Merkur HD - not too thrilled with it

[eddelgado]

I have only been shaving with a safety razor for about two months. I started off with a Fat Boy and really liked it. I was using it at setting 5.

My oldest son, a teenager, asked me for a Fat Boy for Xmas. Since I was not able to get my hands on one quickly enough I gave him mine. The one that I found as a replacement from Ebay has yet to arrive.

In the meantime I started using a new Merkur HD straight bar that my wife had bought me. To tell you the truth I'm not too happy with it. It seems draggy as I use it. It does not glide across my face as easily as the Fat Boy did. I tried it with Merkur blades as well as the "Israeli Personnas". Same thing.

I had just recently purchased a few Feather portables from Pauldog, great price and even better service, to give as Xmas gifts to family overseas and had kept one for myself. Since I was not enjoying the shave with the Merkur I tried the Feather razor. I have to say that even though it does not look like much it works really well. Nice and smooth glides along the face with no drag. I guess I will keep using it and put the Merkur away until my new Fat Boy gets in.

Anyone else had the same type of experience? Maybe the blade is very covered and you must be very exact with the angle used to hold it? Dont know.

Ed

 

[Chairman Nemo]

I would review Mantic's videos here http://youtube.com/mantic59 on correct blade angles.

and then maybe try a different blade. I think Merkurs and Israelis are a bit harsh (when compared to a Fatboy). Perhaps try a feather blade/Sweedish Gillette, way shaper than a Merkur or a Israeli. I personally like the Debry's. They allow me to get really smooth shaves without no irritation.

Hope it helps!

 

[bonusmarple]

There were three problems that would cause my HD as well as my fatboys to drag. The first was using a blade that was not as sharp as either the Swedish Gillettes or Feathers. The second was not prepping my beard sufficiently, basically I needed to use two hot towel applications instead of one. The last was not building an appropriate lather. I needed to add more water and build up a richer foam which included more lathering on the face in addition to the bowl so that the cream was really massaged in.

Once I changed these things, the fatboys and the HD both starting shaving with minimal or no drag.

 

[guitarslinger]

when I first got my LH classic, I think it was so glossy, that it would stick to my face.

after a couple weeks, it satin'ed up enough that I never noticed it again.

I'm just saying, your technique and blade might be great, you might need to actually "break-in" your new Merkur.

 

[Spikestrip]

I have the opposite problem.

I started with the Merkur HD and it shaved great. Good shaves with a variety of blades, Merkur, Israeli IP, Swede and now my normal blades are Derby.

Since, I have purchased various Gillettes and I really want to love my Fatboys, but they just doesn't shave as nice as the HD.

It feels like there is much more drag and I have razor burn I don't get with the HD. I have experimented with setting between 3 and 7, with 4 or 5 being best and also changing the angle. Derby blade.

 

[eddelgado]

I'm using the HD in the same way that I did the Fat Boy. I shave in the shower after I'm done showering. I am using either a shaving soap or some Proraso.

The HD Merkur just seems to rub more on my face than the Feather or Fat Boy Razor. It might be the gap around the blade.

The issue does not seem to really be blade related since the difference I am noticing has more to do with the feel of the razor as it glides over my face.

Ed.

 

[Gafer]

As one that has shaved with both a Fatboy and an HD let me offer that the blade angle is completely different with these two razors. That is to say, the position of the handle won't be the same when you shave with an Fatboy vs an HD. The HD is my primary razor and when I switch to the Fatboy it takes several shaves to "relearn" the angle of the razor to get the shave I want.

 

[norman931]

Ed, I had a similar initial experience with the Merkur HD. What the others are saying is true: it is a very different beast than the Gillettes. I had one and sold it, because I couldn't get a good shave without irritation. I bought another one a couple months back, and it has actually become my favorite DE. For some of us, though, it just takes some getting used to.

Norm

 

[cr8n]

IMHO, in general Merkur razors seem to be a little more agressive than Gillettes.

FWIW, I started with a Merkur Classic, not an HD. Bought the HD later, figuring I really ought to try the "standard," which is how most shavers describe the HD.

I find the HD drags a little, too. I think that eventually I'll settle on the Classic, and ditch the HD. We'll see. (I'll keep a light Gillette for the days when my face needs some recovery.)

One aspect of the conventional wisdom around here seems a little strange to me. Some guys like heavy razors with light pressure. Does that really make sense? To them, it does seem to. I'm not so sure.

Ah, well. YMMV, etc.

Paul

 

[DirtyDave]

I started back into DE shaving with an HD. First time out I had plenty of nicks and some razor burn. It was the user, not the razor. My technique was all off. After a two weeks I was getting fine shaves. I just had to keep the proper technique.

The second DE razor I bought was a Fatboy. After first figuring out what the best setting was for me, 3, and playing a bit with the angle, I was getting fine shaves from it as well.

The HD prepared me well for just about every other shaver I have tried. Except for Schick Injectors. Man those things just befuddle me.

Hang in there. I bet in a while it will become a favorite. I still label it as my desert isle razor.

