2011 R41 - The Quest Achieved!

[Bondage007]

Hello,

Well I survived the first shave with the Spitfire/Wardonia shave. No blood letting but all blade feel. Loudest shave I've ever had! Extremely close and no irritation at all. I've never used a devette but I think I did today. My motorcycle helmet felt larger this morning on the way into work.
Must try with 2013 R41 next.

Cheers
John

 

[GlazedBoker]

Here's the exposure with an Old Type thick cap

Nice. A little steeper angle might be needed, but not much. Looks sweet...

 

[mjclark]

So since May ‘17 I’ve bought and sold two 2011 R41s and was without one for a while.

There have been some amazing razors along the way since then.

I’ve discovered the awesomeness of the Rockwell 6s and 6c. Using plates #5 and #6 the Rockwell just has absolutely perfect geometry for me and is the best DE shaver I’ve yet encountered (and that includes Eclipse Red Ring, Apollo, LeResche and New Improved!).

And the amazing excellence of the Colonial General with a Schick Proline blade. Simply the best balanced Artist Club safety razor for me. Superb!

And the total brilliance of the Focus Slim shavette with a Personna 74 injector blade.

And the exquisite rarity and elegance of the Ever Ready Sun Ray set.

And the priceless and almost unique wonder of the White Personna Executive injector.

And then I shaved with a 2013 R41 Grande and something inside me awoke!
I realised I HAD TO HAVE a 2011 R41 in my life again and only then would my shave den be at peace.

So I got another one...

Look how the other razors bow down to it!
At last the balance is restored and the worlds are in harmony...

 

[mjclark]

... And the first shave for 7 months with the 2011 R41 and a new 7 O’Clock Yellow was fantastic!

And it confirmed a few things for me:
Nothing, literally nothing has proved as efficient as this razor.
Not the Cobra Classic not the Asylum Rx - for both those Artist Club razors the much more rigid blade does not give me as good a neck shave as with that chattery DE blade in the 2011 R41.
The Roedter 1909 is about as efficient but much more badly behaved and prone to biting.
And the guardless Devette is counter-intuitively a bit less efficient because the lack of a guard means that you have to do all the skin stretching manually.

And the longevity of the shave from the 2011 R41 is legendary.
I also get very long lasting shaves from the Rockwell 6s/c and the Artist Club safety razors but they can’t quite match it.

The thing is that the Rockwell on plate #s 5 and 6 is nearly as efficient as this but much much much smoother.
And the General is slightly less efficient again but so comfortable and it gives a very smart regrowth.
In other words these razors have fundamentally better geometry and the Rockwell is still technically the best razor I’ve ever used.

But there’s something mesmerising about the big blade feel and chatter of the 2011 R41, the unsurpassed efficiency and longevity of the shave and the way your face feels like waxed paper afterwards.
2011 R41 you are still my very favourite!

 

[rudyt]

But there’s something mesmerising about the big blade feel and chatter of the 2011 R41, the unsurpassed efficiency and longevity of the shave and the way your face feels like waxed paper afterwards.

You should write advertising blurbs. I already have a 2011 R41 and reading this, you made me want to buy another one ;-)

Shaved with it two days ago and after it's over, you say to yourself "Yup, that was a nice shave".

 

[mjclark]

You should write advertising blurbs. I already have a 2011 R41 and reading this, you made me want to buy another one ;-)

Shaved with it two days ago and after it's over, you say to yourself "Yup, that was a nice shave".

Ha ha - thanks Rudy!

And now:
2011 R41 vs Rockwell 6s Plate #6 -

I put a new Astra in each razor then shaved 3 passes WTG XTG ATG using steep angle.
The left side of my face with the 2011 R41 and the right side of my face with the Rockwell 6s using it’s most aggressive plate #6.

The blade alignment in both razors is absolutely spot on and obviously the stainless steel 6s is better quality than the zamak R41.
There’s a zamac version of the Rockwell too, the 6c and that also is very well built and thickly chromed.

And obviously there’s a lot more blade feel and chatter from the R41.
The blade is rigid and well braced in the Rockwell and it’s a much much smoother shave than the 2011.

Shaving ATG is also a lot easier and smoother with the Rockwell.

Both razors gave a beautiful nick-free weeper-free irritation-free shave and that is gold in itself!

