Thoughts on the Tatara Muramasa Adjustable. Is it worth it?

[BelfastBlade]

Hello folks,

I'd never really bothered much with adjustables but I recently purchased a Rex Ambassador and I was impressed with it so it since got me thinking about the Muramasa. Even back a long time ago I was interested in a Tatara razor.. now that I like adjustables I think the Muramasa may be the way to go

Thing is, it's expensive.. it works out almost 350 euros (before 20-23% import costs from Portugal, if I get stung with them) and if you want a stand it'll be even more. You can pick it up from some UK stores too.. but either way it's at very least £320-ish at regular price.

I was reading some reviews on it and I saw one from 4 years ago where the reviewer was saying it was quite expensive.. he said it cost him $169.69. So it must have jumped up in price considerably since then.

I really like the look of the Tatara razors.. I like everything about them. I'd viewed a lot of review videos and I think the Muramasa has a wonderful design. It's a razor I think I'd like to have in my collection.

Any owners here? What are your own thoughts on the Muramasa? Is it worth the high price?

I wonder if maybe coming up to Christmas they might be holding some kind of sale and maybe I'd get one at a reduction.. make it my Christmas present to myself.

Thanks,

 

[lasta]

Usually when I ask such questions, it means I'm already convinced.

Sorry if that's not helpful haha.

 

[romo10]

It's an amazing razor for me and I prefer it over the Ambassador. It's more mild than the Ambassador but I find it very efficient at settings 4 & 5. I usually use it on setting 5 for the first pass and then 4 for the rest of the shave. It's a very smooth razor and I love the build quality of it. The balance is just perfect for me, as is the shave it provides

 

[muzichead]

Hello folks,

I'd never really bothered much with adjustables but I recently purchased a Rex Ambassador and I was impressed with it so it since got me thinking about the Muramasa. Even back a long time ago I was interested in a Tatara razor.. now that I like adjustables I think the Muramasa may be the way to go

Thing is, it's expensive.. it works out almost 350 euros (before 20-23% import costs from Portugal, if I get stung with them) and if you want a stand it'll be even more. You can pick it up from some UK stores too.. but either way it's at very least £320-ish at regular price.

I was reading some reviews on it and I saw one from 4 years ago where the reviewer was saying it was quite expensive.. he said it cost him $169.69. So it must have jumped up in price considerably since then.

I really like the look of the Tatara razors.. I like everything about them. I'd viewed a lot of review videos and I think the Muramasa has a wonderful design. It's a razor I think I'd like to have in my collection.

Any owners here? What are your own thoughts on the Muramasa? Is it worth the high price?

I wonder if maybe coming up to Christmas they might be holding some kind of sale and maybe I'd get one at a reduction.. make it my Christmas present to myself.

Thanks,

I don't own nor have ever owned any Tatara products at all but have followed the reviews since they were released and can say the Muramasa was never sold for less than the price they have it listed now at 350 Euros. If someone bought it at $169 it was probably from someone in the BST that was having a hard time selling it or they were in the right place at at the right time... As to the performance, lets just say aggressive is not a word that's ever been used to describe the Muramasa and is considered the biggest downfall of the razor, along with the small box with the number in it!! If you enjoy your Rex I would doubt you would like the Muramasa and should probably look into the Taiga, Sailor, Osprey adjustable razors that are more on the same level as the Rex...

 

[lingchi]

I believe all tatara razors are known to be quite mild..

 

[Mr. Shavington]

I believe all tatara razors are known to be quite mild..

The Muramasa Nodachi is an aggressive razor in my opinion. I don't have the regular Muramasa but that is considered mild and the negative blade exposure supports that.

Regarding the Masamune adjustable, there has always been a lot of comment that it is too mild, or that settings 1 and 2 are useless, but that isn't my experience. I can shave perfectly well using all five settings, and the higher settings do not feel mild to me. My guess is that some reviewers don't have the angle right and/or they are using too much pressure if setting 1 doesn't shave well for them.

