aggressive or not?

[raahh]

I've found the 34c to be quite mild (too mild for me), even with Feathers.
I think most other reviews have considered it to be mid-mild.
There are many options available for far less than $100 which would fit your needs - I'm sure others will chime in with suggestions.

Thanks. I'm open to suggestions if you know any.

 

[raahh]

I've found the 34c to be quite mild (too mild for me), even with Feathers.
I think most other reviews have considered it to be mid-mild.
There are many options available for far less than $100 which would fit your needs - I'm sure others will chime in with suggestions.

Thanks. I'm open to suggestions if you know any.

If you want something more aggressive than a 34c I suggest a Fatip Grande.

Nice. thanks, seems pretty inexpensive too. I'll look into it.

 

[raahh]

I've found the 34c to be quite mild (too mild for me), even with Feathers.
I think most other reviews have considered it to be mid-mild.
There are many options available for far less than $100 which would fit your needs - I'm sure others will chime in with suggestions.

Thanks. I'm open to suggestions if you know any.

If you want something more aggressive than a 34c I suggest a Fatip Grande.

Nice. thanks, seems pretty inexpensive too. I'll look into it.

By the way, raahh -
I just noticed you are new to the forum. Welcome aboard!
I am relatively new here, myself, and have received lots of great (and occasionally, not so great) advice from the helpful folks here.
Welcome to the zoo.

Thank you! and sorry for the delay in responding. Its been quite the month as you can imagine.

 

[raahh]

So I started out with exactly your razor and blade a few years ago; but honestly, I went down a rabbit hole of vintage RAD for DE and SE, and it's been well over a year since I've shaved with my Merkur 34C. So I don't know what I'd say it is now, but then I would've called it aggressive because I rarely walked away from the shave without a weeper. It was my first DE razor and my technique was "less than great". Today, I shave with A LOT of different razors and I have a better sense of what I like and don't like, and what (for me at least) is aggressive/mild.

But let's define the terms, since "aggressive" means several things to different people. Here's the various criteria for aggressiveness that I've heard over the years:

• Blade feel. Really feel the blade on your skin, then the razor is aggressive.
  
  
• A biter. The design of the razor (usually blade exposure and gap) are such that if you're not VERY careful with your technique, you're going to get bitten or get weepers, or just generally get to see your blood up close.
  
  
• Efficient. An aggressive razor removes more hair/stubble in a single pass than a "mild" razor. Therefore, it is more efficient (i.e., less passes to get smooth)

Which of those is correct? I would say all of the above, although frankly I think about it in terms of two words: comfort and efficiency. Generally speaking, a really comfortable shave -- which for many often means little to no blade feel; you're technique can be somewhat "relaxed" without fear of reprisals from the razor. Efficiency is what it means above. So a Gillette Tech is often called a "Mild" razor....and it is for me. It's a fairly comfortable shave, and it often takes an extra pass or clean-up to get as smooth as I'd like. The R41 is considered Aggressive (by many people, and certainly by me). It's not comfortable (for me) and unless I'm paying close attention, I will often have a little (not a lot) of red on my face....and frankly I can get a close shave, but I don't enjoy it.

So let's talk about where you think the Merkur 34C falls (using the Feather)

• What kind of shave are you looking for....BBS (smooth even when you run your hand against the grain of your beard after shaving, and it lasts for many, many hours), or DFS (smooth, but you may feel a little roughness --although most people think you're closely shaved, and it last about 8 hours or less)?
• How many passes do you usually do get to the level of smoothness you like (2 and a little touch-up, 3 and a little touch-up)?
• Do you usually come away with no blood (no weepers, no spots anywhere) and no irritation or sensitivity? Or do you usually have at least one small weeper or even the occasional nick?
• Do you feel the blade on your face, or does it feel like your wiping off the shaving cream and you're wondering "did I put the blade in there?"

Understanding those aspects will probably help as you read and hear about the various options (modern and vintage). I get the feeling (and this is qualitative, not quantitative) that most people think on a scale of 1 to 10 scale of Mild-to-Wild (with Aggressive being 8 to 10) the Merkur 34C is somewhere between a 4 to 6. I would've given it a 7 or 8 back when I used it, but that was more me than the razor; now I suspect I would give it a 4.

This post is past TLDR-territory; but I also want to throw something else out there. I would absolutely try a different blade. I like the Nacet and Voskhod -- and I still use Feathers from time to time. I don't personally subscribe to the different blade for a different razor theory; I find Nacet works well in any one of my 50 or so DE razors (yep, I've got a RAD problem). The Feather does too, but when a razor is aggressive (as defined above), I REALLY don't enjoy using a Feather with it.

So I could recommend at least a dozen great razors to try, but I'm not sure if you're looking for a more "comfortable" (in terms of blade feel) shave or a more "efficient" shave. The grail (for me at least) has been finding razors where the shave is comfortable and the razor is efficient enough to shave me to my level of preferred closeness with the least amount of passes. The more passes, the more chance for irritation.

