Entering the world of slants some tips and advice please

[DanielJ90]

Hello everyone and hope you are having a great easter!
So I have a few firsts happening the main being I am entering the world of Slant razors,
I will be having a Merkur 37 slant arriving tomorrow to shave with, I do really like the Barberpole 39 but chose the 37 for its smaller more nimble size,
The next first for me is I have actually bought a razor (potentially) designed for me as it says it is for heavy beard and tough stubble which I believe I have as my current razor (Gillette #58) doesn't leave me feeling smooth even after a 3 pass with touch ups.
One question I do have is my Gillette Green was my go to blade for the #58 and I experimented and found the yellow to be a tad sharper (which I ended up using) and the GSB not so sharp so which Gillette should I use to try the slant with?
Also any hints for shaving with it? any definite no no's?

Thanks for your help and time in reading this, this forum has been a massive help to me for the past year and everyone commenting on my threads has had great input into helping me achieve my best quality shaves.

 

[LoveTheSlant]

Don't change your technique because of the slant aspect. Like any razor, some blades work better than others. I like Dorco's and Astras. I wouldn't use a Feather in this razor, but that is me; YMMV. I have the 39c. You're going to love this razor.

 

[muzichead]

I use a 37C a couple days a week and love the shave I get from it. As stated already, shave with it the same as your other razors. There is no need to change your technique because of it being a slant. As for blades, I have used GSB's, Yellows, Kai, Feather, Astra SP, and Shark SS & SC's in mine so far. The Shark Super Chrome and Super Stainless have been the best in it so far whereas the GSB's and Feather's were the worst.

 

[maybe smith]

I have a 39c HD and as stated shave as usual. It gives a great clean shave.

 

[efsk]

As above: don't change technique, and see what blade suits best. The 37c is one of my favourite slants, that performs wonderful using Voskhods.

 

[emwolf]

I've used GSB, Personna Labs and Astra SP in my 37C with great success. As the other folks have said, don't change technique. it was a bit of a struggle not to compensate for the slant, but once you get the hang of it it's pretty slick.

 

[Steve_in_CT]

I use a 37C, and while it's not the razor I use most often it delivers a fine shave without requiring any special technique. If I use a Feather blade I need to be careful about irritating my neck. My usual blade, Gillette Platinum, works very well for me in the 37C.

 

[DanielJ90]

So used it today for the first time and wow this is much more suited to my skin,
I started with IMO the milder of the three gillette blades I use the Gillette green Super Stainless, prepped with Nivea for men sensitive face wash, truefitt and hill ultimate comfort pre shave oil and the truefitt and hill 1805 shave cream and the razor effortlessly sliced through 48 hours of tough stubble, I didn't get quite a good a shave as I would like but I put it down to the angle as I am new to the razor.
I would say the razor shines the most on my neck, I have never seen it so smooth, any advice as to maintain correct blade angle?
Thanks

 

[muzichead]

I'm one of those guys that rides the top cap... I seem to get the best shave that way from almost any razor I have used to date. I find that a steep angle tends to snag my hair and pull on most occasions. Good thing about that is I do know right away that the angle is incorrect for me when it happens... I shaved with my 37C / Shark Super Chrome (9) this morning and had my usual DFS... This is a must have razor and I would suggest it for just about anyone!! Glad you had a great shave also...

 

[LoveTheSlant]

So used it today for the first time and wow this is much more suited to my skin,
I started with IMO the milder of the three gillette blades I use the Gillette green Super Stainless, prepped with Nivea for men sensitive face wash, truefitt and hill ultimate comfort pre shave oil and the truefitt and hill 1805 shave cream and the razor effortlessly sliced through 48 hours of tough stubble, I didn't get quite a good a shave as I would like but I put it down to the angle as I am new to the razor.
I would say the razor shines the most on my neck, I have never seen it so smooth, any advice as to maintain correct blade angle?
Thanks

IMO, the best angle is unique to each razor, and its user. Finding it is more intuitive than wrote. Like driving a stick in different cars, gentle trial and error . . . Using the wide gap side of the razor in my XTG pass in my mustache area works well for me for example; YMMV.

