If you, like me, have been trying to get into the world of vintage Gillette razors, you're probably feeling a bit confused. There are no clear overviews of the landscape, and a lot of concepts are taken for granted. Names and pictures get thrown around, but what do they represent? Is a New Improved newer than a NEW? What is an Aristocrat anyway? How do you tell one from the other? When were they made, and how do they shave? Hopefully this post can provide you with some guidance.
I'll state right upfront that I'm not an expert: I don't even own a Gillette yet! But, in trying to decide what I should look for, I managed to gather some info and understand a few things, and I'd like to share that. I won't go into too much detail, instead I'll try to cover the main points. Hopefully more experienced members will correct and complete my statements, and I'll update the post as we go along.
To begin with, you can see a great illustrated overview of Gillette history here; unfortunately the text is in German. As you can see, there are two categories of vintage Gillette razors: 3-piece and TTO. The former can be divided into 5 main "product lines", in which all models share the same head design. In chronological order:
- Old type: starts in 1904 with the Double Ring. Open comb, base plate and cap are two parallel curves;
- New Improved: made in the '20s. OC, the base plate has a flat part in the middle;
- NEW: made in the '30s. OC, there are short comb and long comb models. The base plate has a crease in the middle parallel to the blade, which gives it a characteristic appearance when seen from the side (with the exception of a few UK models). The alignment pins are flush with the bottom of the base plate. There are also De Luxe models whose base plate has a flat bottom;
- GoodWill: first half of the '30s, made only in a few models. It has diamond-shaped studs on the base plate that fit into indentations in the bottom side of the cap. In some models the cap has two holes instead of indentations;
- Tech: probably Gillette's most popular razor, in production '39-'79. It's the first head design with a safety bar, which makes it a milder razor than its predecessors.
There is a very good visual overview of the head designs here, and this for an even more detailed breakdown. Keep in mind that all the product lines were manufactured in many models, with a lot of different names that are often repeated many years apart (Tuckaway, Milord, Regent...), all kinds of materials and many variations of handle designs. This is true even of the next big group, which is TTO razors. They come in 3 different kinds:
- open comb: the first model is the 1934 Aristocrat. They were made in a few models until 1940 and share the same head;
- safety bar: these were produced from 1940 until the mid '80s, the best-known being the Super Speed (which itself was made in a few different variants). The first few models are confusingly named along the lines of "Ranger Tech". Head designs vary between models;
- adjustable: there are four models, starting with the 1956 Toggle (which has a lever to open the doors instead of a twist knob), and later FatBoy (1958-61), Slim ('60s) and Super Adjustable ('70-80's). Head designs vary.
A detailed overview of Super Speed models is available here, and a guide to distinguish a FatBoy from a Slim is here. The Aristocrat name was used not only for the OC TTO, but for a lot of different models including 3-piece. They are generally considered very good, luxury razors; British models were issued in numbered sets e.g. #21 or No21.
In general terms you could say that the OC 3-piece models (Old type, New Improved, NEW) are quite aggressive, while the Tech and safety bar TTOs are pretty mild. A comprehensive explanation of razor aggressiveness is available here (follow the links to the gap and weight charts to compare models). Most Gillette were made in the US, but quite a few were manufactured in England, and some in France, Germany and Canada. The British models in particular can be tricky, since they sometimes have different names (Super Speed -> Rocket, Knack -> Slim Twist) and slightly different head designs; they were often -but not always- issued in numbered sets, where the number would be displayed on the box. 7 O'Clock (yes, just like the blades!) razors are re-branded Gillette, made in England after they acquired the company (which was a competitor) in the '30s.
Looking at items for sale examine the teeth of OC models to see if they're straight, and keep in mind that 3-piece razors might have the wrong handle on them (Frankenrazors!). TTOs and adjustables have more moving parts, so the risk of getting a malfunctioning razor increases, and might be difficult to determine beforehand. Price-wise Techs should be the cheapest since they were produced for so long and were budget models to begin with, while FatBoys are quite expensive due to popularity and a short production run; there are also a few luxury models, some Rhodium plated, which obviously fetch high prices.
If you need more help identifying a razor you could look at this fun "Choose your own adventure" post, plus the dating information page on the ShaveWiki and Achim's magnificent site. Seriously, if you're at all interested in vintage Gillette you owe it to yourself to take a look at it: lots of photos of razors, clearly organized and classified, plus old ads and price lists.
