Why did they even bother with gold plating?

[The Last Chimney]

I'm not an expert but I believe that time has nothing to do with the gold plating coming off. Most of those razors lost their plating years ago when they were still getting heavy use. A 70 year old razor probably started loosing it's plating 70 years ago. If someone were to take a gold plated razor right now and put it away for safe keeping....then someone found it 100 years from now it would still have all of it's gold plating. It's affected by wear, not age. Unless there is a chemical reaction between the metals going on over time....now that is something that an expert on here could possibly chime in on.Anyone?

Right. Whether you leave a gold razor in a climate controlled storage garage or leave it sitting out on your porch in humid and salty Florida weather, the gold plating will remain pristine (or at least easily cleaned up). Chemical reactions can occur (cyanide combines well with gold and is used to extract gold ore), but you can pretty much count on it never happening accidentally.

 

[americanarmsdealer]

Right. Whether you leave a gold razor in a climate controlled storage garage or leave it sitting out on your porch in humid and salty Florida weather, the gold plating will remain pristine (or at least easily cleaned up). Chemical reactions can occur (cyanide combines well with gold and is used to extract gold ore), but you can pretty much count on it never happening accidentally.

Mmmmm...Cyanide...

 

[Chester]

I agree in some respects. I've always felt gold plating was ornamental in nature while other platings, such as nickel, more functional.

One thing that I don't see discussed here is that some people have sensitivities to certain metals. Nickel and silver are hit-or-miss. Talk to a woman sometime about it. If they don't have sensitivity to nickel or silver, they probably know someone who does. My GF, for example, simply won't wear nickel-plated jewelry (like earrings or pendants or chains). For her, silver isn't so bad, but gold does not irritate at all - it's probably (next to platinum) one of the most hypoallergenic metals. I've wondered if I have a similar sensitivity, but I'm pretty sure I don't. Men usually grow to understand metals sensitivity from the type of watch they wear, for example.

Regardless, I very much enjoy shaving with my gold razors, and while I may need to get them replated, I'll be sure to ask for a thick plate, so that they stay very nice and shiny and durable.
-- Chet

 

[DavyRay]

Yah, it sucks that they barely lasted SIXTY YEARS before starting to show some wear. That's some cheap-*** manufacturing right there.

This statement is, in a way, as eloquent as the one TopGumby wrote.

 

[Slash McCoy]

They made gold-plated razors because people wanted to buy gold-plated razors. It really is that simple.

 

[buddydog]

They made gold-plated razors because people wanted to buy gold-plated razors. It really is that simple.

And they still do......

 

[c0ry]

Board meeting, the Gillette Safety Razor company, 1929....

"OK, this Great Depression isn't making it easier to sell new razors and blades. Any thoughts? Yes, Smith?"

"Well, we are working on a new blade design to introduce with a new razor...if only we could come up with a new name for this new product... something new..."

"Keeping working on that new name, Smith, It'll come to you. Jonesy, what have you got?"

"Well, the rich are still going to be rich, and we think we should expand our line of top end, high dollar gold plated prestige sets aimed at that market segment...er, what is it, Smithers?"

"We must either increase the thickness of the gold plating or abandon it alltogether! I see a day in the future, perhaps almost a century from now, when a small group of shaving enthusiasts band together, perhaps connected by a great network of instant communication, and they reject the current technology and turn to the razors we are making today! They will surely curse us if we fail to make our product able to withstand the rolling passage of the decades! Yes, it may make the razors so expensive that no one can buy them now, but the future enthusiast will thank us!"

"Smithers, clean out your desk, your fired! Walking down the halls mumbling about multibladed razors was crazy enough, but this is too much..."

Topgumby, this post made my weekend. Thank you.

 

[steveclarkus]

Because it's beautiful. I'm having all mine re-plated.

 

[Patrologia]

But some of these razors are 50, 60, 70 years old. Name anything, literally any manufactured item, that was produced that long ago and still in use today, even considering "they made things better back then." I can't think of anything. Maybe a hammer, but those are usually rusty and aren't any better than what we have today.

Coleman lanterns.



By the way, I totally agree with GreekGuy's basic statement about the longevity of even the gold plated razors. It is amazing that they've lasted as long as they have as daily users. I just have to play devil's advocate and mention my other recently acquired Acquisition Disorder (does anybody have a lantern they want to get rid of? huh? huh?) and say that they were making stuff to last. And unlike Gillette, I don't think they were making the lantern as a loss leader assuming they'd make back their money in mantles.

 

[gearchow]

Coleman lanterns.



By the way, I totally agree with GreekGuy's basic statement about the longevity of even the gold plated razors. It is amazing that they've lasted as long as they have as daily users. I just have to play devil's advocate and mention my other recently acquired Acquisition Disorder (does anybody have a lantern they want to get rid of? huh? huh?) and say that they were making stuff to last. And unlike Gillette, I don't think they were making the lantern as a loss leader assuming they'd make back their money in mantles.

I see lanterns every where I go and they run the same price range as razors.

-jim

 

[ateace]

They made gold-plated razors because people wanted to buy gold-plated razors. It really is that simple.

I agree - fashion and aesthetics.

Seems to me that gold items were very much the fashion statement and more in demand in the early part of the 20th century - the gold watch, the gold pen, even gold razors were desirable and made nice gifts for the man in the family.

Even when I was a young lad in the late 70s/early 80s, I received a gold watch and gold pen for gifts at various points. Sadly, my father used an electric shaver, so I lost out on that count.

 

[onotoman]

I agree with Cooncatbob - if the razor is nickel plated first, then gold plated over the nickel, the gold plating will last longer. Most gold plated razors were lacquered over the gold to make it a bit more hard-wearing.

I'm not a fan of gold or gold plated objects, I much prefer the silver look of nickel, platinum, rhodium, silver and nickel silver, but everyone to their own.

I'm not sure if it was the same in the USA, but in the UK in the 1980s everyone went for coloured bathroom suites with gold plated taps (faucets to you guys?) shower heads, pipes etc. Then in the late 90s, everyone seemed to rip these out and go back to plain white suites and chrome plated taps etc.

Fashions come and go, but style is timeless. Wow, where did that come from - I'll have to have that carved into my tombstone