First shave with a Gillette Regent Tech

[2clfrwrds]

Last week, just for the heck of it, I bid for this piece of trash on eBay. Nobody else bid (why would anybody bid on that?) so I became the owner of a razor that looked like it was fished up from the Andrea Doria:


It cleaned up to be a Gillette Regent Tech, one of the best looking razors I have:

Good looking, except for the scary teeth of the open comb!

I tried it with an Isreali this morning: astonishingly comfortable, good weight and balance, solid in the hand. In fact, maybe it's too comfortable; the shave didn't "last" as long as other razors I've tried. In this sense it reminded me of the M3; a smooth shave at first, but it grows out very quickly. Maybe I just need a sharper blade or a soap instead of cream (suggestions are welcome!).

The Regent Tech is an early TTO. Dominic has written that it was produced for the 1940 Christmas season, and had a very short production run. One sharp design feature is that the doors close seamlessly; the center bar is enclosed:


The center bar is not notched:


The designers didn't bother with end caps. The seams line up with the center bar, and I think it looks fine:


Despite the too comfortable shave this morning, I plan to stick with this razor for a few weeks and explore what it's capable of. From my reading, it sounds like this Regent is a high-end razor, perfectly at home in the company of Presidents, Senators, Aristocrats, and other upper crust razors. Today's my birthday, and this couldn't have worked out better.

--Glenn

[jvan]

Glen that is one of the more amazing transformations of a beater razor that I have ever seen, good job. Care to share your methodology? Sweet looking razor.

[Antique Hoosier]

That work rivals what Chip Foose at Overhaulin' does with Old Cars! Excellent and a testament to what can be done by buying UGLY either online or from other sources. Inspiring indeed!

Mike http://antiquehoosier.blogspot.com/

[Antique Hoosier]

Glenn,
Upon further inspection of a group of razors I bought today, I realized that I may have misidentified one of them as an early Supepr Speed. It is TTO and has the comb with doors that close flush. Guess I snagged a Regent Tech too. Now...I need exact details on how you got it to looks sooooo good!

Mike http://antiquehoosier.blogspot.com/

[bernards66]

Glenn, Nice job, and a very nice looking razor, IMO. For a bit, I had one of the early model US Aristocrats; the open comb model from right before WWII, which I imagine is very similiar to what you have there. It too was a very nice looking razor, and had good heft and balance. And, I discoverd ( despite the formidable looking open comb ) that, like yours, it was a quite mild shaver. Milder then my classic Superspeed, really. But nice. I didn't play around with it too much, but I think that maybe a Swede or a Feather might have worked well, to kind of balance it out. Maybe give that a shot, and let us know how it goes.
Regards,
Gordon

[With The Grain]

very nice clean up job, you're correct about it being made for the christmas season of 1940 and it was the last one piece model with an open comb, pretty scarce becuase of WW2. I recently got my hands on one and I'd agree with all the points you made on the razor. I also like how the doors meet flush against each other, it is quite nice, i think i prefer the look to that of the newer gillettes with the center bar protruding through.

[2clfrwrds]

Thanks for the kind words about the clean-up job, guys. I just followed the techniques that Ben and Charlie have spelled out, although before using metal polish, I hit the handle with a baking soda slurry and a toothbrush. That seems like a safe, quick way to clean the murk out of etched handles.

--Glenn

[Chaps]

Great looking razor, Glenn. Makes me want to take a chance on a "runt" no one else wants on eBay too. Maybe I'll make out as good as you.

Danny

[Str8G8r]

Thanks for the kind words about the clean-up job, guys. I just followed the techniques that Ben and Charlie have spelled out, although before using metal polish, I hit the handle with a baking soda slurry and a toothbrush. That seems like a safe, quick way to clean the murk out of etched handles.

--Glenn

Wow! Someone did read that post! Very glad it worked out for you. That is a great looking razor and would be a fine addition to any collection.

[fallingwickets]

Nice job and, Glenn, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Clive

[Sfox7076]

Great looking Regent Tech. I have 3 of them. All of them shave like a dream. Hard to believe... I will say that they are a little too mild for me in the end as it is not as close as a superspeed, but it is great to learn on.

Shawn