MUHLE ROCCA R96 REVIEW
Presentation/Packing/Contents/Finish
The packaging is typical Muhle, lovely robust, minimalist designed cardboard casing and contents layout that makes it’s a please to open and reveal so ideal for gifts. Mine came with some booklets at the bottoms that I’ve not looked at, 1 x Muhle Rocca Razor and 1 x Muhle DE razor blade. The company from whom I purchased (Connaught Shaving) , also added a pack of unnamed 10 DE razor blades made in Israel. So you have everything a razor needs to get your shave on out of the box.
The quality of the finish is a something new to me as I have only also bought an ATT R1 last week and for the last 5 years been using a Muhle R89, Muhle R41 and a Feather Artist SS. So this is an all stainless steel unit and it looks very elegant and the slim head profile makes it stand out in a collection. As you would expect from Muhle, the finish is free from any defects and had been built to a tighter tolerance comparable to the Above The Tie R1. The blade seats securely and stays in place as the base plate and handle are attached and screwed in place.
I hoped that the handle grip design would have been a bit deeper to offer a more assertively grip but, in all honestly it’s comfortable to handle and doesn’t feel like it is going to slip and neither does it slip during actual use.
For the cost at approximately £73.50, compared to what is on the market, this is acceptable providing the consumer with a quality product at an affordable price.
WEIGHT/BALANCE
Without checking, the weight of this unit is approximately 90G. The handle has an even weight to it and you notice that approximately ¾ of the weight is in head and whilst I have tried some heavier units, the Rocca is noticeably top heavy when just handling it for blade changes, cleaning etc.
During use, the top heavy nature comes into its own. It’s a bit like the motorcycle cliché, you don’t notice the weight of it once you’re moving. The head and blade really do the work and its surprisingly intuitive to angle and navigate around the contours without thinking about it which came as a surprise as I thought I would have be more conscious of this attribute during use.
SHAVE PERFORMANCE
For a daily/every other day shave I do not focus on BBS but the closer I can get to it, the better. I can get stunning results on thick, fast growth hair with the likes of the R41 in 2 passes. The R89 needs 3 passes and then some and doesn’t get as close. Above The Tie R1 needs 3 ideally or a bit of more going over after the second pass but and beats the R89 but is a long way off the R41.
The Rocca, delivered stunning results in 2 passes which has genuinely left me staggered and far exceeded the performance I thought it could and that of the Above The Tie R1. Considering I shaved 2 nights ago with the R41 coupled with a Feather blade, visually I see no difference tonight using the Rocca. I did notice I was more consistent with the Rocca meaning the tidy up on the chin area took half as long as it does with the R41.
The Rocca performs smoothly and if you go over an area a few times once the initial pass removes the shave cream, the Rocca remains absolutely comfortable rather than starting to drag. The head does not loose performance due to not having open slots so you can shave for some time before rinsing. When you rinse, all the shave cream and removed hair fully clear out of the channel in the head. The efficiency is very, very high, I’d rate it 1 below the R41 but it manages to be a smooth operator whilst doing it!
The audible feedback is very strong, much louder than the ATT R1 and dare I say, a bit louder than the R41 but, with a more refined tone. The slim head profile easily gets around and under the nose for those of us who have to really ensure we get into the nooks and crannies this is on par with the ATT R1.
I really wish I could find something negative to say but, being hard to please, the Rocca has excelled and exceeded my expectations in all the relevant areas. The Rocca delivered a staggeringly efficient shave in a very sophisticated manner which shows that Muhle has really put in the effort in the R&D into creating the Rocca.
I highly recommend this for anyone looking for a highly efficient razor that is ultra smooth.
Presentation/Packing/Contents/Finish
The packaging is typical Muhle, lovely robust, minimalist designed cardboard casing and contents layout that makes it’s a please to open and reveal so ideal for gifts. Mine came with some booklets at the bottoms that I’ve not looked at, 1 x Muhle Rocca Razor and 1 x Muhle DE razor blade. The company from whom I purchased (Connaught Shaving) , also added a pack of unnamed 10 DE razor blades made in Israel. So you have everything a razor needs to get your shave on out of the box.
The quality of the finish is a something new to me as I have only also bought an ATT R1 last week and for the last 5 years been using a Muhle R89, Muhle R41 and a Feather Artist SS. So this is an all stainless steel unit and it looks very elegant and the slim head profile makes it stand out in a collection. As you would expect from Muhle, the finish is free from any defects and had been built to a tighter tolerance comparable to the Above The Tie R1. The blade seats securely and stays in place as the base plate and handle are attached and screwed in place.
I hoped that the handle grip design would have been a bit deeper to offer a more assertively grip but, in all honestly it’s comfortable to handle and doesn’t feel like it is going to slip and neither does it slip during actual use.
For the cost at approximately £73.50, compared to what is on the market, this is acceptable providing the consumer with a quality product at an affordable price.
WEIGHT/BALANCE
Without checking, the weight of this unit is approximately 90G. The handle has an even weight to it and you notice that approximately ¾ of the weight is in head and whilst I have tried some heavier units, the Rocca is noticeably top heavy when just handling it for blade changes, cleaning etc.
During use, the top heavy nature comes into its own. It’s a bit like the motorcycle cliché, you don’t notice the weight of it once you’re moving. The head and blade really do the work and its surprisingly intuitive to angle and navigate around the contours without thinking about it which came as a surprise as I thought I would have be more conscious of this attribute during use.
SHAVE PERFORMANCE
For a daily/every other day shave I do not focus on BBS but the closer I can get to it, the better. I can get stunning results on thick, fast growth hair with the likes of the R41 in 2 passes. The R89 needs 3 passes and then some and doesn’t get as close. Above The Tie R1 needs 3 ideally or a bit of more going over after the second pass but and beats the R89 but is a long way off the R41.
The Rocca, delivered stunning results in 2 passes which has genuinely left me staggered and far exceeded the performance I thought it could and that of the Above The Tie R1. Considering I shaved 2 nights ago with the R41 coupled with a Feather blade, visually I see no difference tonight using the Rocca. I did notice I was more consistent with the Rocca meaning the tidy up on the chin area took half as long as it does with the R41.
The Rocca performs smoothly and if you go over an area a few times once the initial pass removes the shave cream, the Rocca remains absolutely comfortable rather than starting to drag. The head does not loose performance due to not having open slots so you can shave for some time before rinsing. When you rinse, all the shave cream and removed hair fully clear out of the channel in the head. The efficiency is very, very high, I’d rate it 1 below the R41 but it manages to be a smooth operator whilst doing it!
The audible feedback is very strong, much louder than the ATT R1 and dare I say, a bit louder than the R41 but, with a more refined tone. The slim head profile easily gets around and under the nose for those of us who have to really ensure we get into the nooks and crannies this is on par with the ATT R1.
I really wish I could find something negative to say but, being hard to please, the Rocca has excelled and exceeded my expectations in all the relevant areas. The Rocca delivered a staggeringly efficient shave in a very sophisticated manner which shows that Muhle has really put in the effort in the R&D into creating the Rocca.
I highly recommend this for anyone looking for a highly efficient razor that is ultra smooth.