To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Thomas Wild, subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 143 St. Paul's road, Moseley, Birmingham, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Safety-Razors, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a safety razor of the kind using a thin flexible and resilient blade which is positioned and clamped between a back plate and a guard plate, the latter having rigidly applied to it the handle by which the razor is held for use. Said handle is usually of straight rod form extending from the guard plate at right angles.

It is known to provide the back plate and guard plate with registering transverse curvatures, to strain the flat thin blade during positioning and clamping to a corresponding curvature, the cutting edges of said blade after the straining being still at right angles to the axis of the handle.

The invention provides for the blade being additionally strained or bent and clamped and fixed in a manner setting its cutting edge or edges at an inclination to the axis of the handle, or at an inclination to the direction of hand pull from the handle, to, in effect, provide in a safety razor a longitudinally inclined cutting edge. The back plate and guard plate are each bodily formed with a longitudinal twist, or are upon their clamping faces, shaped in such manner that when the blade is strained and clamped a fixture between them it has a diagonal curvature put into it in addition to a transverse curvature, setting its cutting edge or edges inclined to the axis of the handle, the back plate and guard plate being correspondingly set inclined to the axis of the handle to give the requisite support to the cutting edge or edges for its, or their, full length. The additional straining aforesaid strengthens and gives increased rigidity to the cutting edges.

The improvements aforesaid, hereinafter clearly stated in the claims are illustrated by the accompanying sheet of drawings.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the razor head and part of the handle. Fig. 2 is a left hand end elevation of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse section of Fig. 1 on the dotted line A, looking to the left. Fig. 4 is a section on the dotted line B Fig. 1, looking to the left. Fig. 5 is a section on the dotted line C Fig. 1, looking to the left. Fig. 6 shows an end elevation of the guard plate and handle separate. Fig. 7 shows an end elevation of the back plate and its parts separate. Fig. 8 shows and end elevation of the flat blade.

Except for the shaping of the back plate a and the guard plate c, and the consequent straining to the same shape of the blade d, the construction and arrangement of the razor is well known.

c² is the handle rigidly carried by the guard plate and by which the razor is held for use.

a² is the center pin passing axially through the handle c² to be engaged by a sleeve nut (not shown) applied at the outer end of the handle, and a³ a⁴ are the positioning pins carried by the back plate to engage registering holes of the blade and the guard plate for purposes well known. The teeth on the guard plate are like those usually used and are shown at c³. The clamping faces x and y of the back and guard plates are shaped with a registering longitudinal twist providing, as shown, a diagonal curvature, and when the flat flexible resilient blade d is strained, by clamping it between these faces, the cutting edges d² d² of said blade are set inclined to the axis of the handle c²; so that a hand pull from the handle in using the razor brings inclined cutting edges into operation, giving a slanting or inclining cut. This setting of the cutting edges inclined to the axis of the handle is very clearly represented by Fig. 1. The blade so set has therefore a diagonal curvature as well as a transverse curvature from a bend which is substantially a longitudinal twist, and this has the effect of materially strengthening the cutting edges as well as assisting the ease of shaving, particularly in the case of a stubborn beard.

Having now particularly described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:—

1. A safety razor, including a back plate and guard plate whose inner blade-clamping faces are each formed with a registering longitudinal twist, a blade adapted to be clamped between these faces so as to strain it to the longitudinal twist, and a handle whose axis is set inclined to the cutting edge or edges of the blade; the clamping of the blade putting a diagonal curvature into said blade in addition to a transverse curvature, substantially as described.

2. A safety razor including, a back clamping plate and a complemental guard clamping plate, each having a substantially spiral formation so that the same are twisted longitudinally, a substantially flat blade adapted to be clamped between the clamping faces of said guard and back plates and to be strained into a longitudinal twist corresponding to said plates, and a handle to which said plates are secured, said handle extending at right angles from the clamped plates as a whole and at an angle out of right angles to the twisted edges thereof.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

Thomas Wild.

Witnesses:

D. Leaker,

M. Querry.