Hope this helps! As I said before, experienced members are more than welcome to respond and help me correct and expand this post.
Good luck with the hunt!
-Alberto
I'll state right upfront that I'm not an expert: I don't even own a Gillette yet! But, in trying to decide what I should look for, I managed to gather some info and understand a few things, and I'd like to share that. I won't go into too much detail, instead I'll try to cover the main points. Hopefully more experienced members will correct and complete my statements, and I'll update the post as we go along.
To begin with, you can see a great illustrated overview of Gillette history here; unfortunately the text is in German. As you can see, there are two categories of vintage Gillette razors: 3-piece and TTO. The former can be divided into 5 main "product lines", in which all models share the same head design. In chronological order:
- Old type: starts in 1904 with the Double Ring. Open comb, base plate and cap are two parallel curves;
- New Improved: made in the '20s. OC, the base plate has a flat part in the middle;
- NEW: made in the '30s. OC, there are short comb and long comb models. The base plate has a crease in the middle parallel to the blade, which gives it a characteristic appearance when seen from the side (with the exception of a few UK models). The alignment pins are flush with the bottom of the base plate. There are also De Luxe models whose base plate has a flat bottom;
- GoodWill: first half of the '30s, made only in a few models. It has diamond-shaped studs on the base plate that fit into indentations in the bottom side of the cap. In some models the cap has two holes instead of indentations;
- Tech: probably Gillette's most popular razor, in production '39-'79. It's the first head design with a safety bar, which makes it a milder razor than its predecessors.
There is a very good visual overview of the head designs here, and this for an even more detailed breakdown. Keep in mind that all the product lines were manufactured in many models, with a lot of different names that are often repeated many years apart (Tuckaway, Milord, Regent...), all kinds of materials and many variations of handle designs. This is true even of the next big group, which is TTO razors. They come in 3 different kinds:
- open comb: the first model is the 1934 Aristocrat. They were made in a few models until 1940 and share the same head;
- safety bar: these were produced from 1940 until the mid '80s, the best-known being the Super Speed (which itself was made in a few different variants). The first few models are confusingly named along the lines of "Ranger Tech". Head designs vary between models;
- adjustable: there are four models, starting with the 1956 Toggle (which has a lever to open the doors instead of a twist knob), and later FatBoy (1958-61), Slim ('60s) and Super Adjustable ('70-80's). Head designs vary.
A detailed overview of Super Speed models is available here, and a guide to distinguish a FatBoy from a Slim is here. The Aristocrat name was used not only for the OC TTO, but for a lot of different models including 3-piece. They are generally considered very good, luxury razors; British models were issued in numbered sets e.g. #21 or No21.
In general terms you could say that the OC 3-piece models (Old type, New Improved, NEW) are quite aggressive, while the Tech and safety bar TTOs are pretty mild. A comprehensive explanation of razor aggressiveness is available here (follow the links to the gap and weight charts to compare models). Most Gillette were made in the US, but quite a few were manufactured in England, and some in France, Germany and Canada. The British models in particular can be tricky, since they sometimes have different names (Super Speed -> Rocket, Knack -> Slim Twist) and slightly different head designs; they were often -but not always- issued in numbered sets, where the number would be displayed on the box. 7 O'Clock (yes, just like the blades!) razors are re-branded Gillette, made in England after they acquired the company (which was a competitor) in the '30s.
Looking at items for sale examine the teeth of OC models to see if they're straight, and keep in mind that 3-piece razors might have the wrong handle on them (Frankenrazors!). TTOs and adjustables have more moving parts, so the risk of getting a malfunctioning razor increases, and might be difficult to determine beforehand. Price-wise Techs should be the cheapest since they were produced for so long and were budget models to begin with, while FatBoys are quite expensive due to popularity and a short production run; there are also a few luxury models, some Rhodium plated, which obviously fetch high prices.
If you need more help identifying a razor you could look at this fun "Choose your own adventure" post, plus the dating information page on the ShaveWiki and Achim's magnificent site. Seriously, if you're at all interested in vintage Gillette you owe it to yourself to take a look at it: lots of photos of razors, clearly organized and classified, plus old ads and price lists.
Hope this helps! As I said before, experienced members are more than welcome to respond and help me correct and expand this post.
Good luck with the hunt!
-Alberto
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