Single ring adjustment advertising

Discussion in 'Safety Razors' started by Mbg75, Apr 13, 2017.

  1. Mbg75

    Mbg75 Well-Known Member

    Has anyone seen the old advertising for Gillette single rings, that mention a slight twist of the handle for adjustment?

    I've noticed it in a couple of the ads.


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  2. Screwtape

    Screwtape A Shaving Butterfly

    Yes, they suggested you could vary the blade gap and therefore the aggression of the razor by loosening the handle to let the cap hold the blade less tightly.

    This might be something that worked better with the thicker and maybe springier original thick carbon blades than with the more modern thin ones. Or it might have been simply not that great an idea from the outset... It seems to have vanished from both the ads and the manuals within the first decade.
     
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  3. Herm2502

    Herm2502 off to elf practice

    I had heard that and also thought it worked because of the old blades. Madison Avenue can alway come up with a way to make a product look more versatile.

    Herm
     
  4. preidy

    preidy Just call me Dino

    Here is an ad I stumbled onto this last week. I remembered this issue being talked about but I seem to recall it was regarding the Bulldog. Anyway seems the SR had this (claimed) capability. I've never really tried this adjustment I'm always afraid of the blade coming loose so I always makes sure it's tight.

    Gillette Standard-1911.jpg
     
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  5. jmudrick

    jmudrick Type A Man

    OC Aristocrat instructions also came with instructions to loosen the handle.

    The Single Ring's adjustment feature wasn't something marketing people thought up, it was a core component of the 1904 patent application and was considered by Gillette to be one of the advantages of the flexible blade design. It's not a gimmick. In practical terms the Single Ring doesn't really need more blade gap for the daily shaver which may be why later ads don't push it.

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  6. Jayaruh

    Jayaruh The Cackalacky House Pet

    Supporting Vendor
  7. jbr63

    jbr63 Active Member

    +1 I have seen this in other places as well. Thicker carbon steel blades may have worked this way but not the thinner modern blades. As always, YMMV
     
  8. Mbg75

    Mbg75 Well-Known Member

    I agree it's probably not for modern thin blades, as the SR is fairly aggressive with newer blades.

    I also think that loosening the handle slightly will only work on razors with the baseplate affixed to the handle.

    So would the SR be the first Gillette adjustable?

    Might be interesting to try.


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  9. jmudrick

    jmudrick Type A Man

    It works just fine with modern blades in my experience, whether you want the additional aggressiveness is another matter. I don't think there's a whole lot of difference between the adjustment mechanism on the Single Ring and that on the Empire or Mikron or Progress adjustables.

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  10. jmudrick

    jmudrick Type A Man

    Here are instructions for the 1937 Sheraton explaining the adjustment mechanism. The Thin Blade dates from the same year .[​IMG]

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  11. mr-razor

    mr-razor Well-Known Member

  12. Mbg75

    Mbg75 Well-Known Member

    I actually tried it a touch loose today, with the well used Personna blade.
    Turned out to be one of my best shaves


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  13. drwevil

    drwevil Well-Known Member

    That must have been what my dad had because he said it was adjustable and you did it buy tightening it some more. It on had the one knob on the end.


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