My view of the Muramasa is that it is a beautiful thing and has very clever, elegant engineering and top-notch manufacturing quality. Most adjustable razors are heavy and have many moving parts - separate centre plates, springs, etc. The Muramasa has few moving parts, no springs, and it also adjusts the safety bar position rather than just raising the top cap to increase blade gap. Some complain that the window showing the adjustment level is too small, but it's a non-issue for me as you can clearly tell the razor setting from the position of the window - setting 1 has the window left of centre, 3 is centred, and 5 is right of centre. You don't need to look inside the window to read the number (which I agree is small text).

Overall I think the Muramasa is a very accomplished design. I personally feel the shaves I get from my Rocnel Sailor, HLS Taiga, and Merkur Progress are smoother, but clearly others find the Muramasa suits their skin and shaving style very well. I think all Tatara razors are configured to be smoothest when using a quite shallow angle.

And I confirm Muzichead's comment that the Muramasa was never sold for anything like $169. It was always this price since launch and the $169 must have been for a used razor, and probably a very low price for that even.

 

[ewk]

I have experienced both razors. I had a Rex Ambassador, but did not keep it. It is an excellent well-built razor. For a razor at that price point, I did not reach for it enough to justify keeping it.

I had the very good fortune to borrow a Tatara. I, too, was intrigued by the beautiful and unique design. After experiencing one, I was on the hunt for a used one. Yes, it has a much more mild feel than the Ambassador. However, I really appreciate the efficiency and comfort it provides. I shave both face and head, and really like the adjustability.

If you are in love with the Ambassador, the Tatara might be a disappointment. However, it just might be the razor you are looking for.

As a less expensive alternative, you might try the Nodachi head for maximum gap and exposure. I found the sweet spot of mixing the Nodachi baseplate with the Masamune topcap.

 

[Fedsbackhand]

Thing is, it's expensive.. it works out almost 350 euros (before 20-23% import costs from Portugal, if I get stung with them) and if you want a stand it'll be even more. You can pick it up from some UK stores too.. but either way it's at very least £320-ish at regular price.

I wonder if maybe coming up to Christmas they might be holding some kind of sale and maybe I'd get one at a reduction.. make it my Christmas present to myself.

If you choose standard delivery you are unlikely to get import fees especially if you ask nicely. If you go for DHL you will get charged but will have the razor in a matter of days. I've run a pass around with the Masamune-Nodachi razors and have bought several razors from Tatara (no fees). I'm in the UK.

They have sales often. No doubt there will be a Black Friday event. Bet you could get it for much less on a BST though.

I believe all tatara razors are known to be quite mild..

Even the Nodachi? While the new Osprey probably is more efficient I'm sure the adjustable is perfectly effective.

If I was interested in adjustables the Tatara would be my first pick. The Masamune and Nodachi are quality precision built razors with plenty of options.

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

I have experienced both razors. I had a Rex Ambassador, but did not keep it. It is an excellent well-built razor. For a razor at that price point, I did not reach for it enough to justify keeping it.

I had the very good fortune to borrow a Tatara. I, too, was intrigued by the beautiful and unique design. After experiencing one, I was on the hunt for a used one. Yes, it has a much more mild feel than the Ambassador. However, I really appreciate the efficiency and comfort it provides. I shave both face and head, and really like the adjustability.

If you are in love with the Ambassador, the Tatara might be a disappointment. However, it just might be the razor you are looking for.

As a less expensive alternative, you might try the Nodachi head for maximum gap and exposure. I found the sweet spot of mixing the Nodachi baseplate with the Masamune topcap.

I agree with you Sir
I'm still loving the Ambassador

 

[ERS4]

I would say the Muramasa is a razor with a truly innovative adjustment mechanism.
It allows you to clearly grasp the change from negative exposure to positive exposure, so the ease of use is very intuitive; even if you use it for the first time, it is almost like you have known this razor from a previous life.

And its appearance is very beautiful, with a perfect "integrated" feeling, unlike other adjustable razors that always have a section-by-section appearance.(although I love them too)

Muramasa is bound to leave an important achievement in the history of shaving.

 

[Brutus]

I have both.
Correction. Actually, I have all four since I have the steel and titanium versions of the Nodachi and Muramasa.
(I am predominantly a straight shaver and sometimes feel a twinge of guilt having spent that much on four Tataras when before long I have settled down for just one preferred model.)

