Gillette Tech find

Reed2600 · Post by **Reed2600** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 12:42 pm

Was roaming through one of those little antique malls with my cousin who was looking for some china and came across several razors in a little display case. One of them was a polished Gillette Tech that looked like it had been used maybe once with its cardboard box in very nice condition as well. I am not familiar with the razor but it was priced at $12 and talked the owner down to $9 cash and figured what the heck. Anyone familiar with this razor what type of shave can I expect and how common are they; it looks to be a fairly mild razor. I will post pics either later today or tomorrow. Any info on this razor is appreciated.

Racso_MS · Post by **Racso_MS** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 12:56 pm

Hard to say without the pictures...
Post the pics...
Someone will give you the info...

jww · Post by **jww** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 1:11 pm

What it a gold razor and the box red? Check the date code, hard to tell without a pic, but you may have an undated Gold Tech which probably dates around mid-40s or so. I really enjoy mine -- it's one of my favourite razors.

Reed2600 · Post by **Reed2600** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 1:32 pm

Here is the only pic with me now. please bare with me its off my phone. The chrome is in very good condition with very minor signs of wear on corners and along edges. I am not familiar with looking for date codes and have no idea where or what to look for.

marsos52 · Post by **marsos52** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:46 pm

hi the date code is easy to find if it has a date before a certain year
gillettes were not dated

my guess is it probably has a date code the code is under the razors head there should be a letter on one side and a number on the other

many here cant tell the date by the code and there is a site that has the info to

techs have a few different handles and i am not sure which styles are the newest or the oldest

i think the older ones had a ball end and the box had a see thru window

but dont go by me, i am sure others will know just by seeing the picture what vintage it is

bottom line its a nice piece and generally a smooth and gentle shaver

marc

Whistler · Post by **Whistler** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 2:55 pm

Looks like you found yourself a Fat Handle Tech, my number one razor, very mild shavers. You will love it....

AsylumGuido · Post by **AsylumGuido** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 3:50 pm

Reed2600 wrote:

Here is the only pic with me now. please bare with me its off my phone. The chrome is in very good condition with very minor signs of wear on corners and along edges. I am not familiar with looking for date codes and have no idea where or what to look for.

Yup. Fat handle Tech. You most likely won't find a date code on that one as the fat handles were primarily manufactured in the 40's and date coding on Gillette razors did not start until 4th quarter 1950. They are very nice razors and are slightly more aggressive than their newer Tech version. These had a channel one either side of the base plate which held the positioning tabs in the four corners of the cap. The newer version of base plate eliminated the channel and used four impressions in each of the corners of the base plate. This slightly reduce the blade exposure. Although, both versions are still recognized near the low end of the aggressiveness scale.

Squire · Post by **Squire** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 5:17 pm

Reed, the Tech razors as a group are considered mild but good shavers. The one I used for awhile gave good shaves but the handle was too short for my tastes so I gave it away. Why don't you shave with it and give us your impressions.

2clfrwrds · Post by **2clfrwrds** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:17 am

Fashion moguls say that every woman should have a little black dress. I say, every guy should have one of these fat-handled Techs.

You got yours at a very nice price, Reed: well done! Looking forward to hearing what you think about the shave.

--Glenn

jww · Post by **jww** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:10 am

2clfrwrds wrote:Fashion moguls say that every woman should have a little black dress. I say, every guy should have one of these fat-handled Techs.

You got yours at a very nice price, Reed: well done! Looking forward to hearing what you think about the shave.

--Glenn

+1 -- I really like mine as well. Good razor all-round. Let us know how you find it.

tom myers · Post by **tom myers** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:41 pm

Your Tech will give you a very mild but good shave. You metioned the chrome finish. Actually, the razor, if it isn't gold plated, is nickel plated. Nickel is a little less shiny than chrome but it also isn't as slippery, which is a good characteristic in a tool used with wet hands.

Regards,
Tom

StockShark · Post by **StockShark** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 11:52 pm

Great find!!! The Fatty Tech is one fine shaver!!! Don't get fooled by the "mild shave" stigma....It will tackle a tough beard with no problem. I use one often.

Best

Reed2600 · Post by **Reed2600** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 7:23 am

Took it for a spin today and am very impressed. It took a little bit of getting used to but gave me a very smooth shave with a Derby DE, no nicks, bumps, or irritation. I can definitely see why so many of you like it.

Yes, it is a nickel razor with no imperfections that I can find and no date code that I could find. Thanks for everyone's input.

Squire · Post by **Squire** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 7:07 pm

Hey Reed, glad you like it, they are good shavers.

Shave4Fun · Post by **Shave4Fun** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 7:24 pm

Reed,

I have a gold one like yours and it is a mild shaver. For example, I tried a Feather blade in a '54 Super Speed and got razor burn pretty much all over. Maybe it was from applying too much pressure or a bad angle on my part, and maybe another try is in order, but the Feather is a top notch blade in my Tech.

Roger