|
Post by mjclark on Jun 6, 2014 14:24:23 GMT -6
Simple question - who was actually behind the design and marketing of the Rolls razor?
|
|
|
Post by PJGH on Jun 6, 2014 14:52:00 GMT -6
Rolls Royce Well, it's certainly the "Rolls" of the shaving world and that association was not by chance. Early versions even carried the RR logo. First patent applied for was back in the early 1920s. The company Directors were a Colonel Sir Thomas A. Polson (Chair), A. Colin Kingham (MD), Edward King and A.F.P. Wheeler. Wheeler, not Whetter. Mid-1950s, they finally got their patent, but ceased production altogether in 1963, having moved over to washing machines some years previous. It's a story of near misses and could have beens ... Perhaps poor Directorship, perhaps just seeing the shifting sands they moved with the times. Whatever, they had a cracking idea and it worked. It really worked. Like all innovations, it's down to the marketing. Look at Durham Duplex, later relegated to dog dressing but you and I know they deliver quite probably THE best shave you can get; this Rolls, a close second. The big G had this segment sewn up - they were the Microsoft of the era.
|
|
exapno
Shave Master
Posts: 108
|
Post by exapno on Jun 6, 2014 16:22:37 GMT -6
Paul, if you keep making these wild claims about the Durham Duplex I'm going to be forced to borrow one from you at some point. Which reminds me, having become the proud owner of a Viscount model Rolls I've been doing a lot of reading and research into restoration and blade sharpening. I found a fascinating article about someone testing the Rolls, Duplex and Gillette adjustable blades, sharpening them and shaving with them. I'll post a link if I can find it.
|
|
|
Post by PJGH on Jun 6, 2014 16:55:45 GMT -6
What with this being a single edge forum, I really should hold my tongue about the DD system ... but it is good Did I say how much I love the 1912? I love it! I love it! I love it! There, that should make up for my transgression.
|
|
|
Post by mjclark on Jun 6, 2014 17:35:53 GMT -6
Great info! I haven't tried Durham blades with a pasted strop yet... but I actually now prefer the Rolls shave(!) And David that sounds like a very interesting article indeed - I would really like to see it. Rolls, Wilkinson, Valet and ASR were all players and I'm starting to appreciate that safety razors with maintainable straight style blades give the best all round performance, and make for so much fun
|
|
|
Post by mjclark on Jun 6, 2014 23:12:22 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by PJGH on Jun 7, 2014 3:51:20 GMT -6
1927 comes from the company name: Rolls Razor (1927) Ltd ... curiously formed 1929.
|
|
exapno
Shave Master
Posts: 108
|
Post by exapno on Jun 7, 2014 3:55:37 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by mjclark on Jun 7, 2014 5:21:38 GMT -6
1927 comes from the company name: Rolls Razor (1927) Ltd ... curiously formed 1929. Great stuff! Thanks guys
|
|
|
Post by mjclark on Jun 7, 2014 11:31:24 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by PJGH on Jun 7, 2014 13:10:03 GMT -6
I wrote a long an tortuous post about Piero and his early patents, posted it and closed the tab before it had gone ...
The gist was, Piero covered the blade and the handle very early on and then it's covered by the two patents you see on the blades.
I also mused as to whether the Whetter was down to his Italian roots as it is a marble statue in Florence.
|
|
|
Post by mjclark on Jun 7, 2014 16:25:15 GMT -6
OMG! There's a statue of the Whetter? So there is: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arrotino I now realise why he is enigmatically gazing at the sky - the important thing with honing is the tactile feedback as the blade moves across the stone, which guides you as to how the edge is progressing. The Whetter is clearly so tuned into this that he has entered a trance state - I bet his edges were sharp AND smooth
|
|