Fortunately the natural brass color of both razors is very close. Just hand polished both. Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
Learned & Found something interesting today about the Gem Junior Parade. The Gem Junior Parade came in different handle model variants but came in the same cardboard case in 1943. They also made a black metal handle for armed services for that time line. Have some great shaves!
garyg Here's my example of what I've assumed was the Armed Forces iteration of the Junior that Ron references - based on the legend on the blades, the shipper I found this one with doesn't have any printing that indicates military only. Thanks Gary for the great photo of the metal black handle Gem Junior for armed services 1943 time line. Have some great shaves.
Right now I have only the OCMM but recall the bullet tip and clog pruf being pretty smooth. The G Bar has a fine balance. Odd that I never could get a good shave from the pushbutton.
I find the bump-less MMOC a bit more aggressive. Love all my Gem/Star/ER but the Bump-less I take a little extra time to shave with.
Well I found out today some interesting facts about the Gem Featherweight top cap. @Droo78 came across some Gem Featherweights that seem to shave differently and so he took some pictures to illustrate differences(Thanks Andrew for letting me use your photo's). I remember reading some folks recently thinking the Featherweight is over rated and it stumped me why, now we might have the reasoning to their thoughts. When the Gem Featherweight Generation #1 was ending its life cycle it seems that the G-bar and later on the in the late 1970's the Contour flip top models came out they used a deeper type of top cap Generation #2 to give a milder shave. More than likely the transition phase when the new model G-bar was coming on line they switched the caps from the original featherweight to reduce their inventory and saving some money. Most folks would of not known unless they had both models 1st & 2nd Generations of Gem featherweight razors and in those days they did not have the internet to compare these small changes. I went on line at _Bay and sure enough there are 2nd Generation Featherweights for sale.( you might want 1st generation Featherweights that are a little more aggressive IMO) From my shaving observations I have concluded that the G-bar & Contour were milder than the 1st Generation of Feather weights and other 's who had the Contour razor mentioned they are very mild for them to use. https://theshaveden.com/forums/thre...ead-cap-style-differences.64029/#post-1787554 Generation #2 Gem Featherweight on the left has grooves on the flip tab......................................Generation #1 on the right has the smooth flip tab. Generation #2 Gem Featherweight on the left with the deeper top cap....................Generation #1 Gem Featherweight on the right with the narrow top cap. As we can see the the milder Generation #2 top caps were used on different models over the decades. So for me I enjoy Generation #1 and recommend it. Picture below Gem Featherweight generation #2.................Gem G-bar................................................Gem Contour flip top. They also made a Contour push button model! So there we have some more facts on the Gem Featherweight we all enjoy. Generation #1 Featherweight on chart below. Have some great shaves!
Thanks @Droo78 (Andrew) but we have all contributed in one way or another and it's nice to update this Thread with some interesting information that you came up with and lot's of others who can do better research than I.
I went over to UK _bay to see their version of the Everready Featherweight(They called it "natural angle" model) and was produced for a short time in 1953 until the E-bar came out. They have only one for sale if anyone is interested. The revamped "slim V- flat top" was The Gem version in the USA is the one with the lines on the thumb clamp. It came out in 1953 also. The one I call Generation 2 Featherweight is The revamped "Slim V-flat top"model which became the G-bar later on.(basically changed the handle.) Picture above shows the Gem Featherweight the 2nd generation "revamped V-flat top" is what they called it. Mfg in 1953-55.
