Date codes for vintage gillette razors

Gillette Date Codes "How old is this razor? Sometimes patent dates are a help, but they give you the front end of the date scale, and not always too exactly. Some razor makers put serial numbers on their razors, but we don't always have the key to how the serial numbers fit to dates of manufacture. Gillette is one manufacturer for whom we have information on serial numbers and later date of manufacture codes that we can link to time.

A Reference Resource and Historical Archive. In the picture above there are the three 3 types of Fatboys. All three types have Position top located adustment dials. The leftmost razor pictured is the Executive Fatboy. It is very similar to it's cousin the Standard Fatboy, pictured on the far right. The main separating characteristic of the Executive is that it is plated from the factory in gold. The next difference is its Twist-To-Open knob; which has unique horizontal and vertical knurling, unlike the other two types which have cross hatched knurling.