WW2 shaving kit from the museum

I was in that WW2 museum in Paris and they had a shaving kit from a American soldier:






Gem razor, boar brush, brushless shaving cream (why the brush than?).

Yes, that's the GEM service razor. 1912 pattern head with a bakelight handle and slide-lid plastic case. I have one NOS, apparently unissued, and you see them from time to time on eBay.

The 'DoubleEdge' GEM blades are a different design than what we consider to be DE blades today. They are the SE design with a sharp edge in place of the spine. Than makes them reversible, and gives them a second edge. I believe this design was unique to WWII production due to material shortages.

-- John Gehman