 

[tankerjohn]

Sledgehammer guy here. Yeah - what everyone else said. Shave normal. I like a steep angle myself, but that's my preference with all Merkur razors. I don't really understand slants' reputation for being harsh. I find the Sledgehammer is quite the opposite. Very smooth, yet efficient. Great shave. On blades, I say go with what you already like. You can certainly experiment with different blades to see if you like anything better. But I wouldn't worry about a blade being "too sharp". GSBs work exceptionally well for me, but blades are so personal - maybe even more so than razors. Anyway, best of luck to you.

 

[DanielJ90]

I'm one of those guys that rides the top cap... I seem to get the best shave that way from almost any razor I have used to date. I find that a steep angle tends to snag my hair and pull on most occasions. Good thing about that is I do know right away that the angle is incorrect for me when it happens... I shaved with my 37C / Shark Super Chrome (9) this morning and had my usual DFS... This is a must have razor and I would suggest it for just about anyone!! Glad you had a great shave also...

What do you mean by ride the top cap

 

[Slick&Smooth]

Use it like any other razor. I had no problems adjusting.

 

[BSAGuy]

Relax. Have fun. Enjoy.

 

[Gman9537]

Relax. Have fun. Enjoy.

Terrible advice...

Fret. Sweat. Keep styptic pencil handy.

Sent from my SM-G530T1 using Tapatalk

 

[muzichead]

What do you mean by ride the top cap

The so called standard for safety razor shaving is a 30° angle. I use a little more. If you take the razor and set the top cap on your face to where the handle goes straight away from your face, then rotate the handle downward towards the floor and when the blade starts to engage the face, (shallow angle), this is my starting point for any razor and where I find that I get my best shaves from. I'm not sure what degree of angle it actually comes to but its more than the standard... I have seen it posted in the past as riding the cap so that is the term I use. I have found that I don't get any tugging of the hair if I use this technique. If I was guessing I'd say its probably more of a 45-50° angle instead...

Blade Angle

 

[Gman9537]

If I was guessing I'd say its probably more of a 45-50° angle instead...

I think there may be some misconceptions about the terminology. What you just described is "how to find the proper shaving angle."

Handle angle does not equal blade angle.

The proper blade angle is less than or equal to 30 degrees. However, the head of the razor bends the blade to some angle less than 90 degrees to the plane of the handle. By however many degrees the point of the blade is offset from 90 degrees, you would hypothetically need to add that number of degrees to 30 to the position of the handle.

All that aside, the best way to find the proper angle is (as you said) to point the handle at your face, then rotate the razor down until you feel and visually confirm the cap, blade, and comb/bar are on-plane with the shave area. If that's what they call "riding the top cap," so be it.

But with a super aggressive razor (if the '13 R41 rates a 9.5/10, the iKon SB is surely an 11.5/10 IMHO), if you pull back just a bit from on-plane, favoring the top cap just a bit, this is what I call riding the top cap. Ex. with the iKon mentioned, if you look at the geometry, the blade sits quite proud of the plane formed between the cap and the safety bar. That means when you're shaving at the proper angle, you're basically shaving with a really heavy shavette. But if you roll the razor back a bit, you lose contact with the safety bar and the blade comes more onto plane with the top cap, creating a milder shave.

FWIW...

 

[muzichead]

@Gman9537

What I described was basically the same as what you just posted. I use very little, if any, contact with the safety bar or teeth from an OC during my shave... Hence, riding the cap... As you said, like a heavy shavette. The link explains shallow or steep shaving angles which is how others explain their angle use, be it blade or handle.

 

[Gman9537]

@muzichead up-- yep.. It does a much better job. That's what I get for not clicking links lol