Titanium or steel?
I do appreciate the light mass and precison handling that the titanium versions give me.
If, however, the lower mass of the titanium razors does not mean anything to you, you might as well halve the cost and stick to the otherwise identical steel versions.

Non-adjustable or Muramasa?
If you have used safety razors for a long time, you have probably found a degree of aggressiveness that suits you and yet gives you the closeness and comfort of a shave that you are looking for.
In other words, you are probably no longer experimenting with settings.

Nodachi or Masamune?
Short or long handle?
As a straight shaver, I also like my safety razors to have a positive or at least neutral blade exposure.
The Nodachi with the Nodachi head (you can also combine the Nodachi handle with Masamune head parts and v.v.) gives me that.
Compared to the Muramasa, the Nodachi head falls between the two highest settings, which is precisely where I like my safety razor to be.
The Nodachi also comes with a longer handle that I prefer over the shorter Masamune and Muramasa handles.


So my suggestion is:
1. Consider the ti version only if the lighter mass is worth almost double the price to you.
2. If you already have found your preferred degree of aggressiveness and closeness, stick to one of the non/adjustable Tatara handles and use a Masamune head if you like a mild razor or the Nodachi head if you like a more aggressive razor.
3. If you like a long handle, pick the Nodachi handle and combine it with head of your choice (See previous step).
4. If you are still experimenting or like to change your settings during a shave and don’t mind the shorter handle, the Muramasa might be worth the almost twice the price (again).

(And remember this rule of thumb: Muramasa x 2 the price. Titanium x 2 price. So ti Muramasa 2 x 2 = 4 times the price of the non-adjustable steel model.)



In my case it is safe to say that the Nodachi ti is the razor that I like best.



I hope this helps…



B.

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

I would say the Muramasa is a razor with a truly innovative adjustment mechanism.
It allows you to clearly grasp the change from negative exposure to positive exposure, so the ease of use is very intuitive; even if you use it for the first time, it is almost like you have known this razor from a previous life.

And its appearance is very beautiful, with a perfect "integrated" feeling, unlike other adjustable razors that always have a section-by-section appearance.(although I love them too)

Muramasa is bound to leave an important achievement in the history of shaving.

Yes, but the muramasa has only one problem for me... settings 1 and 2 are practically useless
Shave with negative exposure? meaningless to me! At most in setting 3 which remains neutral blade

Settings 1 and 2 are wrong, it made more sense to start from 3 and go up "I don't know if I made myself understood correctly"

My2cent

 

[Rob72]

I'm not sure how the other Tatara offerings shuffled, in, but, apples to apples:

I have the Rex Ambassador and the Muramasa. I prefer more "aggressive" razors, but the Muramasa is a nice offering and I'm keeping it for the day when my skin is less tolerant of raw, sharp bladeage.

The Muramasa is mild. I won't say 1 & 2 are useless, but they give me a Gillette SuperSpeed/Tech shave, lasting only about 6 hours before I feel roughage. 3-5 is comparable to maybe 1-2 on the Ambassador. I've written this before & may have changed my rating, but not by much.

I have the Ambassador, Konsul, Taiga, Muramasa, 2019 & 2020 Sailors, Pearl Flexi & 1964 FatBoy.

The Taiga is unobtanium at this point, and fairly crude in appearance, by comparison, but it is probably my overall "best value/best performer".

The Konsul is #2, an excellent, efficient performer. It is not an "aggressive" slant for those that are afraid of them. Best value & performance of the available options.

Sailors. Ungodly expensive, but definitely the Porsche of razors & very much in line with the Ambassador in aggression, but less so at settings 1-3.

Ambassador. Excellent piece of industrial machining & highly aggressive. A great razor, if you like feeling blade, and the grip is exceptional.

Muramasa. Mild & understated. It is on the short side for me, as I prefer slightly longer handles. The mechanism is revolutionary, and by far the most compact, vertically. I am not a fan of the O ring, but it is the most compact, efficient option for holding the settings. On 4-5 it is a decent runner with the Taiga, Sailor & Konsul at low settings.

