Round Two Muhle R41

[tenreasy]

ok - I bought the R41 head awhile back. Already had the handle from my R89. Anyway never could gel with the razor. Once in awhile got a very good shave but most other times shaves not so good - lots of tugging. So I sold the head in frustration. Well - still wondered what went wrong - still nagging feeling that I was missing something. Anyway just purchased a Rose Gold R41 and it is really a stunner. Been shaving with it and now getting good shaves. The R41 gives me the closest shave of any razor that I have tried. It really shines on getting a very close shave on the head. One of the keys is to have a really good prep using a quality soap/cream.

 

[chuckd]

ok - I bought the R41 head awhile back. Already had the handle from my R89. Anyway never could gel with the razor. Once in awhile got a very good shave but most other times shaves not so good - lots of tugging. So I sold the head in frustration. Well - still wondered what went wrong - still nagging feeling that I was missing something. Anyway just purchased a Rose Gold R41 and it is really a stunner. Been shaving with it and now getting good shaves. The R41 gives me the closest shave of any razor that I have tried. It really shines on getting a very close shave on the head. One of the keys is to have a really good prep using a quality soap/cream.
View attachment 1133092

I have the R41 Grande and use it occasionally. I seem to get the best results with a sharp blade (Astra SP, Personna Lab Blue, or better) and a steep angle (handle closer to parallel with the skin). I also find that blade life is shorter with the R41 than with other DEs, and trying to push more shaves out of a blade leads to poor results and razor burn.

 

[nemo]

For me, same as @chuckd sharp blade, steep. Glad you figured it out as well!

One of the keys is to have a really good prep using a quality soap/cream.

Not just the R41 but this applies to all razors! Newbies take notice.

 

[BigJ]

Congratulations on figuring out the R41!!

I could never get on with that one.

 

[thombrogan]

The R41 will let you know if your prep is off.

Great pics and the rose gold handle looks awesome, @tenreasy

 

[Iridian]

I have a similar R89 to R41 history, the R89 required too many passes to achieve a perfect shave, and then I still found some not so BBS spots after I was done. The R41 simply does it better. Yes, you can actually cut yourself if you don't pay attention, but that is the price to pay for having the best shave possible. I don't have a thick beard, but like the close shave. For closed comb razors, I find many razors beat the Mühle R89 / Edwin Jagger DE89 head.

If people have trouble with the R41 but find the R89 lacking, the Merkur 15 is well worth trying as well. Not as aggressive as the Mühle R41, but much better results than closed comb razors have in general.

Another possible alternative: The Mühle Rocca sits between R89 and R41. Would still rather go with the R41.