Canadian No date code Tech post 1945 (oval slot) 4 piece with the handle bottom missing, for £12. I can't track it down on Mr Razor. I mated it with a fat handle. It shaves just as well as my US Pre War.

It too obviously has the 1932 marking.

 

[NorthernSoul]

I think that is the date of one of the Canadian patents. That is distinct from the USA patents. The 1930s were the era of the Gillette New razors that share a lot of the geometry of the Techs.

 

[rockviper]

1932 is an invention of the devious Canadian Mathematician's Guild, which secretly infiltrated Gillette.

The difference between "1" and "9/3" is ????

They giggled like school girls when passing each other at work.
"19" says one
"32" says the other (with a tee hee hee)

... and then they both continued on their way to the bathrooms at opposite ends of the building as they needed to pee from holding in their laughter.

 

[lasta]

Not an indepth dig, but both @HUF and jmudrick refer to it as the year of patent 321508

Gillette Tech 1932 Canada razor question

Ok, so I bought 2 gillette techs last week, got them today. The first did not identify that it was a 1932, but I looked underneath and it said 1932 2. Other one only has 1932. Between the 2, only difference are the shape of the opening in the base plate, see below: Left has the extra 2...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[rockviper]

I bet they are Canadian mathematicians trying to keep the secret. shhhh!

 

[Alum Ladd]

Not an indepth dig, but both @HUF and jmudrick refer to it as the year of patent 321508

Gillette Tech 1932 Canada razor question

Ok, so I bought 2 gillette techs last week, got them today. The first did not identify that it was a 1932, but I looked underneath and it said 1932 2. Other one only has 1932. Between the 2, only difference are the shape of the opening in the base plate, see below: Left has the extra 2...

www.badgerandblade.com

Well scoped me old mucker @lasta !

Does seem a rather murky and opaque explanation, but a good option, unless other research turns up.

My money is on the Canadian number freaks theory at this point.

Why is Gillette history always so bloody complex? It does add to the mystique and joy of using them though.

 

[lasta]

Well scoped me old mucker @lasta !

Does seem a rather murky and opaque explanation, but a good option, unless other research turns up.

My money is on the Canadian number freaks theory at this point.

Why is Gillette history always so bloody complex? It does add to the mystique and joy of using them though.

This is the thing with history, curiosity trumps meaningful value, but we want answers!

Cleopatra was once considered the most beautiful woman in the world. Yet she came from multiple generations of inbreeding, did she get her good genes from he mother-grandmother or sister-mother?

At the end of the day, Techs are great razors regardless of where they are made.

But, that doesn't stop a curiosity piqued BOSC scientist from piecing together seemingly unrelated evidence to support a theory.