Hope this helps.

Edit to add: I would not pay ~€350 for the Muramasa unless you absolutely LOVE the style. If you like the Ambassador, a Sailor would be well worth saving for.

 

[Captain Pre-Capsize]

As a less expensive alternative, you might try the Nodachi head for maximum gap and exposure. I found the sweet spot of mixing the Nodachi baseplate with the Masamune topcap.

And then there is me - the Nodachi cap mixed with the Masumune baseplate. I got mine here on BST a few months ago. Masumune razor and it came with the Nodachi cap. First I tried it several times as is. Then I switched the cap out and put on the Nodachi. Wow. For my mug the Nodachi delivers like nothing else.

All that to say you can forget the adjustable and save some coin by subbing in and out the baseplate and cap. I will add that I had to try the Nodachi baseplate and yeowww, that was a bit much for me.

Hope that helps.

 

[ERS4]

I have both.
Correction. Actually, I have all four since I have the steel and titanium versions of the Nodachi and Muramasa.
(I am predominantly a straight shaver and sometimes feel a twinge of guilt having spent that much on four Tataras when before long I have settled down for just one preferred model.)

Titanium or steel?
I do appreciate the light mass and precison handling that the titanium versions give me.
If, however, the lower mass of the titanium razors does not mean anything to you, you might as well halve the cost and stick to the otherwise identical steel versions.

Non-adjustable or Muramasa?
If you have used safety razors for a long time, you have probably found a degree of aggressiveness that suits you and yet gives you the closeness and comfort of a shave that you are looking for.
In other words, you are probably no longer experimenting with settings.

Nodachi or Masamune?
Short or long handle?
As a straight shaver, I also like my safety razors to have a positive or at least neutral blade exposure.
The Nodachi with the Nodachi head (you can also combine the Nodachi handle with Masamune head parts and v.v.) gives me that.
Compared to the Muramasa, the Nodachi head falls between the two highest settings, which is precisely where I like my safety razor to be.
The Nodachi also comes with a longer handle that I prefer over the shorter Masamune and Muramasa handles.


So my suggestion is:
1. Consider the ti version only if the lighter mass is worth almost double the price to you.
2. If you already have found your preferred degree of aggressiveness and closeness, stick to one of the non/adjustable Tatara handles and use a Masamune head if you like a mild razor or the Nodachi head if you like a more aggressive razor.
3. If you like a long handle, pick the Nodachi handle and combine it with head of your choice (See previous step).
4. If you are still experimenting or like to change your settings during a shave and don’t mind the shorter handle, the Muramasa might be worth the almost twice the price (again).

(And remember this rule of thumb: Muramasa x 2 the price. Titanium x 2 price. So ti Muramasa 2 x 2 = 4 times the price of the non-adjustable steel model.)



In my case it is safe to say that the Nodachi ti is the razor that I like best.



I hope this helps…



B.

Adjustable products often have a similar situation. People's skin types and hair vary too much, making it difficult to fully satisfy them.

Adding variations is just about trying to cater to more use cases, there are design trade-offs, but that tends to happen like Muramasa is considered mild/Ambassador is considered aggressive...; even if something like Sailor is able to spin twice - There are a lot of changes, and some people will say "actually I don't need so much".
I also never set Ambassador to the highest setting (6.5), but I still love every rotation shave with it. My relationship with Slim always hovers between three scales.

As Rob72 said, Muramasa's minimum settings are based on some of the most popular vintage razors, so even though it's certainly not highly aggressive, it's still a configuration that many people think works and loves it.

Even though I have never written a program on my computer, broken into a government agency, or driven a car at top speed.
Of course I still don't want my car to have only one speed, thanks to the invention of the gearbox.
As long as I'm happy within my usual range, I'm not wasting the money.

 

[tomas1870]

I'm not sure how the other Tatara offerings shuffled, in, but, apples to apples:

I have the Rex Ambassador and the Muramasa. I prefer more "aggressive" razors, but the Muramasa is a nice offering and I'm keeping it for the day when my skin is less tolerant of raw, sharp bladeage.