MicroMaticMonday or GEMonday today, April 27th 2020- Well I thought I would do some experimenting today with the Gem Featherweight Gen#1 head VS Gen #2 head and I have both heads other than the handles and that is basically the difference.(It's not a perfect shaving world in my Den) All I did was WTG 1st pass followed by ATG 2nd pass on the left side with Generation #1 the original Featherweight in all it's glory(toughest beard side under the jaw line for me also)with no touch ups to see how best to accurately gauge the shave. And on the right side I went with Generation #2 head(Gem G-Bar) with same procedure. WTG 1st pass and 2nd pass ATG to see if there is a difference. If you go to a 3 pass shave it is hard to mark a lot of differences because all I'm using is feel of my hand. And the winner for the closest 2 pass shave goes to Generation #1 head for the best performance with a new Gem Personna SS PTFE (1) that was placed in the Gen #2 head after first side completed. Cheeks were very similar in closeness on both sides but under the jaw lines Gen #1 (Featherweight Gen#1 was noticeably better for closeness). Looks like a different MMMonday today with a 2 razor shave which is a rarity for myself but also had a little fun also. https://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/micromatic-monday.63258/ Razor: Gem Featherweight Gen #1 -MFG 1950-53 Razor : Gem G-Bar with Gen #2 head that was also on the Featherweight later models from 1953-55/G-bar MFG 1955-58. Blade: Gem Personna SS PTFE (1) great all around blade. Soap: Razorock "The Dead Sea" great scent with good lather qualities IMO. Brush: Razorock Plissoft 24mm- great bush that I have used a lot over the last 3 1/2 yrs. Preshave: Showered- washed the face with regular hand bar soap. Prep: Cold water rinse after each pass of 2. Post shave: Razorock "The Dead Sea" aftershave with witch hazel + a dollop of Nivea Men balm. Result :Gem Featherweight Gen#1 head)CCS,DFS,BBS + no irritation + 1 tiny weeper= good shave for a 2 pass shave. Results:Gem G-Bar with Gen #2 head) CCS,DFS,BBS + minor irritation + 2 tiny weepers = reasonable shave for only a 2 pass- I need a 3 pass with a G-bar for it to shine IMO. Have some great shaves!
Just updated my blade review thought it might help some fellows who are just new to traditional wet shaving or seasoned shaving folks who want some kind of reference. Have some great shaves!
7/7/20 SOTD First shave with my new Gem Junior Lather Catcher. Razor: Gem Junior Lather Catcher Brush: Made Rite 1500L Pure Badger NOS Lather: WSP Formula T Bay Rum Astringents: Osma Alum block Splash: Ogallala Bay Rum Sage and Cedar. This was the first time using my new Lather Catcher and what a beautiful shave BBS Close, Comfortable, Smooth shave with absolutely zero irritation. FANTASTIC way to end the day .
In the years I've had and sold all the GEM models. Now I use just my fav, the Gem 1910 “Junior Bar” Lather Catcher. BTW, I really started enjoying the Gem blades when I had the TNNSER3D.
That Gem Junior bar lather catcher is a very nice razor and gives a great shave. At least you saved one of great razors of all time IMO.
MMMonday, Jan4th 2021- Good morning A.S.R affectionados. A good way to start the New year off, lets hope and pray that 2021 is a better year than miserable 2020. Razor: Gem Clog Pruf(Peerless model 17 nib SafetyBar)- MFG 1945 Blade: Gem Personna SS PTFE (7) Excellent blade, very sharp, smooths out nicely, great longevity & predictable IMO. Soap: Razorock Lavender - excellent scent and excellent lather qualities, on 2nd tub. Brush: Razorock Plissoft 24mm- this is my oldest most used at one time synthetic brush(old faithful) soft tips with a good scrub. Pre shave: Brush wash my whole face with CeraVe hand bar cleanser + a dollop of clear Aloe vera gel on the beard area. Prep: Cold water rinse after each pass of 2 + pickups. WTG + ATG + pickups. Post shave: Razorock King Louis Lavender with witch hazel + a dollop of Nivea balm. Results: CCS,DFS,BBS + no irritation + no weepers = excellent shave with my Gem Clog Pruf Peerless model and a coated Gem blade.( does not get a whole lot better). Have some great shaves! Stay & think safe in these times!
Well I got my hobby USB Andonstar 500 microscope out recently on some other razor exposures measurements and learned a few things about how to convert some files to Jpg so I can explain better with photographs. This razor was bought from a razor lot 2 years ago online at the big Auction house(_bay) and this Gem Micromatic or MMOC had a missing blade stop. So I thought it would be nice to file the missing stop down a little to see what kind of blade exposure we are looking at. Never seen or heard of the Gem MMOC blade exposure expressed so this will give us a reasonable close ball park figure. As most know when tightening a MMOC it will tend to push the blade forward into the blade stops but when one blade stop is missing it skews it quite a bit. To over come this problem I aligned and crazy glued the blade corner and then snugged the top cap. I Did a Visual afterwards and it worked well for this photo exercise. You can get very close measurements with a photo and so here is what I think we have. Blade is .009 inch thickness and exposure is 2/3 approximately of thickness or .005 to .006 inch or .140mm which is reasonable for a Mid range razor from my experiences using the Gillette adjustable razor blade exposure chart. The MMOC is considered a mid range> IMO so it kind of reasonable. Good thing this is a hobby and I'm retired and had this broken MMOC around. Gillette Slim or Fatboy adjustable razor settings chart below. Micromatic blade exposure. Have some great shaves!
