I have been using my R41 for a while now, enjoying its efficiency. Having tried Feathers and Bic Chromes in other razors and having enjoyed their performance, something was amiss with the R41, even with the Nacet, Bic and Feather.
My issue was that I could feel the blade chatter, and this led to some inconsistency. Granted, there is no question about the blade’s sharpness but I hated the feeling that if the razor bites more than it can chew, it will cut me. It kept you on your toes, not because of aggression, that I love, but apparently random blade behavior. I have to add that other than growing a beard for a while, I have been using DE from 2007 give or take – I think I am entitled to say that technique is not an issue.
I had read a bit about fellow shavers preferring a firm clamp on the blade, to increase comfort and preciseness. Upon eyeballing the R41 head I saw that the blade gets clamped pretty far from the action. I decided to place a full width shim under the blade to see if I could improve on this.
I picked a brand new Derby Extra blade (that’s the only thing they are good for in my case – sorry!) and with an angle grinder knocked down the cutting edge, taking as little off the total width of the blade as possible.. Of course don’t try this at home, wear safety gear, hazmat suits, condoms, whatever strikes your fancy.
I placed the shim under the blade and aimed for the worse possible scenario. No prep, no shower, a brand new Bic Chrome and away I went.
I don’t want to sound cocky, but I think I came up with something that shaves like an R41 and is docile like my Merkur 23. We are talking about a combination of smoothness and efficiency that I have not felt before!
This goes to say that maybe razor geometry is an art.
My issue was that I could feel the blade chatter, and this led to some inconsistency. Granted, there is no question about the blade’s sharpness but I hated the feeling that if the razor bites more than it can chew, it will cut me. It kept you on your toes, not because of aggression, that I love, but apparently random blade behavior. I have to add that other than growing a beard for a while, I have been using DE from 2007 give or take – I think I am entitled to say that technique is not an issue.
I had read a bit about fellow shavers preferring a firm clamp on the blade, to increase comfort and preciseness. Upon eyeballing the R41 head I saw that the blade gets clamped pretty far from the action. I decided to place a full width shim under the blade to see if I could improve on this.
I picked a brand new Derby Extra blade (that’s the only thing they are good for in my case – sorry!) and with an angle grinder knocked down the cutting edge, taking as little off the total width of the blade as possible.. Of course don’t try this at home, wear safety gear, hazmat suits, condoms, whatever strikes your fancy.
I placed the shim under the blade and aimed for the worse possible scenario. No prep, no shower, a brand new Bic Chrome and away I went.
I don’t want to sound cocky, but I think I came up with something that shaves like an R41 and is docile like my Merkur 23. We are talking about a combination of smoothness and efficiency that I have not felt before!
This goes to say that maybe razor geometry is an art.