I began shaving with a DE Gillette using Gillette Blue Blades back the in old days (I'm 73). Always found the shave a bit rough so the styptic pencil was always within easy reach. Then, my Uncle introduced me to Wilkinson Super Sword Edge blades, made in England, and only available in hardware stores at that time. Shaving had just become a lot easier and more comfortable. My next step forward came when I received an ad for the Stahly razor. It was a DE razor with a large handle which contained a wind-up spring. The pitch was....you wind the handle and get about three minutes of vibration caused by a counterweight inside the handle. The head had 2 leaf springs in the head at each side and the idea was that the blade moved ever so slightly side to side so that it sliced through the beard. After all, you slide a knife through bread to slice it. You don't push it down through the loaf. Same principle here and I bought into it. The Stahly worked so well for me that it and the Wilkinson blades became my daily ritual. Alas, at some point, the spring gave up the ghost. About the same time, Gillette started sending every male in the USA a free cartridge razor. Very smart fellas at Gillette. They were in the blade business so they made a slight investment in handles and hooked me on the blades. Every time they came out with a new model, they sent me one! The decline in performance was so gradual, that it wash't noticeable. The Stahly was put in a drawer (I never throw anything away!)
Now, let's come to the present. Just for giggles, I Googled Stahly and found the information on repairing a Stahly razor, but more important, I found this Forum. Someone stated that the Stahly was no slouch as a razor even without the vibration. Hey, I knew I still had mine....but where? I finally found it and (I've posted this before here), decided to give it a try. The rest is history. I was amazed! What a great shave even without the vibration (I still had those Wilkinson blades packed away with the razor). Thanks to a member of this Forum, I found out where to obtain a NOS Stahly razor. I jumped at the opportunity and have been using it (with the vibration) for a few months now. Curiosity got to me, though. The Merkur Progress is a highly regarded state of the art razor made in Germany, where precision and quality go hand-in-hand and it's adjustable. Time to order a Merkur Progress.
I've been using the Merkur for the last two weeks. Here's what I've found (and this is just me. YMMV!) I did the comparison using Feather blades, Kiss My Face shaving cream, Prorasis pre-shave, FS badger silver tip brush, lathering in a Georgetown Pottery 20 oz scuttle. The Feather blade in each razor had already been used 1 time. This was the second time for each blade.
The Merkur scrapes my skin, even at the mildest setting. Over a period off time, there is some irritation (I shave in three passes...1 WTG, 1 XTG, and the last one ATG.) and you can feel the blade scraping the beard. I tried various settings of the razor and the mildest setting was the best for me, but it was still irritating. This morning, I went back to the Stahly. That ad in the 50's & 60's wasn't just hype. That sucker really works. No scraping whatsoever and an extremely comfortable shave even over the previously irritated areas of my neck. The shave was not quite as close as with the Merkur, but it's damned close and I've become less aggressive in the way I shave because of the irritation. I think after a few days of using the Stahly again, the resulting shave will be as close. I will also try some of the current Wilkinson offerings in a few weeks. For now though, my feeling is that I will be going back to using the Stahly as my everyday razor. It's very comfortable even without the vibration, but with the vibration, it gives a super comfortable shave. I'm interested top find out what other folks who may use a Stahly think.
Now, let's come to the present. Just for giggles, I Googled Stahly and found the information on repairing a Stahly razor, but more important, I found this Forum. Someone stated that the Stahly was no slouch as a razor even without the vibration. Hey, I knew I still had mine....but where? I finally found it and (I've posted this before here), decided to give it a try. The rest is history. I was amazed! What a great shave even without the vibration (I still had those Wilkinson blades packed away with the razor). Thanks to a member of this Forum, I found out where to obtain a NOS Stahly razor. I jumped at the opportunity and have been using it (with the vibration) for a few months now. Curiosity got to me, though. The Merkur Progress is a highly regarded state of the art razor made in Germany, where precision and quality go hand-in-hand and it's adjustable. Time to order a Merkur Progress.
I've been using the Merkur for the last two weeks. Here's what I've found (and this is just me. YMMV!) I did the comparison using Feather blades, Kiss My Face shaving cream, Prorasis pre-shave, FS badger silver tip brush, lathering in a Georgetown Pottery 20 oz scuttle. The Feather blade in each razor had already been used 1 time. This was the second time for each blade.
The Merkur scrapes my skin, even at the mildest setting. Over a period off time, there is some irritation (I shave in three passes...1 WTG, 1 XTG, and the last one ATG.) and you can feel the blade scraping the beard. I tried various settings of the razor and the mildest setting was the best for me, but it was still irritating. This morning, I went back to the Stahly. That ad in the 50's & 60's wasn't just hype. That sucker really works. No scraping whatsoever and an extremely comfortable shave even over the previously irritated areas of my neck. The shave was not quite as close as with the Merkur, but it's damned close and I've become less aggressive in the way I shave because of the irritation. I think after a few days of using the Stahly again, the resulting shave will be as close. I will also try some of the current Wilkinson offerings in a few weeks. For now though, my feeling is that I will be going back to using the Stahly as my everyday razor. It's very comfortable even without the vibration, but with the vibration, it gives a super comfortable shave. I'm interested top find out what other folks who may use a Stahly think.
