Merkur DE Razor Question?

[mactrack]

Hi all,

I recently bought a Merkur 4 piece shaving set with a m3 handle and a Merkur HD DE razor, as recommended, to learn with. Things are coming along slowly but surely but my mind has already turned to what new hardware to acquire.

I really like the look of the Merkur Futur 700, and it would compliment my set perfectly, but the reviews do highlight some pretty bad design flaws. Also Merkur seem to be the only manufacturer, of any note, who are making new DE razors. As I have only been interested in DE razors for about a month now my question is do Merkur periodically update their offerings, and hopefully design out previous flaws, i.e. are we likely to ever see a Futur 800 or a Vision 3000 any time soon or are the designs set in stone for decades to come? If the latter is true what would be your Vision of the Futur? (pun very much intended). I would like to see a simple Futur styled handle, with a knurled grip, but the fixed head and blade replacement system of my HD.

 

[htownmmm]

Although this may be somewhat off thread, I too have wondered about Merkur being the only current DE manufacturer.

In fact, I have wondered why another company has not thought about producing a new and improved version of the gillette adjustables that we have come to know and loved.

Nationwide has come out with a new injector, so.....

Or does King Gillette still hold the patents- even though they have no intent of making any more DE's?

Inquiring minds want to know!

Marty

 

[1 st class mail]

Muhle-Pinsel makes double edge razors and so does Edwin Jagger, some say the EJ is just a merkur head on another handle, but it feels muh different. I just ordered a wisshi razor that is a chinese replica of an old Gillete, I'll post my impressions of it.

 

[cooncatbob]

Although this may be somewhat off thread, I too have wondered about Merkur being the only current DE manufacturer.

In fact, I have wondered why another company has not thought about producing a new and improved version of the gillette adjustables that we have come to know and loved.

Nationwide has come out with a new injector, so.....

Or does King Gillette still hold the patents- even though they have no intent of making any more DE's?

Inquiring minds want to know!

Marty

I also have been hoping that someone will reproduce High quality Gillettes.
I'm sure Gillette had the tooling destroyed.
Look at all the parts in a TTO razor, lots more then in a Merkur HD or a Shick Injector. It's going to take alot of expensive custom made tooling.
I for one would be willing to pay a premium price for a premiun product. Hopefully some wetshaver with more money then brains and the ability to design CAD machinery will answer our dreams.

 

[JMT]

Parker makes DE razors. I'm not sure if they are part of some larger company but they make TTO Razors. The only place I have found them is on Ebay. The 90r was actually my first DE. It was a good shaver and the handle is 4 inches instead of 3 so it made the transition to the DE easier.

 

[jduffy]

It is interesting how it appears to be a niche market in search of a company to lead it into the 21st century. Merkurs are nice but quite aggressive compared to the older Gillettes.

Who at Badger and Blade has the entrepreneurial spirit burning within to create the Badger and Blade DE safety razor line?

 

[mactrack]

Muhle-Pinsel makes double edge razors and so does Edwin Jagger, some say the EJ is just a merkur head on another handle, but it feels muh different. I just ordered a wisshi razor that is a chinese replica of an old Gillete, I'll post my impressions of it.

Thanks for that. I had a look on the M&P website and they seem to be selling EJ razors as well so I assume there is a link between the two. However I did think that they were very expensive for a simple fixed head design albeit they do look well crafted.

 

[mactrack]

Parker makes DE razors. I'm not sure if they are part of some larger company but they make TTO Razors. The only place I have found them is on Ebay. The 90r was actually my first DE. It was a good shaver and the handle is 4 inches instead of 3 so it made the transition to the DE easier.

Thanks for the heads up! Now these do look interesting and good value. I too could only find them on eBay and mainly from one particular seller and there also seems quite a few models to choose from. The longer handle versions could be ideal as this is my main gripe about my HD but I also want the heavyweight feel.

I would be very interested if any member has any Parker they could post a review of.

 

[Stauff]

I think it's very unlikely that Merkur wil alter their current models (except perhaps for the Vision). Most of Merkurs DE's have been around for decades, for example our beloved HD has been in production without modifications since the 1930's. Even the space age Futur was designed back in the eighties. I think Merkur has a time-tested DE for everyone (vintage Gillette diehards excluded).

 

[JMT]

Thanks for the heads up! Now these do look interesting and good value. I too could only find them on eBay and mainly from one particular seller and there also seems quite a few models to choose from. The longer handle versions could be ideal as this is my main gripe about my HD but I also want the heavyweight feel.

I would be very interested if any member has any Parker they could post a review of.

I do not have a review but I can tell you that the razor is not heavy. It definitely feels lighter than a Merkur HD desoite the longer handle.