How does a Merkur Futur hold up after 15 years of neglect?

[Dimitri]

Well, let me show you.

First some background. I was fortunate enough to discover wet shaving fairly young, back in the early to mid-90's when I was in my 20's, after becoming thoroughly disgusted with the price of cartridge razors. For those of you that are much younger, yes, even back then cartridge razor prices were a rip-off. I presume that's how many of us got started on our DE/wet shaving journey. I recently rediscovered this site after a hiatus of many years, after watching some YouTube videos started makimg me enjoy shaving again and seeing it for the enjoyable hobby it can be, rather than a mundane chore. My journey started with a cheap, plastic handled Gillete DE razor (Knack/Slim twist I believe, that I wish I still had), then a Merkur Progress. When the Progress broke, after about a dozen years of use, I purchased the Futur.

Anyway, I've been using the Futur for about 15 years now. I've always treated this razor like a tool, rather than as the fine instrument that it is. After shaving, I would simply rinse the razor under the faucet, and then drop it head first into a coffee mug on my bathroom counter. As you can imagine, 15 years of water pooling up on the concave surface of the cap caused erosion of the zamak cap and blade bridge. Water intrusion into the "neck" of the bar, and just being left to dry there caused erosion in that area as well.

Considering my abuse/neglect of this razor, I think it's held up extremely well. I have replacement parts on hand, but now that I'm actually taking better care of it, I suspect it will go several more years before I need to swap out those parts.

And for the pics. Please ignore any water stains. I had just pulled the parts out of my sonic cleaner and hadn't yet wiped them down.

 

[Dimitri]

And the chrome plated brass handle.

 

[DesertIguana]

Looks like interesting DYI project.

 

[Dimitri]

My primary purpose for posting these pics is because in my recent rediscovery of this site, I've read a lot of negative comments on zamak parts. I agree they may not be ideal, like stainless, but hell, if this is how my razor held up after a decade and a half of use, abuse, neglect, I'll take it. I can only imagine how well it would've held up if I had taken proper care of it. I'm really impressed with this razor. So much so I have one in polished chrome on the way.

 

[BigJ]

As my Dad taught me, ‘Take care of your tools and they will take care of you!’

 

[Dimitri]

Looks like interesting DYI project.

Indeed. I found a replacement cap and blade bridge. I was looking for a replacement bar as well, but can't find one. That said, the two parts I did manage to find set me back about 35 bucks. I suspect that a new bar would probably be close to that. For that price, you can pretty much a buy Futur new if you shop around. That said, this one has sentimental value for me now lol.

The one pic I forgot to include is the coil spring that sits in the "neck" between the bridge and bar, which provides the tension for maintaining the settings you choose. It's an extremely robust spring and looks new.

 

[Calyshaver]

Your Futur held up well for being zinc alloy, this suggests that Merkur's manufacturing and quality of materials are excellent. Some complain about the finishes not being good but like you say it is a tool. While taking up wet shaving I got swept into the anti-zamak gang but now I don't care what material my razor is and now use a Merkur 34 and 37.

And yes you can buy a new Futur instead of investing in replacement parts. Still, there is a certain satisfaction to restoring our used stuff to like-new working conditions while resisting consumerism tendencies to throw out and replace perfectly usable stuff with newer stuff. Enjoy.

 

[Dimitri]

Your Futur held up well for being zinc alloy, this suggests that Merkur's manufacturing and quality of materials are excellent. Some complain about the finishes not being good but like you say it is a tool. While taking up wet shaving I got swept into the anti-zamak gang but now I don't care what material my razor is and now use a Merkur 34 and 37.

And yes you can buy a new Futur instead of investing in replacement parts. Still, there is a certain satisfaction to restoring our used stuff to like-new working conditions while resisting consumerism tendencies to throw out and replace perfectly usable stuff with newer stuff. Enjoy.

I defineitely don't disagree. I've managed to find a replacement cap and blade bridge. The safety bar/comb doesn't appear to be available. I may contact razor emporium and see about a resto if I can't find that part.

 

[Trollky]

Great pics and its awesome to see a well used Futur in the wild.

I never understood the hate for zamak razors. One should judge longevity by how long a thing actually lasts, not by how long you think it will last...

I have a Merkur Progress that must be near 20 years old and it is pristine (and for the first 10 years I did not look after it at all well.

 

[wetshaver233]

Great pics and its awesome to see a well used Futur in the wild.

I never understood the hate for zamak razors. One should judge longevity by how long a thing actually lasts, not by how long you think it will last...

I have a Merkur Progress that must be near 20 years old and it is pristine (and for the first 10 years I did not look after it at all well.

Everything shave related is a YMMV thing and having a material preference when it comes to razors is no different. While I'm not a huge fan of zamak razors, I wouldn't say that I hate them either. Seeing how stainless steel, brass and titanium razors have become more and more affordable and are obviously more durable and have better and tighter tolerance, I just can't see myself spending $100 or more on any razor that is made out of zamak (aluminum and plastic/bakelite).

