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More Aggressive Razor or Improve my Technique

Hello fellow shavers.

I would like to ask for some advice please.

Background:
I currently shave daily or every 2nd day using a Muhle R89 with either a Feather blade or a GSB. The razor has worked perfectly for this over the last few years resulting in a 2 pass DFS with no irritation almost every time.

My struggle comes in when I haven't shaved for a few days - 6 days in this case - and I try to get a decent shave.
I find that even with a brand-new blade the razor really struggles to cut through the long hair smoothly without tugging. After 3 passes I am still not satisfied with the result.

Do you guys think I should buy a Muhle R41 for the times when I have longer gaps between shaves. Is the R41 better able to handle longer hair growth...or is there a way around this by improving my technique?

PS: My facial hair is coarse and thick...

All advice and responses will be appreciated.


Kind regards

KJI
 
Using an aggressive razor DOES improve your technique IME. I could use tons of pressure with the 6S and not get irritation, but with my (now) go to razors; Rex Ambassador, GC .84P Jaws I've learnt to reduce pressure and use proper angle. These razors have taught me how to shave correctly.

Also the Muhle is reaaaaaaaaaaally mild. I wouldn't use it on more than 2 days of growth, impossible to get a BBS with buffing for hours.
 
It’s always good to have a R41 in the house :c9:
Or you could try a Fatip Lo Storto open comb that will work as a daily driver AND for 6 days stubble all in one.
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Doesn't matter if the razor is aggressive (R41) or extremly mild (Merkur OC), as long as you use an OC with such a long beard along with a sharp blade. The safety bar of a R89 is not made for that kind of stubble (or short beard as it should be named precisely).
The Merkur OC is a good choice if you want to stay very mild (after several days of not shaving this can be a smart choise) or, if you want a R89 feeling, get a Timor OC razor by Giesen & Forsthoff (which in this case I would strongly recommend).
 
Doesn't matter if the razor is aggressive (R41) or extremly mild (Merkur OC), as long as you use an OC with such a long beard along with a sharp blade. The safety bar of a R89 is not made for that kind of stubble (or short beard as it should be named precisely).
The Merkur OC is a good choice if you want to stay very mild (after several days of not shaving this can be a smart choise) or, if you want a R89 feeling, get a Timor OC razor by Giesen & Forsthoff (which in this case I would strongly recommend).
While I concur that the G&F is a mild OC I find that it has a very narrow angle where it cuts efficiently and the head is rather bulky.

If you want to have this satisfying feeling of going through swathes of stubble in one go and feel the blade cutting then buy the R41. If you want near effortless efficiency it’s the Fatip.
 

never-stop-learning

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Hello fellow shavers.

I would like to ask for some advice please.

Background:
I currently shave daily or every 2nd day using a Muhle R89 with either a Feather blade or a GSB. The razor has worked perfectly for this over the last few years resulting in a 2 pass DFS with no irritation almost every time.

My struggle comes in when I haven't shaved for a few days - 6 days in this case - and I try to get a decent shave.
I find that even with a brand-new blade the razor really struggles to cut through the long hair smoothly without tugging. After 3 passes I am still not satisfied with the result.

Do you guys think I should buy a Muhle R41 for the times when I have longer gaps between shaves. Is the R41 better able to handle longer hair growth...or is there a way around this by improving my technique?

PS: My facial hair is coarse and thick...

All advice and responses will be appreciated.


Kind regards

KJI

The first question: How much do you want to spend?

If you are looking at the R41 price range, my preference would be for the Fatip Lo Storto Originale (aka FOCS - Fatip Open Comb Slant). The FOCS is an awesome razor for less than the cost of an R41. Great blade support. Efficient and smooth. Will readily get through your six days of growth.

The standard (non-slant) Fatip Grande or Piccolo Open Comb will also work, I just prefer the efficiency and ease of the slant.

If you want to get to the ~US$100 or so range, the Blackland Dart, Ikon B1 Standard or Karve Brass (D, E or F plate, OC or SB) are good starting points.

More mid-priced razors are discussed here:


Hope this helps. :)
 
I have 3 razors that I give me very little trouble with a week or more between shaves. The New leaves my skin the least irritated and works best for me, but I'm still hoping to master the other 2.
1. Gillette New long comb.
2. Timeless 0.95 solid bar.
3. Karve D OC plate.
 

jackgoldman123

Boring and predictable
Karve OC with F plate (G not available in OC)
Timeless 0.95 oc
Timeless bronze 0.78 oc (believe it or not, much more aggressive than Timeless 0.95)
Kai or Feather blades
 
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CzechCzar

Use the Fat, Luke!
I am going to contravene those who say that BBS is attainable with any razor. It is most definitely not. The R89 couldn't get me to BBS no matter how hard I tried. I have facial hair like yours, and sensitive skin to boot.

I opted for a much more efficient head, and my problems were solved.

May I present:

Yaqi Top Cap Aggressive Slant Safety Razor Head

Less than $10.
 
You have three options here, as I see it.

1. Get a set of clippers or a similar trimmer. Cut down the growth as close as possible for long hair like this. Then shave as normal.

2. Don't go six days without shaving.

3. Get something open comb and/or more aggressive for situations like this.
@KJI, I second the above - OC all the way.

As I have both the R41 and the Vector OC, I can assure you both will do the job on a week's growth w/o a problem.

What I do when I skip shaving for a few days is repeat the WTG pass twice, then go on with XTG and ATG, as usual.
 
We have a similar starting point. I started out with a DE89, and started looking for a new razor because it tugged so badly if I missed a few shaves.

I'm a big fan of the Razoroc SLOC, which is a medium aggressive razor. You can pick up the head only for $8.00. If you decide to go more aggressive, I'd vote for the Fatip Grande.

If you're set on the R41, keep an eye on the BST forum; they show up there with remarkable frequency. One word of caution for the R41, mine tugs worse than any razor I have ever owned. It literally makes my eyes water sometimes. The more days since my last shave, the worse it is for me. A lot of guys swear by them though, so you its definitely a YMMV thing.
 
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