Are these the Spoilers? Would you trust them to be genuine if they're not in the outer packaging?
Gillette Spoilers?
- Thread starter Cut Throat
- Start date
The name "the spoiler" was a marketing campaign slogan not a product designation.
Older super stainless packaging would not have this later marketing slogan on them.
SO....
To truly be "spoilers" the blade packaging would need to have the marketing slogan on the package (even if the blades in both packs are identical)
SO...
Yes....
AND
No...
HTH
Older super stainless packaging would not have this later marketing slogan on them.
SO....
To truly be "spoilers" the blade packaging would need to have the marketing slogan on the package (even if the blades in both packs are identical)
SO...
Yes....
AND
No...
HTH
Spoilers came out circa 1967--the date code should be M or higher. I think those might just be an early version since Gillette did not add "the Spoiler" to the dispenser until ... the 1970s, I believe.
Gillette applied for the trade mark registration of the words "the spoiler" as a trademark on March 6, 1967.
The trademark was approved and recorded on August 8, 1967
When they started applying them to the packaging should have been sometime after the August issue date. Packages that did not have the trademarked words on them would have been manufactured before the trade mark was approved and recorded and gone out to stores as packaged (without the trade mark words on them).
The trademark expired in 2008
http://www.trademarkia.com/the-spoiler-72265956.html
Good info, Turtle, thanks.
I have a bit of a stockpile of spoilers. To answer the OPs other question, I don't buy them unless they are in the original blister pack. Probably over cautious but at least that way I know they are truly unused and have been somewhat protected from moisture.
The first concern is minimal, I'll concede, but the second is real, IMHO.
Outstanding blades. Highly recommend picking up a pack on the 'bay. They are rarely available on BST.
The first concern is minimal, I'll concede, but the second is real, IMHO.
Outstanding blades. Highly recommend picking up a pack on the 'bay. They are rarely available on BST.
- Thread starter
- #9
What makes these blades so good?
For me, they feel like you are shaving with a razor without a blade, meaning they are sharp and smooth, and can't even tell that you are shaving, until you see and feel the results.
I highly recommend that you give them a try.
Those dispensers are usually not very easy to get a blade back into, so any blades in there should be unused.
I heard that the Australian Gillette Super Stainless shave the same, as well as the French Gillette Super Inoxydable (French word for Stainless).
Beg to differ: they are easy to refill. See Refilling_Razor_Blade_Slider_Packs for step-by-step instructions, with photos.
The blades in the OP photo look about right to me, based on the shape of the arrows and the lines on the sides. But an unscrupulous seller might just refill an empty pack with modern blades, and I might be wrong about the visible markings. So if I were the OP I would check the markings carefully. Achim has photos at http://mr-razor.com/Rasierklingen/Rasierklingen.htm. The script "Super" marking should be visible on one side or the other if you slide a blade partway out of the pack, and the blade should slide right back in. If the blades do not slide, follow the wiki instructions to take the pack apart. Vintage blades are often stuck together .however modern blades with wax spots will also feel sticky in slider pack.
Even with verified markings there is the question of quantity. You could take the pack apart and count them, but weighing the pack is easier. If my gram scale is accurate, a blade weighs about half a gram. I get 13-g for a 5-blade pack with 2 blades left; 17-g for a 10-pack and 22-g for a 15-pack, both believed to be full. So the empty 5-pack and 10-pack are probably close to 12-g each, but the 15-pack is a little heavier.
They don't all say spoiler, that was a later addition to the packaging after the 'super stainless' blade did so well. Anything that says 'super stainless' instead of just 'stainless' is very likely the same blade as the spoiler, even if it's in the earlier black and white packaging. The 'stainless' blades in the red/white packaging are NOT the same though.
What are the "made in Canada" Gillette Super Stainless" like? On the blade and packaging it says "blade patented in 1965 & 1968). I will be testing these ones in May because I am currently testing a blade from a pack USA pack that says Spoiler.
I have over 500 Spoilers and most are open-pack dispensers. Each open pack gets a few rounds in the ultrasonic cleaner and they are good to go. Awesome blades .
Whether they say Spoiler or not, they are all Gillette Super Stainless blades. There has been some discussion that the coatings on the earlier blades differ from later, but I have never seem anything to confirm this. They all shave the same. Very Well.
Now if you can find some British or Canadian Super Silvers, you would be in for a real treat.
Now if you can find some British or Canadian Super Silvers, you would be in for a real treat.
Agreed, the made-in-England Super Silvers (as long as they're not on an orange card which aren't as good, the ones on red or blue cards are great) are excellent (though it's a bit odd that some of the packages say 'super stainless' while the blades say 'super silver', which leads me to believe that in some cases they're the same). I have some later made-in-Australia 'super stainless' which shave better than spoilers, and better than super silvers for me, very similar to Platinums. I think there was so much competition around this time, that everyone was really at the top of their game, trying to one-up everyone else and take a larger share of the market.
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I received a box of Gillette Super Stainless Steel "Spoilers" with my Ball End Tech some time ago. I finally pulled one out today to shave with. What a GREAT shave! I slipped it into my NEW SC, lathered up with some Coate's cream, and went to town. Since the box was open, I rinsed the blade with alcohol before putting it in the razor.
I have to say I am impressed with this first shave and am anxious to see how it holds up.
I have to say I am impressed with this first shave and am anxious to see how it holds up.
Cut Throat... Are these the one's that were on eBay - 150 blades at a Buy-it-Now price? If so, I bought them yesterday. Based on the other Super Stainless/Spoilers I have, I believe these are the same as the Spoilers - just a couple of years before Gillette started using the Spoiler logo. I have an identical pack with O-2 date codes, which would indicate 1969 vintage.
I was pretty amazed at the low price and the seller has been quite responsive. I've used plenty of open pack vintage blades in the past with no issues. Hopefully that trend continues and I didn't just jinx myself!
I was pretty amazed at the low price and the seller has been quite responsive. I've used plenty of open pack vintage blades in the past with no issues. Hopefully that trend continues and I didn't just jinx myself!
They are the exact same Gillette super stainless blades as Gillette Super Stainless Spoilers. Amazing blades. I am on day 13 today with one in a Slim adjustable with no end in sight.
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