 

[rtaylor61]

I have the opposite problem.

I started with the Merkur HD and it shaved great. Good shaves with a variety of blades, Merkur, Israeli IP, Swede and now my normal blades are Derby.

Since, I have purchased various Gillettes and I really want to love my Fatboys, but they just doesn't shave as nice as the HD.

It feels like there is much more drag and I have razor burn I don't get with the HD. I have experimented with setting between 3 and 7, with 4 or 5 being best and also changing the angle. Derby blade.

I agree with Spike. I have been a wetshaver since day one, but my first DE was the Merkur HD. I have a basket full of Gillette razors, including several fatboys, and I still get my best DE shaves with the HD and now the 38C. I even have a Progress that does not shave as well. I believe it is what you get used to using. Given time and practice with technique, I believe you will find the HD to be a great shaver. That is something I have yet to afford to my Gillette razors.

Randy

 

[Prof]

As one that has shaved with both a Fatboy and an HD let me offer that the blade angle is completely different with these two razors. That is to say, the position of the handle won't be the same when you shave with an Fatboy vs an HD. The HD is my primary razor and when I switch to the Fatboy it takes several shaves to "relearn" the angle of the razor to get the shave I want.

I think this is probably the problem. The difference in blade angle between my HD and gilette is huge. Holding the gilette at the angle I use my HD will rip up my face. For me, the HD is held at a much larger angle to the skin than the gilette for a good shave.

 

[Jarmo P]

My intitial reaction was when I first got my 34C that this is an aggressive razor. Why I wasted almost 40 euro with shipping costs to get this beast?

I have since learned to use and like it. Listen to the cutting sound. The original poster was used with Fatboy so he is not a newbie I think to DE's like I was. Perhaps Feather blade was too much for him with HD. I still am not totally comfortable with that blade to not get a bit too much skin shaving and a little irritation compared to the Gilletter Platinum blade.

Mozarts blade angle thread was an appreciated revelation to me how to use Merkur HD.

 

[Viiru]

I think this is probably the problem. The difference in blade angle between my HD and gilette is huge. Holding the gilette at the angle I use my HD will rip up my face. For me, the HD is held at a much larger angle to the skin than the gilette for a good shave.

Huh. I need to work on the angle then. I'm getting consistently great results with my HD and a Derby blade but my Slim rips my face apart. Does larger angle here mean that the handle is higher or lower when shaving north to south?

 

[duckintheface]

Huh. I need to work on the angle then. I'm getting consistently great results with my HD and a Derby blade but my Slim rips my face apart. Does larger angle here mean that the handle is higher or lower when shaving north to south?

Lower. If you look at Mozart's thread.... http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24685&highlight=blade+angle"] you can see that (for a N to S stroke) as the handle is moved lower, the blade approaches the perpendicular relative to the skin. As it does so, you get more of a scrape and less of a cut..... thus the irritation.

 

[Wade253]

I have read that the HD is medium aggressive. The diagram shows perfect allignment between head, blade, and safety bar. Should the actual depiction show enough of a gap so that they are NOT perfectly aligned? Do most people using a HD scrape by using the wrong angle or too much pressure?

 

[shavindave]

I agree with guitarslinger and edegaldo. The issue for me is not related to blade angle. The brand new Merkur with its highgloss chrome plating sticks to my face more than a weathered Gillette (even after a BBS shave, with NO blade in the razor). After shaving with the Merkur for a couple of weeks, the chrome gets burnished enough to lose this friction, or more like "suction" against the skin, and all will be well.

 

[DonLafontaine]

I just received a Merkur HD the other day in the mail and I was just describing the same feeling to my girlfriend in the car this morning. I had previously used a Merkur Futur and noticed that the HD was dragging (not the blade, but the razor head, itself). I didn't cut myself at all (unlike the Futur) but I was concerned about the dragging because it made for awkward shaving. I will continue to use it and see if it gets any smoother. I hope it's just a question of breaking it in.

 

[MooingLizard]

I agree with guitarslinger and edegaldo. The issue for me is not related to blade angle. The brand new Merkur with its highgloss chrome plating sticks to my face more than a weathered Gillette (even after a BBS shave, with NO blade in the razor). After shaving with the Merkur for a couple of weeks, the chrome gets burnished enough to lose this friction, or more like "suction" against the skin, and all will be well.

After about a dozen DE shaves, all with the HD, I think you gents may have a point here. I remember some of the same feelings in my first shave, and they may have been caused by more than just poor blade angle.

Hey, it gives us an excuse to bit a little lazier about cleaning our HDs!

 

[FootAJ]

I'm new to wetshaving and have been using my Merkur HD for about 3 weeks now.

I've noticed the dragging/skipping of the head as well. When the saw the head, I mean the actual head of the razor, the part that is against my skin, will skip. I haven't gotten any cuts from it, but I'm worried I might.

I have, however, been getting very close shaves with it, so I blame my lather. I can't really pinpoint the part of the lather that's causing it though...