The Amazing Story of the Gillette Toggle

After several months of research I was able to find out a lot of interesting stuff regarding the Gillette Toggle!!

I want to share my findings with you all here!!

Check it out !!

http://sharpologist.com/2017/02/untold-story-gillette-toggle-razor.html

 

Good article! Don't think I've said this out loud before but the Toggle never looked like it would fit in my hand correctly so I've never wanted one.

 

Thanks. That's a great article. Very informative.

 

Excellent, informative article @JoeB thank you for all of your effort!

 

Thanks for this very interesting and informative post Joe.

 

Thank you Joe @JoeB for your time and efforts to bringing the article to the community. Production numbers of Gillettes are a mystery I've looked into, but never found answers. Straight from Mr. McCoy! Good work, Sir.
I won't stop looking for a Toggle, or a bottom dial Fat Boy, but I'm pleased to know my E-4 195 is the better of the three razors.

 

Mantic's findings ("After five or so shaves I fully understood why the Fat Boy succeeded the Toggle. The Fat Boy took the best features of the toggle while eliminating its faults.") are in line with the results with the general public. The Model 195 was an improvement over the Toggle design both from a production cost standpoint (Gillette's preference) and public preference. The toggle's rarity doesn't make for a better razor—simply a different one.

 

Great article. I did not know about the rinse feature before. You learn something every day.

 

great job! Here are the 1958 patent pictures:

 

In defense of Gillette tho, gnome hands are notoriously hard to fit.

 

Now that's some cool pictures !!! Thanks for sharing!!!


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Very true. And some great points !!


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The article is written by Joe Borrelli - not mantic.

 

My error. Props to Joe! Great info.

 

a decent over view but you left out a few of the prototypes, that exist in Gillette patents.

 

I'm intrigued. There are more toggle prototypes? Please share them. This was all the information that the archivist at Gillette could provide me when writing the review.


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you have to search the Gillette patents. The google patent data base is not completely accurate in how it displays patents. For example, it will show patent 11111 and 11113, but not show patent 11112 even though they are talking about different functions of the same razor.

the most interesting patent Gillette ever made was for an adjustable SINGLE EDGE RAZOR.
That prototype if ever found would probably be worth 500,000. The patent was filed in 1911.

A lot of the time, you have to carefully read the patent numbers on the bottom of the box that a razor came in. For example, using google patent searches, unless you physically type in the patent numbers listed on the bottom of a Gillette fat boy case, they will NEVER appear in search results. Same with the Stampleman patent for the Gillette gold tech /tech razor in general. Unless you know the number, it will never show up.

I have found a number of toggle designs assigned to Gillette designers on Gillette companies behalf.

patent 1850240 j. muros in march 22 1932 so its 85 years old

patent 2043124 of june 2, 1936 a modified senator open comb tto

the first of the final toggles is the Muros patent number 2644229 filed 11-27-1948 and granted july 7, 1953

But I would rather talk to the Gillette archive about the single edge razors and injector patents they made.

I believe I have found the prototype patent for the Gillette super slim twist or knack, but its dated 1936, making a rather long development period.

 

the "toggle prototype" in the photo, made from square tubes, I have yet to see that in a patent....