Merkur Vision 2000 stuck / seized

[Dadstaxi]

Good morning All

I have been a long time lurker at this site but having recently re-discovered my Vision 2000 lurking in a cupboard, I have been prompted to join:

The Vision appears to be seized: the adjuster partially turns but not enough to free the locking disc or open the blade assembly.

Is there a known way to deal with this to allow it to be brought back into service?

Many thanks.

 

[Dave himself]

Check YouTube there's a tutorial on how to take it apart and clean it. Welcome to B&B.

 

[Dadstaxi]

Check YouTube there's a tutorial on how to take it apart and clean it. Welcome to B&B.

Thank you for your reply Dave.

There doesn't appear to be a how to repair it video but there are several general take it apart and re-assemble.

 

[Old School TSD]

Thank you for your reply Dave.

There doesn't appear to be a how to repair it video but there are several general take it apart and re-assemble.

Trash it, and buy a clone. Better yet a vintage Gillette that will last multiple lifetime's for half the cost
Merkur is junk pot metal, total crap shoot.

 

[Rob72]

Good morning! Unfortunately, OSTSD is likely correct, as it is zamac, it is quite likely permanently seized. Once 2 zamac pieces begin to oxidize, in close proximity to each other, they will essentially weld themselves together.

2 things you can try, in order of attack:

1. Soak, overnight, in an undiluted glass of CLR (Calcium/Lime/Rust remover, if you haven't used it). Take it out and attempt to move it. If unsuccessful, rinse thoroughly with hot water & repeat, x 2 more days, if needed.

2. Heat the handle with a hairdryer and drop into a glass of penetrating oil for a soak overnight. Repeat as per the CLR.

It may work. If it does, I would buy a Barbicide kit and dunk your razor briefly after each shave to keep it clean. Barbicide is not just a strong disinfectant, is dissolves soap & water deposits very effectively.

Best of luck!

Edit: After either of these soaks, definitely wash well in warm SOAPY water!

 

[Rob72]

Annd one more thing! It isn't a Vision, but I do have a Future clone I would be happy to send your way, while you're working on your project. Just send me a pm with your address, if you'd like!

 

[Trollky]

Don't give up on the Vision yet! There aren't that many of them around and haven't been made in a good few years now.

Grab a Q-tip and a teaspoon amount of olive/vegetable/mineral oil (whatever you've got) and set to work oiling every hinge and moving part you can get to. Then start working those parts through their limited range until things free up.

Assuming you get the doors open you can then disassemble the razor. At this point the news gets better because, like the Futur, the inner screw mechanism of the Vision is made of brass. Seized parts should therefore not be a terminal problem and easily remedied with a bit of oil.

 

[romsitsa]

Have to admit that I don't understand the problem. The doors and adjuster ring are not connected in an way, except the whole inside rotted together.
Don not use CLR on zamak it will eat it and maybe they switched it at one point, but the center rod of Visions I saw, was also zamak.

 

[Rob72]

Have to admit that I don't understand the problem. The doors and adjuster ring are not connected in an way, except the whole inside rotted together.
Don not use CLR on zamak it will eat it and maybe they switched it at one point, but the center rod of Visions I saw, was also zamak.

That's the suspicion, ergo, CLR is a last ditch effort to dissolve the thinner oxidized connection.

Give the mineral oil or penetrating oil a shot first, buuuut...

 

[santamariasteve]

I love the Merkur Vision 2000, but admittedly it has quirks.

Mine froze up too. I had not used it in several weeks, and the firmly closed doors were stuck together. Hint: DO NOT store the Vision 2000 without a blade with the doors firmly closed, or all the way firmly open. Leave them slightly loosened. Also, I wouldn't store it with either of the adjusting knobs all the way firmly to the left or all the way firmly to the right, though I never use those extreme settings.

Since then, no more problems in several years.

I recall that I had a deuce of a time freeing it. I wasn't sure I could, but I got lucky. It's been several years, but as I remember, I did repeated long soaks in very warm soapy water, with some vinegar thrown in. (I don't want to mislead people, so chemists on the forum, does that concoction seem reasonable?) Full Disclosure: I got well deserved D's in high school Chemistry. Literally.

I would hold the head and the handle with a thick towel and firmly twist (in the correct direction!). It took awhile, but it finally broke loose, without anything breaking.

Nowadays, I occasionally open and close the doors all the way, and spin the adjustment dial back and forth all the way, as preventive maintenance. I do that maybe once every several months or so.

A Nice Personal Touch: Above the adjustment dial is a small indented circle to indicate the setting I'm on. I painted that tiny circle with a dab of nail polish to enhance visibility.

Quirks, yes, but I still love the Vision 2000. It's a keeper, and incidentally it's a very good shaver!

 

[Rob72]

I love the Merkur Vision 2000, but admittedly it has quirks.

Mine froze up too. I had not used it in several weeks, and the firmly closed doors were stuck together. Hint: DO NOT store the Vision 2000 without a blade with the doors firmly closed, or all the way firmly open. Leave them slightly loosened. Also, I wouldn't store it with either of the adjusting knobs all the way firmly to the left or all the way firmly to the right, though I never use those extreme settings.

Since then, no more problems in several years.

I recall that I had a deuce of a time freeing it. I wasn't sure I could, but I got lucky. It's been several years, but as I remember, I did repeated long soaks in very warm soapy water, with some vinegar thrown in. (I don't want to mislead people, so chemists on the forum, does that concoction seem reasonable?) Full Disclosure: I got well deserved D's in high school Chemistry. Literally.

Haha! I did too! Regardless, yes, the vinegar makes sense. It dissolves oxidized material.

 

[Dadstaxi]

Thank you all very much for the advice. I think I will try a bag with some lube in it and drop it in an ultrasonic cleaner.

 

[Dadstaxi]

Annd one more thing! It isn't a Vision, but I do have a Future clone I would be happy to send your way, while you're working on your project. Just send me a pm with your address, if you'd like!

That's a very generous offer thank you very much.

I will however say no thank you as I do have other razors.

 

[cpcohen1945]

Thank you all very much for the advice. I think I will try a bag with some lube in it and drop it in an ultrasonic cleaner.

That's a neat idea!

Please report back !

. Charles

 

[nemo]

Do the doors open? The locking disc is removed by pushing down on the center bar when the doors are open, it isn't the adjuster.

This video pretty much covers it, but you may have already seen it.

Trash it, and buy a clone.

I've never seen a Vision 2000 clone, have you?

 

[santamariasteve]

Thank you all very much for the advice. I think I will try a bag with some lube in it and drop it in an ultrasonic cleaner.

Dad, I wish you well, and I hope your plan works.

However, the problem isn't a lack of lube or the presence of gunk or "dirt." The problem is a chemical reaction between two "chemically incompatible materials" that have melded together. That's a different horse.

Lubrication and cleaning probably will not fix a problem, that was not caused by a lack of lubrication or by a lack of cleanliness.

Please update us on the progress. And again, success to you. The Merkur Vision 2000 is worth heroic efforts!