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Muhle Rocca R95 Birch Bark - Durability?

I just put a few drops of Tru-Oil on a cloth and rubbed it on.
Let it dry overnight and put on a second coat. Used a clean dry bit of the cloth to wipe any oil off the metal ends of the handle.
You can just use your fingers. I always used my bare hands/fingers when doing a gunstock, and Tru-Oil even says that's OK to do. Nothing toxic in the oil.
Tru-Oil is great stuff, and I'm sure will keep the R95 handle looking great.
We need photos from you though, once your R95 arrives!

Thank you for the instructions. Very excited to receive the R95. It will be hard to treat handle before using but I will try to show restraint. Will post pics when finished. Probably won’t get it until next week or so.
 
Never had any issues with the Birch bark on my Rocca. Anyway, I gave the Birch bark parts my R95 Rocca handle and the matching brush a bit of treatment with Ballistol. Here before / after pictures.

Before
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After
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Best Regards
Marco
 
I like the 'After' shots better. The Ballistol has improved the colours too.
Yes, You are right with the change of color but thats not all. When touching it, the bark feels more nourished after the Ballistol treatment. Kind of same effect as when you give your favorite natural leather shoes a good polish with some quality leather greas.
 
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Congratulations the Rocca is an excellent razor

The differences between version v3 & V4 are visually slight, once you get it you can compare against the pictures shown in this post

Pics of Rocca V4 v V3
Thank you that's really helpful. I hadn't seen that thread. If I understand it correctly. V.4 of the Rocca has a different production process for version four which is CNC and is most identifiable by some differences on the bottom side of the top cap. I went back and looked at the pics on Maggards web page where I bought it, and it appears to match the photos of the CNC cap, so hoping it's a V.4 head. But it's the handle that looks to be such a stunner.
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Absolutely it’s a gorgeous handle.. they all are in my opinion I have the other two models and love them all.. they all feel great and different in the hand

looking forward to your thoughts on the shave
 
Regarding oil, I would have thought that birch tar would be the obvious one. Sure, it'll darken it but it would lighten again with use.
 
Yes....awesome looking and performing handle. To me it almost feels like cork when wet. Super grippy.
Yes! I agree. It does feel like cork. Plus, being an Aluminum handle it is also light like cork. I have no plans of treating the bark with anything.
 
Yes! I agree. It does feel like cork. Plus, being an Aluminum handle it is also light like cork. I have no plans of treating the bark with anything.

awesome!! You don’t need to do anything, it’s birch bark which is used for its waterproof qualities..

and yes isn’t it amazing that the wetter it gets, this gripper the handle feels

and yes it’s is visually gorgeous, if u wanted to you can rub it with wood oil and will bring outs it’s colours but results are short lived 👍
 
awesome!! You don’t need to do anything, it’s birch bark which is used for its waterproof qualities..

and yes isn’t it amazing that the wetter it gets, this gripper the handle feels

and yes it’s is visually gorgeous, if u wanted to you can rub it with wood oil and will bring outs it’s colours but results are short lived 👍
What are your blade favorites for your Roccas?
 
Are we fretting about problems that don't exist?

Use it and enjoy it.

Quite possibly. The birch bark may hold up well for years. But it’s certainly softer and less durable than the grip on any of my other DEs. And given that my hard water results in mineral and soap scum build up, I have no regrets about applying a few coats of Tru Oil to mine. That does effect the texture, but it still has plenty of grip, and I like the visuals even more. The varnish effect looks great.
 
Are we fretting about problems that don't exist?

Use it and enjoy it.
I think we are. I never gave it much thought with my birch handled Rocca until folks starting asking about it here on the forum. So I applied some Howard Feed-N-Wax, which is a mix of beeswax and orange oil. I have used it on wooden brush and razor handles with good results. I'm not sure that it did anything to the Rocca handle, but I don't think it did any harm. There was no noticeable change in appearance or feel.
 
I have learned through 84 years of mixed experiences that sometimes it's folly to fix things "before they break." But let's not confuse that with legitimate light-weight preventive maintenance. There's a fine line, but a definite line between the two.

If I had this particular razor I would follow the recommendations of the Muhle Company quoted earlier. I wouldn't be afraid of applying a light coating of olive oil or other vegetable oil several times a year. I betcha they do that in Italy. The primary thing I would do, however, would be to keep the handle clean and dry and to never drop the razor.

Let's avoid over-thinking problems that are of little or no consequence. Besides, 5 or 10 years from now there will be other razors that have captured our attentions.
 
I recalled that I have seen many hunting knives with similar birch bark handles, so I looked into what folks who make and use those knives recommend. It seems that birch bark handles are somewhat of a specialty of Finnish knife makers. In any event, this seemed to me the most authoritative advice I could find:

"Does anyone know how to treat this kind of the handle?

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CWL said:
Vaikko Hakkarainen, the man who made your knife just recommends to rub the handle with some mineral oil occasionally and to not leave it out wet after use."
 
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