At one point, Tiger Woods (before his well-documented implosion) was arguably the greatest golfer the world had seen. And during this time, he wrote a book. Despite an ego that was larger than his trophy room, he (or his publisher) was smart enough to title it “How I play golf.” Note that he didn’t call it “How to play golf.” My point: nobody – even the greatest at what they do – has all the answers. So feel free to listen to others (including my unsolicited advice) but be your own judge. Only you can determine what it is best for you.
Here is my brief autobiographical experience into shaving with safety razors.
After much research, I followed others’ advice and purchased a Merkur 34C. And I picked up a sample pack of different blades. I was super excited to have an amazing experience, but it wasn’t a good fit for me. It didn’t ‘feel’ right and I couldn’t achieve the shave I desired. It took me a couple of months to put a finger on it, but here’s what I learned…
The 34C handle was simply too short. It felt like shaving with a little kid’s razor in my medium sized hands. As well, it made it difficult to find the Goldie Locks shaving angle. It took too aggressive of an angle and too much effort to get the results I sought. I wanted to give up, but I resisted. I eventually discovered through experimentation that I got a much better experience by slightly loosening the knob a half turn or so on my 34C – which either changed the angle of the blade or created a larger gap between it and the razor body. I’m not an engineer and can’t explain the science, but the difference was night and day. And it gave me hope, although I was concerned that I was committing a safety or shaving culture faux pas. And of course, the 34C still felt like a little kid’s toy in my hand.
So rather than give up, I decided to purchase another razor – this time the longer handled Merkur that’s also ADJUSTABLE (the Progress model #510). Bingo! I fixed both issues and couldn’t be happier.
First off, it’s amazing what the extra ¾” of an inch does. I can now hold the razor naturally and comfortably. If you don’t want an adjustable, I highly recommend you consider the 38C or whatever the longer length handle model is called. I don’t see the downside to buying a longer handle if you’re delving into DE/safety razors for the first time. It’s not like it’s twice as long or anything.
Second, consider an adjustable like the Progress. It allows you to find the correct angle for you vs. the set-in-stone static angle that the 34C has. I discovered that a middle setting of ‘3’ on the adjustable was perfect. The 34C was more like a 1 or a 2. Realize that the 34C takes away this decision for you – good or bad. For me, it was bad.
I will donate my 34C to Goodwill and enjoy my Progress for years to come. Again, my experience is anecdotal and is not to be confused with fact. If there was one and only one correct safety razor for everyone, there would not be the market options there are. And I would publish a book called “How to shave.”
Here is my brief autobiographical experience into shaving with safety razors.
After much research, I followed others’ advice and purchased a Merkur 34C. And I picked up a sample pack of different blades. I was super excited to have an amazing experience, but it wasn’t a good fit for me. It didn’t ‘feel’ right and I couldn’t achieve the shave I desired. It took me a couple of months to put a finger on it, but here’s what I learned…
The 34C handle was simply too short. It felt like shaving with a little kid’s razor in my medium sized hands. As well, it made it difficult to find the Goldie Locks shaving angle. It took too aggressive of an angle and too much effort to get the results I sought. I wanted to give up, but I resisted. I eventually discovered through experimentation that I got a much better experience by slightly loosening the knob a half turn or so on my 34C – which either changed the angle of the blade or created a larger gap between it and the razor body. I’m not an engineer and can’t explain the science, but the difference was night and day. And it gave me hope, although I was concerned that I was committing a safety or shaving culture faux pas. And of course, the 34C still felt like a little kid’s toy in my hand.
So rather than give up, I decided to purchase another razor – this time the longer handled Merkur that’s also ADJUSTABLE (the Progress model #510). Bingo! I fixed both issues and couldn’t be happier.
First off, it’s amazing what the extra ¾” of an inch does. I can now hold the razor naturally and comfortably. If you don’t want an adjustable, I highly recommend you consider the 38C or whatever the longer length handle model is called. I don’t see the downside to buying a longer handle if you’re delving into DE/safety razors for the first time. It’s not like it’s twice as long or anything.
Second, consider an adjustable like the Progress. It allows you to find the correct angle for you vs. the set-in-stone static angle that the 34C has. I discovered that a middle setting of ‘3’ on the adjustable was perfect. The 34C was more like a 1 or a 2. Realize that the 34C takes away this decision for you – good or bad. For me, it was bad.
I will donate my 34C to Goodwill and enjoy my Progress for years to come. Again, my experience is anecdotal and is not to be confused with fact. If there was one and only one correct safety razor for everyone, there would not be the market options there are. And I would publish a book called “How to shave.”
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