I'm a total idiot sometimes. I dialed it up to 5 for my first shave. But even dialed down it requires good technique. If one is going to use it right out the gate, I would advise them to take their time with it.
Merkur Futur or the like for new razor?
- Thread starter Turbomunkey
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- #22
Lol very nice. Like i stated before I actually have been part of the wet shaving deal for around a decade, I was just never part of a shaving forum. I have the luxury of taking my time when I shave because, as stupid as it sounds, I actually shave at night. My sleep is always crap and I am currently teaching myself spanish which I try to do in the morning as well as after work, and I refuse to wake up even earlier to try and shave too.
Nothing wrong with that 99% of my shave are at night. I like to do it then in order to be able to take my time and enjoy my shave. Put on some music and it's me time.
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- #24
Plus if you cut yourself youre not at work with an obnoxious gash / scab. Well a gentleman pm'd me saying he has a used Futur for sale. If we can work something out maybe I buy it eh?
The Parker Variant is well regarded, but I haven't personally used it. I'm sure others will offer their insights.
I rarely chime in but have to concur. I love the Futur. So smooth and efficient. But even setting 1 is aggressive! My favorite adjustable (so far) is the Slim. It’s much more forgiving than the Futur, with better knurling and a reasonably sized handle and head.
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- #27
Are you referring to the Gillette vintage? I am browsing those right now, and quite honestly I think I will end up with either a slim or a super adjustable. Parker is apparently made in India, no thanks. The Futur still intrigues me, but I think the proof is in the pudding when it comes to the Gillettes and their quality.....
Yes. I have the Fatboy and the Slim Adjustable. Both are great, but I prefer the slim. It’s 56 years old and going strong! Settings 1-9 go from really mild to fairly aggressive, but not nearly as aggressive as the Futur.
Not sure if materials are entering into your equation but the vintage Gillette’s are nickel plated brass, which is why they last. Merkur uses chrome plated Zamak which is not nearly as strong from what I gather. I kind of think of it as solid wood furniture versus laminated particle board. If you’re not put off by the Zamak, you might consider the Merkur Progress. I’m told it shaves great with very wide range of adjustability. The design has been around since I think the 50s because it works very well.
The Rockwell 6s is very well regarded stainless steel option. But I too and put off by having to change plates, especially during my shave.
Good luck!
+1! The Slim is a great option IMO! I can use most all of the range of the Slim while I am pretty much limited to the lower range of the Future, but that’s me.
So many options, so little time!!
A Merkur Progress was the first DE razor that worked well for me. I recommend it. Are you getting enough suggestions???
I own a Futur and I love it. It's my goto razor which I use every day. I started out buying a Ming Shi and that convinced me that the Futur was for me. So why did I buy a Futur if I already had a Ming Shi? Because the Ming Shi and its ilk are knockoffs. The Chinese didn't design it. They stole it. I wanted to reward the original designer. If we continue to buy Chinese knockoffs, the companies which design new products won't have enough of a market to continue. OK, off my soapbox....I pretty much agree with most of the comments above. It is aggressive, I shave at a setting of 1. If I go to 2, I have to be pretty careful. Another thing I don't believe anyone has mentioned....it is slippery. That's not an issue for me while shaving, but....it is an issue if I go to adjust it with wet slippery fingers. I have had the hed slip and cut my finger pretty badly. Took 1/2 tube of super glue to stop the bleeding. We live and learn.......
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- #33
I think so, survey says order a vintage Gillette. Not happy about the build quality reviews I’ve heard here and other places about the futur
With regard to a true adjustable (not a multi-plate razor) I have used a Gillette Super Adjustable, Merkur Progress and Merkur Futur. I don't own any of them any more, but of the three I would recommend the Progress. I also briefly had a Futur clone that was, if you'll pardon the expression, a piece of crap.
The Futur is an interesting design and can yield superb results, but I found the difficulty in handling the large size and slippery handle too much of an effort. I am in the minority in never having liked the Gillette TTO adjustable razors back when they dominated the market. Nevertheless I used one for many years. That leaves the Progress, which is a fine razor. I would have kept it, but I prefer smaller heads and don't find adjustables serve any purpose for me. Once I found the best setting for me, I never changed it. I decided to find a razor with the level of efficiency and aggressiveness that best suited my needs. Currently that is the Muhle Rocca, but among the razors I've tried the Game Changer .84 SB or OC and the Fatip OC are also good choices if you just want to go with a more aggressive razor than your DE89.
The Futur is an interesting design and can yield superb results, but I found the difficulty in handling the large size and slippery handle too much of an effort. I am in the minority in never having liked the Gillette TTO adjustable razors back when they dominated the market. Nevertheless I used one for many years. That leaves the Progress, which is a fine razor. I would have kept it, but I prefer smaller heads and don't find adjustables serve any purpose for me. Once I found the best setting for me, I never changed it. I decided to find a razor with the level of efficiency and aggressiveness that best suited my needs. Currently that is the Muhle Rocca, but among the razors I've tried the Game Changer .84 SB or OC and the Fatip OC are also good choices if you just want to go with a more aggressive razor than your DE89.
Another vote for the Gillette Slim! Excellent razor.
I have a Futur, wife gave it to me for Christmas.
Gave it a couple tries, but it falls sort of flat for me.
I have some weirdly directioned growth back behind my jaw towards my ears, and bigger heads have an issue with getting in there.
It’s a fine razor, but I prefer smaller heads, not to mention the fact that I have to run it at 6 to get the same shaves I do from my Blackbird and Envoy razors.
I wouldn’t have bought one, but since she gave it some thought and actually went to our local shave store to ask, it’s in the rotation.
Gave it a couple tries, but it falls sort of flat for me.
I have some weirdly directioned growth back behind my jaw towards my ears, and bigger heads have an issue with getting in there.
It’s a fine razor, but I prefer smaller heads, not to mention the fact that I have to run it at 6 to get the same shaves I do from my Blackbird and Envoy razors.
I wouldn’t have bought one, but since she gave it some thought and actually went to our local shave store to ask, it’s in the rotation.
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- #37
Thank you everyone for the replies. I ended up ordering an old slim and a super adjustable after having seen some negative reviews on the material quality of the futur. The adjustable is coming from Spain because I thought it would be cool to “bring it back home” to the US. Hopefully there is no issues with that.
Thanks
Thanks
You made a good choice. 
Wouldn't recommend the Futur, if your current razor is Edwin Jagger. You might want to try its Chinese copies at first (Ming Shi 2000S, Qshave or Yintal). They are less aggressive. Don't get me wrong, the Futur is a very good razor. But it has huge gaps and is very heavy, it will punish every mistake / not good enough technique.
Let us know how things work out (PLEASE)!
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