If you had the time and tenacity to read this, I hope it helped in some small way. If you want a straight up razor recommendation, let me know and I'll throw my 2-cents in.....although I can't promise it won't be another REALLY long post.


Hey -- I resemble that remark

@Flintstone65 thanks for the lengthy and informative reply, I appreciate it. I read your entire response and sorry for the delay in responding, its been a crazy month as you can imagine.

To answer your questions:
I'm looking for an efficient and comfortable shave with as little passes as possible. Somewhere between BBS and DFS. Right now I shave around once a week.
usually I do two passes. First to mow down the long hair and second to clean up.
usually I get away with no or blood unless I'm a) in a hurry and not careful b) don't use proper technique c)cutting ingrown hairs (lower neck for me) or all a combination or all of the above ... in which case there might be little cuts.
The latter - "it feel like your wiping off the shaving cream and you're wondering if I put the blade\s there. Especially if I tighten the 34C to the fullest. It's almost like I'm just wiping away the shaving cream and not cutting (hardly) any hair.

Never even heard of those blades. I just purchased some Astra Platinum's but they're definitely not as sharp or cut as close as the Feathers so it leaves me with more passes which I don't want...less cuts thought

I'm open to razor(s) recommendations so please go for it. and thanks again.

 

[raahh]

Have you used preshave moisturizer and a warm/hot flannel applied to the skin before and between passes? Once i started doing this, I went from using aggressive blades and razors to milder ones ! IMHO the importance of good exfoliation is overlooked on this Forum

Yes, tried the preshave moisturizer even after a hot shower. but not between passes. I agree, good exfoliation, and warming up the face makes a big difference. Usually a few days after a new shave i'll do a face exfoliate after there's a bit of growth.

 

[raahh]

If you want something that shaves very similar but just a step up I'd recommend the 37C HD or/and Fatip Gentile. Neither will break the bank. As someone who used a 34C HD regularly for years I think you would enjoy either of them, or both of them.

Appreciate the recommendations. I'll check it out.

 

[raahh]

I tend to favor highly efficient razors (some of these razors need to be aggressive in order to reach a high level of efficiency). The two I use the most often lately are the ATT Aluminum Calypso H2 and the Muhle R41.

I rarely use my 34C anymore (let alone my 15C), they are just too mild for my tastes. I while back I tough I could bring these back into my rotation by using the two sharpest blades I know: the Feather and the Kai (I had high hopes for this one, being a bit wider than the rest of DE blades). I failed to achieve the results I was looking for, so the razors went back to the bench.

So, in a nutshell and IMHO, if you are looking for a more efficient setup, you’ll need to find a more efficient razor than your 34C. Different blades are not going to make that much of a difference, once again IMHO.

And you don’t’ need to spend $100+ on a new razor to get there, that is unless you want to! And nothing wrong about that in my book. Good luck!

thanks for the input. I prefer not to spend $100+ on a new razor if I don't have to and can find one that works. I'll check out the ones you mentioned.

 

[Invicta]

I'm looking for an efficient and comfortable shave with as little passes as possible. Somewhere between BBS and DFS. Right now I shave around once a week.
usually I do two passes. First to mow down the long hair and second to clean up.

You are asking a lot for a close shave from a once a week shave in 2 passes. Shaving is about gradual stubble reduction and what you are seeking does not fit that parameter. You would be better of shaving more often. Aggressive razors need good technique if you are to avoid nicks and irritation.
If you really want a new razor try the Fatip, Piccolo or Grande, which will be a notch more aggressive than the 34C. It is all brass construction too.

 

[Romanex01]

My first razor was the Merkur34 but I found it to be very mild. I kept going over the same areas of my face and all I could feel the was the safety bar. This need to go over the same spots over and over led to skin irritation. I needed a more "aggressive" razor with more blade exposure or blade gap or both. I was using Astra SP razor blades at the time, but I think the "aggressiveness" of the razor is more important than how sharp the blades are. Most razor blades are pretty sharp, even a derby can cut your finger.

 

[santamariasteve]

A fourth pass is an easy and effective way to improve the closeness and the efficiency of any razor. It's easier than fooling around with shims. The fourth pass is by far the easiest and the fastest pass.

 

[kingfisher]

For once weekly shaving, I would switch away from DE and use an SE razor, an AC razor, or a disposable blade straight razor, at least for the first pass.

For SE, I would recommend the Micromatic open comb loaded with a PFTE-coated GEM blade.

For AC, my recommendation is either the Colonial General or the RazoRock Hawk.

For a disposable blade straight razor, there is no substitute for the Feather SS or one of its much-cheaper clones. There is a learning curve, but it really pays off in the end. You could then use your DE for a second pass, if you wanted to.