But 20 minutes after the shave it’s clear that the 2011 R41 is more efficient than the Rockwell albeit marginally.

The left side of my face shaved with the 2011 feels like waxed paper.
The right side of my face shaved with the 6s feels like sandstone reminding me a lot of the shave from the Shavecraft Tech (although the 6s is a lot smoother than the ST).

So the Rockwell is beautifully smooth and well behaved and also delivers great ATG performance giving a powerful and very efficient shave.
For me it has PERFECT geometry and is a real quality razor.

The 2011 R41 is rougher, pokier and requires concentration for ATG shaving but is definitely somewhat more powerful and efficient.
And it is supremely FUN!

I’m very interested to see how the longevity of the shaves compare since both razors are acclaimed for their very long lasting shaves.

 

[Highspeedlane]

Ha ha - thanks Rudy!

And now:
2011 R41 vs Rockwell 6s Plate #6 -
View attachment 853832
I put a new Astra in each razor then shaved 3 passes WTG XTG ATG using steep angle.
The left side of my face with the 2011 R41 and the right side of my face with the Rockwell 6s using it’s most aggressive plate #6.

The blade alignment in both razors is absolutely spot on and obviously the stainless steel 6s is better quality than the zamak R41.
There’s a zamac version of the Rockwell too, the 6c and that also is very well built and thickly chromed.

And obviously there’s a lot more blade feel and chatter from the R41.
The blade is rigid and well braced in the Rockwell and it’s a much much smoother shave than the 2011.

Shaving ATG is also a lot easier and smoother with the Rockwell.

Both razors gave a beautiful nick-free weeper-free irritation-free shave and that is gold in itself!

But 20 minutes after the shave it’s clear that the 2011 R41 is more efficient than the Rockwell albeit marginally.

The left side of my face shaved with the 2011 feels like waxed paper.
The right side of my face shaved with the 6s feels like sandstone reminding me a lot of the shave from the Shavecraft Tech (although the 6s is a lot smoother than the ST).

So the Rockwell is beautifully smooth and well behaved and also delivers great ATG performance giving a powerful and very efficient shave.
For me it has PERFECT geometry and is a real quality razor.

The 2011 R41 is rougher, pokier and requires concentration for ATG shaving but is definitely somewhat more powerful and efficient.
And it is supremely FUN!

I’m very interested to see how the longevity of the shaves compare since both razors are acclaimed for their very long lasting shaves.

Great comparison. The amount of visible blade on the R41 is eye popping! Thanks for posting.

 

[pbrmhl]

Marcus, you've inspired me to search my razor drawer for one of my 2011 R41s! (I have two, as I don't trust the Zamak...) I haven't used one for months, as I've been busy trying a whole bunch of other razors, e.g., stainless General, Paradigm 17-4, Karve with D plate, Ikon MR SE, ATT SE2, Sabre L2, etc. I'm confident I will fall in love with the R41 again!

 

[mjclark]

Great comparison. The amount of visible blade on the R41 is eye popping! Thanks for posting.

Marcus, you've inspired me to search my razor drawer for one of my 2011 R41s! (I have two, as I don't trust the Zamak...) I haven't used one for months, as I've been busy trying a whole bunch of other razors, e.g., stainless General, Paradigm 17-4, Karve with D plate, Ikon MR SE, ATT SE2, Sabre L2, etc. I'm confident I will fall in love with the R41 again!

Thanks guys!
The shave off with the Rockwell is very telling I think.
Technically the 6s is a much better razor, better built, much smoother (in fact smoother than an Eclipse Red Ring), perfect geometry and (although not as efficient as the 2011) more efficient than you’ll ever need.

But there is something so compelling about the 2011 R41, it’s just so much fun.
Ha ha - it’s mystical, captivating and entrancing

@pbrmhl that’s an astonishing array of razors you must there.
I just got an aluminium General myself and I’m really surprised at how much I like the shaves - way better than Asylum Rx or Cobra Classic.
My fave is the Alumigoose v1 though - as aggressive as the Rx but really really smooth.

But coming back to the 2011 R41 after a 7 month break I do realise that for me it rules them all!