Last year I've bought a Merkur Futur for $30 shipped and I think it was a great deal, even though I rarely use it, but if I wasn't my lucky to find one that cheap, I doubt that I would have bought one at a retail price at least.

 

[Trollky]

Everything shave related is a YMMV thing and having a material preference when it comes to razors is no different. While I'm not a huge fan of zamak razors, I wouldn't say that I hate them either. Seeing how stainless steel, brass and titanium razors have become more and more affordable and are obviously more durable and have better and tighter tolerance, I just can't see myself spending $100 or more on any razor that is made out of zamak (aluminum and plastic/bakelite).

Last year I've bought a Merkur Futur for $30 shipped and I think it was a great deal, even though I rarely use it, but if I wasn't my lucky to find one that cheap, I doubt that I would have bought one at a retail price at least.

I certainly understand that one may prefer a particular material (I'm rather partial to stainless steel myself) and that a zamak razor should not really be in the same price category as a stainless steel razor. However, I am less convinced that tolerances are tighter just because a razor is made of a more precious metal.

Of the razors I own, about 20 of them have flawless tolerances i.e. blade alignment is perfect, 100% of the time and adjustment is never needed. 1 is titanium, 4 are stainless steel, 1 is aluminium and the rest are all zamak. Ironically the 2 razors I have with the worst alignment/tolerances are made of brass and aluminium respectively.

 

[Iridian]

@Dimitri I cannot reall see how your razor held up.

You zoomed into the details, but even if zoom in on the skin of a super model, you will only see craters. I only have a vague idea that the handle looks quite good!

 

[Luc]

You might be lucky as I see some razors on eBay labeled as "broken", "Need fixing" and "for parts". I do not recall seeing a Futur specifically but I saw a few of these.

I own a Merkur 38C (the regular barberpole one) and I've been using it for a good 10-12 years now. It still looks new. I changed the cap at one stage and that's it.

 

[DesertIguana]

As my Dad taught me, ‘Take care of your tools and they will take care of you!’

Buddy was auto Repoman, he tell stories of NewCar with under 2,000 Miles that were trashed by uncaring owners. Saw the same thing picking up vehicles to satisfy court judgement, some people are pigs.

 

[Wombat ESQ]

opinion:-
water quality varies
soap varies
zamak manufacture varies
plating quality varies
15 years dipping it in water every day vs sitting 15 years with rotting soap on it??

any results may vary

 

[razorfool]

And the chrome plated brass handle.

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This is exactly why I completely disassemble, clean, and lubricate my Futur's after a few months of use. As well as cleaning the exterior after every shave and storing the razor head down for a few hours before placing the top cap and blade back on, in order to allow the water to drain out. I feel that the extra effort will maybe keep them serviceable for my grandson! Only time will tell if my extra efforts will pay off or not. I is, for me at least, a fun job to disassemble, clean and lubricate the razors. The adjustment operation just seems so much smoother, like a new razor. I hate to say it but your pictures may give me a few nite-mares, but I am amazed that it still is functional! Good luck with your refurbishing efforts.

 

[ivan_101]

And the chrome plated brass handle.

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The handle on the Futur is not brass, but ZAMAK. It is an all ZAMAK razor with the exclusion of that small insert with the thread that is made of brass.

I have seen Futurs in worse condition than yours.

 

[Dimitri]

The handle on the Futur is not brass, but ZAMAK. It is an all ZAMAK razor with the exclusion of that small insert with the thread that is made of brass.

I have seen Futurs in worse condition than yours.

Interesting. I thought I read somewhere that it's made of brass. There's also a spot on the handle where the chrome plating has slightly thinned and I can see copper color underneath. That said, I think copper is one of the "ingredients" in Zamak, so that could be what I'm seeing.

 

[razorfool]

And the chrome plated brass handle.

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After seeing all this corrosion stuff, I got to thinking about preventive action. I'm going to check out silicone spray at the hardware store, the stuff that repels water. After my next tear down and cleaning of my Futurs, I will spray the parts and wipe off excess, and reassemble. Anyone else out there in the forum have any ideas or have tried this themselves, it would be great to hear from you. Also, the two openings in the blade tray may be an additional opportunity for some extra spray from time to time, until the the next maintenance cycle has arrived.

 

[Dimitri]

After seeing all this corrosion stuff, I got to thinking about preventive action. I'm going to check out silicone spray at the hardware store, the stuff that repels water. After my next tear down and cleaning of my Futurs, I will spray the parts and wipe off excess, and reassemble. Anyone else out there in the forum have any ideas or have tried this themselves, it would be great to hear from you. Also, the two openings in the blade tray may be an additional opportunity for some extra spray from time to time, until the the next maintenance cycle has arrived.

If you're going to use a silicone spray, use WD-40 silicone spray from their specialist line. Not to be confused with regular WD-40. It's NSF approved so it's non-toxic. I personally have started using inox MX3. It's a food grade silicone, and also non toxic. They have a spray and a 60ml bottle with a needle applicator, which is what I use. M pro 7 gun oil, is also non-toxic.

The older I get, the more I try to seek out the non-toxic stuff.