Need a new travel kit? One that keep everything tidy and don’t slide around as you try to shave in an unfamiliar bathroom? Well, look no further than the utility kit patented by John E Borah in ’57. So now that I told you to look at it, what is it? To quote from the patent: Quote:The present invention relates to a utility or toilet kit and more particularly to a kit of this type especially adapted for use in traveling. One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a compact, easily handled utility kit which contains all the essential toilet articles arranged in a fully vis ..read more

Having accepted Primo’s 3017 challenge, I’ve discovered that I can indeed stick with one software product. Currently, I’m 3017ing a tub of SDM Unscented soap. It’s been easier than I anticipated at the outset. So this got me to thinking, our fathers and grandfathers generally owned and used just one, maybe two razors. At least that was the case in my family. My dad, grandfather and uncle were all observed by a young chazt to use only one primary razor, while occasionally using an alternate ever so sparingly. This is vastly different for most of us hobbyists ..read more

During my travels on the interwebs I occasionally come upon something interesting (sad, isn’t it?). Seems over on Sharpologist, Mark recently wrote a blog post about “best DE blades” (personally, I am loathe to use the phrase “best anything” but I understand there are those among us who need to know what other people think is “best.”). Anyway, in this post there’s a couple of paragraphs pertaining to PPI moving DE blade production out of Russia. I thought there may be some interest here in reading Mantic’s article. https://sharpologist.com/what-is-the-bes...zor-blade ..read more

Between 1908 and 1914, Edward Weck was granted four patents which, when taken together, creates a full on shaving system centred around a shavette – a shavette system if you want. Interestingly enough, this was around the same time as another shaving system was patented. And much like Clark’s system, Weck’s shavette system contained a razor, a blade, and a way to package the blades. Weck also came up with a stiffener, to make the blade stiffer. The Razor The first patent covers a razor and a blade.* Much like Gillette’s original patent, the core of Weck’s idea was to provide a ..read more

As I mentioned last week, the self-feeding shaving brush is an idea that won’t die. But while most of them, from 1849 onwards, have used a piston to force soap into the knot, Richard Burton Waterman’s soap-feeding shaving brush was different. I mean, the idea of pushing soap straight into the knot is the same. But he did it differently. Possible even better. But first, let us see what Richard was trying to achieve: Quote:This invention relates to fountain brushes, and more especially for those intended for shaving; and the object of the same is to produce a shaving brush having a s ..read more

I finally made it to my mid 60s, and either my technique has substantially improved over the last few months, or my whiskers have begun to grow more slowly. Lately when I do a standard two pass shave there’s little need to shave the following day. A one pass shave for that matter gets me DFS+. Only then are my whiskers long enough for a consecutive day’s shave. Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon ..read more

The seventies and eighties were a weird time. Plastic was fantastic, and making disposable things were seen as progress. And while in hindsight a disposable shavette may seen as a silly thing, the disposable shavette invented by Joseph W Blake III was meant for a specific use. And for that use a single use shavette makes sense. To quote from the patent: Quote:Whenever human (or, for that matter, animal) surgery is to be performed at or near parts of the body which exhibit a growth of hair, the hair must be removed prior to surgery. This is done to avoid interference with the execution of surg ..read more

Last week I wrote about a water dispensing razor. In the actual patent I quoted, it referred to two other patents. One I have already covered, and one for a safety razor with fluid distributing manifold. Which is a fancy way of saying a safety razor with built in plumbing. Patented by Mr Joseph Waldman in 1963, it is certainly a novel idea. But being novel don’t mean that it was a good idea. First, let us see what the patent set out to do. What imaginary problem will the plumbing razor fix for us? Quote:As is well known, shaving lathers are all fundamentally moisturizing substances ..read more

I have written about quite a few self lubricating razors. More than a few, to be frank. But the idea seems to turn up like a bad penny over and over and over again. Although – if the patent drawing is anything to go by – the water dispensing razor invented by Ralph Galli Jr in 1978 makes for a happy shaver. As I’ve said before, the majority of patents seeks to fix a problem. And Ralph’s patent sought to fix the “problem” of the skin not being moist and lubricated. In the words of the patent: Quote:Description of the Prior Art In order to obtain close, smooth shav ..read more

Early in 1909 Mr O A Clark filed a patent for a razor that looks remarkable modern. A little too modern for the time perhaps… it used a slotted blade, something that didn’t catch on until the 30’s. But Mr Clark didn’t stop by patenting a razor. He also patented the blade by itself, which had some neat features. He patented a way to pack and dispense the blades neatly. And he patented the way to manufacture his special blades. In short, Osroe A Clark dreamt up and patented a whole shaving system. Which seems to have sunk without much of a trace… shame, really. The razor Seen from today ..read more