Item Description
Yikes! This is an interesting razor. It can be ordered on line from Muhle-Pinsel direct, or there's a couple of other sites where you can find it. I got lucky and managed to find it at a local store for $35.
Here's a pic alongside a Merkur HD for comparison-
The handle is nice and chunky and feels good in the hand; well balanced. The head resembles an old comb style Gillette. Looks can be deceiving however. While an old style Gillette is rather mild, the R89 isn't. In short, if you aren't careful, it'll rip your face off!
Loading a blade takes a bit of care. The blade has a fair amount of wiggle room, so you need to carefully line up the blade before tightening the handle. The razor came with an Astra blade, but I decided to load it up with a Merkur. No real reason other than the Merkur is a middle of the road blade. I thank God that I didn't load it with a Feather - my face probably would have looked like I'd been shaved by Freddy Kruger!
The bottom line: If you're looking for something a bit different, but still classic stylewise; and if you have a moderate to tough beard, you may like this razor.
Well, I must post an update to my review, now that I've shaved with this razor for about a week. It has, unfortunately inflicted enough nicks for me to really look closely at how this beast is built. I won't be shaving with it for awhile to let my face heal - ouch!
In looking at the blade under a magnifying glass, it appears that the blade is not clamped down flat. Sighting down the blade (I checked Merkur, Gillette Swedes and Derby for this), the edge is wavy and not at all parallel to the comb. Not good and explains my discomfort and nicks.
The culprit is the razor cap - it's simply made poorly. If I replace the cap with a cap from a Gillette 102A Old Style (the threads aren't exactly the same, but close enough for experimentation), the blade then clamps down in the razor straight and proper. The razor is still very aggressive, but does not inflict nicks.
The rest of my review remains the same, but I've revised my quality rating down to 4. Balance and feel are good. I'm hoping that this problem is just poor quality control with just this one razor. However, if you purchase one of these, be sure to sight down the blade under a magnifying glass to be sure that the edge is not wavy before you shave with it.
Here's a pic alongside a Merkur HD for comparison-
The handle is nice and chunky and feels good in the hand; well balanced. The head resembles an old comb style Gillette. Looks can be deceiving however. While an old style Gillette is rather mild, the R89 isn't. In short, if you aren't careful, it'll rip your face off!
Loading a blade takes a bit of care. The blade has a fair amount of wiggle room, so you need to carefully line up the blade before tightening the handle. The razor came with an Astra blade, but I decided to load it up with a Merkur. No real reason other than the Merkur is a middle of the road blade. I thank God that I didn't load it with a Feather - my face probably would have looked like I'd been shaved by Freddy Kruger!
The bottom line: If you're looking for something a bit different, but still classic stylewise; and if you have a moderate to tough beard, you may like this razor.
Well, I must post an update to my review, now that I've shaved with this razor for about a week. It has, unfortunately inflicted enough nicks for me to really look closely at how this beast is built. I won't be shaving with it for awhile to let my face heal - ouch!
In looking at the blade under a magnifying glass, it appears that the blade is not clamped down flat. Sighting down the blade (I checked Merkur, Gillette Swedes and Derby for this), the edge is wavy and not at all parallel to the comb. Not good and explains my discomfort and nicks.
The culprit is the razor cap - it's simply made poorly. If I replace the cap with a cap from a Gillette 102A Old Style (the threads aren't exactly the same, but close enough for experimentation), the blade then clamps down in the razor straight and proper. The razor is still very aggressive, but does not inflict nicks.
The rest of my review remains the same, but I've revised my quality rating down to 4. Balance and feel are good. I'm hoping that this problem is just poor quality control with just this one razor. However, if you purchase one of these, be sure to sight down the blade under a magnifying glass to be sure that the edge is not wavy before you shave with it.