The Muramasa is mild. I won't say 1 & 2 are useless, but they give me a Gillette SuperSpeed/Tech shave, lasting only about 6 hours before I feel roughage. 3-5 is comparable to maybe 1-2 on the Ambassador. I've written this before & may have changed my rating, but not by much.

I have the Ambassador, Konsul, Taiga, Muramasa, 2019 & 2020 Sailors, Pearl Flexi & 1964 FatBoy.

The Taiga is unobtanium at this point, and fairly crude in appearance, by comparison, but it is probably my overall "best value/best performer".

The Konsul is #2, an excellent, efficient performer. It is not an "aggressive" slant for those that are afraid of them. Best value & performance of the available options.

Sailors. Ungodly expensive, but definitely the Porsche of razors & very much in line with the Ambassador in aggression, but less so at settings 1-3.

Ambassador. Excellent piece of industrial machining & highly aggressive. A great razor, if you like feeling blade, and the grip is exceptional.

Muramasa. Mild & understated. It is on the short side for me, as I prefer slightly longer handles. The mechanism is revolutionary, and by far the most compact, vertically. I am not a fan of the O ring, but it is the most compact, efficient option for holding the settings. On 4-5 it is a decent runner with the Taiga, Sailor & Konsul at low settings.

Hope this helps.

Edit to add: I would not pay ~€350 for the Muramasa unless you absolutely LOVE the style. If you like the Ambassador, a Sailor would be well worth saving for.

There is a way to buy Taiga. I recived my Taiga Ti only couple days ago (it took a month to my door with customs) I had a SS, when adjustable I prefer lighter Ti.

 

[tomas1870]

Also what I see with Masamune / Nodachi all combinations of plates and top cups form my personal experience you will buy all of them (or almost all) until find the best one. So price of adjustable Muramasa is maybe not so high.. But you can find used Masamune and Nodachi very often. I will try to sell complete set for example in couple days (still too short registered here and I'm in Europe so very curious if somebody will buy it), but only because I found for me best from all is full Nodachi and I want it in Ti. For me Nodachi is very efficient but not too aggressive. In SS is for daily shaving little too much, in Ti it could be perfect.

 

[kaufdrop27]

It’s a beautiful razor and you’ll easily be able to sell it if it’s not for you. In terms of actual costs, I could argue that none of the expensive razors are worth the price. It’s just shaving right?

 

[guitarslinger]

I have a stainless muramasa. Used it today. I use it at 4 most of the time.

It’s beautiful and compact. Beautifully simple mechanism.

It always shaves well. It doesn’t have any sharp edges. No surprises. Never cut myself with it.

The only negative = it’s heavy. I would love the titanium, but can’t justify the price.


Fwiw, i think i like the osprey more at the moment. Similar though, shave wise. Using it at 5.


If you’re an enthusiast, buy both.


Fwiw, i had an ambassador. Never liked the way it shaved. It had sharp corners that would catch around my mouth. Always seemed unnecessarily aggressive.

 

[abies]

I really love my Muramasa. As to whether it's worth it, that depends a lot on you, your preferences, and what you're comparing it to.

I've never used a Rex so I can't offer a direct comparison there.

I will say it's probably the smoothest shave I've had from a razor. I love mild razors though, so keep that in mind. I think "mild but efficient" is a good description.

I attribute a lot of it to the relatively significant negative exposure but decent blade gap at the same time. I can take a blade that is pretty irritating from multiple uses with my Slim, put it in my Muramasa, and it feels great.

The only two things I wish were different were the grip on the handle and the weight. Neither of those are really huge issues to me, but if I could have a custom version of the Muramasa made, it would have a handle that's either a little longer or with knurling. I also don't think it's particularly heavy at all for what it is, but I would prefer it in something even lighter, like titanium — which exists and is something I've thought about getting even though I never thought I'd find myself seriously considering it.

I'd say, based on what I've read about the Rex, that if you're looking for something on the less aggressive side, but stainless and adjustable, the Muramasa would be great for you. The quality is great. I think there's lots of equally great razors out there at all kinds of price points, but if you're looking for stainless, adjustable, mild, efficient, it checks all those boxes.