 

[davidsilva]

Marcus, you've inspired me to search my razor drawer for one of my 2011 R41s! (I have two, as I don't trust the Zamak...) I haven't used one for months, as I've been busy trying a whole bunch of other razors, e.g., stainless General, Paradigm 17-4, Karve with D plate, Ikon MR SE, ATT SE2, Sabre L2, etc. I'm confident I will fall in love with the R41 again!

Scott, I bow to your continued search for close shave nirvana! [emoji106] Good Show!

 

[rudyt]

@mjclark, it sounds like an interesting comparison would be you Rockwell @ 6 against the 2013 R41

 

[pbrmhl]

Scott, I bow to your continued search for close shave nirvana! [emoji106] Good Show!

Thanks, David. I really think I’m done buying razors (this time). We’ll see. I’m now convinced that although I might find another that’s just as efficient as the horde I’ve already got, it’s very unlikely I’ll find one more efficient. Heck, the Paradigm 17-4 is just as efficient as many of my “aggressive” razors, proving to me that blade feel is not necessarily a requirement for a close shave. Not to mention, I really do want to succeed with the 2018 Sabbatical, given my prior failures...

 

[User 306]

Some great shave comparisons in this thread. One razor I don't have is a 2011 R41 yet as they are pretty hard to find. I just got the Ikon Tech in the mail today and I can't wait to compare it to the 2013 R41 I have. I did do a comparison shave today using the R41 and Paradigm 17-4 using a Personna Red in both razors and it was pretty much a dead even end result except for two things. The Paradigm was much smoother especially on the ATG pass but the R41 offers more blade feel and audio feedback for those that like that. I'm BBS on both sides but it took 3 passes and I think although I like the Personna Reds ( Thanks Scott for sending me some ) I like the Paradigm better with the Polsilver and the R41 with a Kai as it doesn't take a full 3 passes to get to the BBS I got today with those blades in the 2 razors. Still got a nice irritation free shave though. Can't wait to try the Tech I've heard so much about it being very efficient. Lets see how it compares to the Paradigm 17-4 and R41 and my top dog. The Charcoal Level 3 OC.

 

[mjclark]

@mjclark, it sounds like an interesting comparison would be you Rockwell @ 6 against the 2013 R41

That would be interesting Rudy!
I hadn’t thought how similar the description of shavez for the 2013 and the Rockwell is.

I also don’t think that there’s yet a shave off here between the 2011 R41 and the 2013 either.

 

[rabidus]

I really think I’m done buying razors (this time).

ATT SE1 baseplate...

 

[pbrmhl]

ATT SE1 baseplate...

Hey, Anthony! I have the ATT SE2 and the current stainless General. Between the two, I figure I've got the milder versions of efficient AC blade razors covered. And the Asylum Rx covers the other end of the spectrum, in my den.

 

[pbrmhl]

That would be interesting Rudy!
I hadn’t thought how similar the description of shavez for the 2013 and the Rockwell is.

I also don’t think that there’s yet a shave off here between the 2011 R41 and the 2013 either.

It sounds like you're volunteering for the shave-off, Marcus...

 

[mjclark]

It sounds like you're volunteering for the shave-off, Marcus...

Ha ha - you read me like a book Scott!
I’ll just get a shave in with the General to level out both sides of stubble.

I’m amazed at how much I like the General.

 

[rabidus]

Hey, Anthony! I have the ATT SE2 and the current stainless General. Between the two, I figure I've got the milder versions of efficient AC blade razors covered. And the Asylum Rx covers the other end of the spectrum, in my den.

Having the SE2 and liking the General, I'm surprised you didn't give the SE1 baseplate a try!

Using the same blade in the SE2, General, and Asylum RX will show their true colors!

 

[state]

Hi all, great thread here. @mjclark , can you (or anyone else) confirm that what I found in an old thread about the 'penny test' comparing the 2011 and 2013 R41 is really the case? I use an R41 as my exclusive razor, which I purchased in 2013, so I've never been certain. It's also more complicated because I'm currently in Europe so I had to do the test with a 10 cent Euro piece, which the internet tells me is the same size as a penny.

If you want to know if you have the 2011 or 2013 head, you can do the penny test. If you place the top cap on a penny and it doesn't hang over the penny, or very slightly hangs over, you have the 2011. If it obviously hangs over the penny, you have the 2013.