As I briefly mentioned in a post a couple of years ago, the idea of a heated razor is old. As old as the idea of self-lubricating razors and self feeding brushes. And a heated safety razor makes about as much sense to me. It may make more sense if you’re bathroom is frigid and you don’t have endless hot water straight from the tap. And it obviously made some form of sense to Leon and Thomas J Henderson back in 1935 when they applied for a patent for their variation on the theme of heated safety razor.
People get bright ideas now and then – and by that I mean people trying to puta light in or on their razors. The light attachment patented by Jacob N Garfunkle in 1927 is just one in a long line. Personally I like turning up the light in the bathroom, but a century ago that might not have been an option.
But first, let us see what Jacob was trying to achieve with his invention:
Wikipedia, in their article on shaving soap, sort of implies that a 1867 patent for an improved shaving mug is the first patent for a scuttle. And while I haven’t tried to verify that claim, if this isn’t the first scuttle it is an early scuttle for sure.
I recently received a slightly unusual update from Phil. Normally he sends out offers for new soaps, news on new razors, and all the fun stuff. This one is a lot less fun… double so since this also seems to be why the ShaveNook – my favorite shave forum – suddenly disappeared.
I’ll quote the newsletter in full:
A parasitic low life is trying to sue us for $25,000 claiming that the Bullgoose website is not ADA Compliant. He apparently makes his living by shaking down businesses and as of last week, he had 188 open ADA cases against other businesses.
Rather than settle, we have decided to fight this legalized extortion. Someone needs to draw a line in the sand and stop this scoundrel. Please help our fight for justice by placing an order. Anything helps in this crazy time.
From Phil’s newletter
While I am all for making websites accessible, this do not appear to be the goal of the plaintiff. As a matter of fact, my own cursory research using a free online tool seems to indicate that the BullGooose Shaving Supplies website is ADA compliant or mostly so.
There is a wider danger here though. Most shops and forums catering to our hobby is small operations, usually run on a shoe string budget and by people who isn’t up to dealing with a lawsuit. So litigation like this pose a real risk – small shops, artisans, and forum administrators may well opt to shut down rather than try to fight a legal battle.
This shaving composition comprises a water soluble polyethylene oxide polymer having a molecular weight of 400,000 or less, a tracking agent component, a preservative component, and an anti-caking component.
From US patent 4,381,293
At some point I thought that shaving soap was a simple thing… well, I’ve learned much since then. And this 1983 patent for a shaving composition highlights just how much it can differ from a simple mixture of a base and fat or oil.
