R41 and a tale of two blades.

[HiPowerRon]

I'm still experimenting with my Muhle R41 using different blades. Last week I used a Voskhod blade with 3 days growth. !st pass was not smooth. It felt like the blade was pulling and I almost discarded it, but I kept going for two more passes. After the 1st pass, most of the beard was gone. After 3 passes and a touch up I had a great BBS shave. I was very happy as I've been every time I've used the R41.

Today I used a Feather for it's 3rd shave with 3 days growth.. Wow!, what a difference a blade makes. Absolutely no pulling, it cut the whiskers like I was starting with a no beard at aThree passes, BBS and the alum block told me no irritation at all. This R41 certainly loves sharper blades, I've been finding this out as I experiment. The Voskhod did the job alright, but it struggled with the first pass. The Feather just mowed them down. Feathers are certainly worth their cost in this razor.

I usually don't go three days, so I'm not sure how the Nacets and Personna would do with 3 days growth, but they are very smooth as a daily driver. Just wanted to share my experience, I've always had decent results with the Voskhods, but they don't compare to Feather blades in my experience. ymmv!

 

[BigJ]

YMMV for sure!!

Looks like you fit into the camp of ‘aggressive razor + sharp blade.’

For me the answer is ‘mild/moderate razor + sharp blade.’

Different strokes for different folks!!

 

[cyberdog]

As BigJ suggested, an aggressive razor usually calls for a sharp, but smooth blade for many of us. I tend to get horrible shaves out of the blades on the less sharp spectrum, even those typically very smooth, in my Timeless, New SC/LC, and Pearl.

I'd suggest trying a Gillette Nacet or Yellow, Pol-Silver, Rapira Platinum Lux, or KAI blade and see if things improve. I've had good luck with Feather on some as well, however, they can be a little scratchy or edgy for the 1st pass or so with a new blade.

Oh, and for some reason Astra SP blades seem to work well in most razors, even the aggressive ones.