Thread: Merkur Futur Safety Razor

I don't like the Futur as *I* found it too heavy for me, I prefer lighter razors in the Merkur family. This would likely NOT be the primary cause of your woes. While I don't *like* the Futur, I can get a decent shave from it. So here are my tips on DE shaving, should you decide to give it another whirl.

1. If you have success with any of the newfangled multibladed monstrosities out there, it is because the razor takes away your ability to adjust the shaving angle. In other words, you CANNOT hold it wrong... you can MOVE it wrong, which is why you have issues with nicks on sharp Mach razors, and you would have the same issue with a DE razor if allowed to move in the wrong direction.

2. DE razors put YOU in the drivers seat. If your shave is not close, or it's scraping and you feel raw afterwards, or you get nicks and bleed from it, it is because YOU control it 100% of the time and have allowed it to go off the rails, it will never correct for incorrect angles or movements. My emphasis on YOU or MOVE is to simply point out what I mean, it does not mean I'm accusing you of anything, I'm just trying to point out where the issue lies.

3. The correct way to start a shaving stroke with any DE razor is to start with the top cap against your face and the handle sticking straight out. Now you will drop the handle until the blade just starts cutting your beard and you keep this angle between the skin and the blade for the full stroke. As your face is not flat, YOU must adjust the angle as you go... Apply no pressure to the head, allow the weight of the razor to do that for you. In the case of the Futur, I found it so heavy that I had to actively keep some of that weight off my face, thus my dislike of the razor. But, my dislike is MY finding, others have different results, so these sorts of preferences only apply to the individual.

4. If you start with the safety bar against the skin and raise the handle until the blade starts cutting, you are scraping the blade against the skin! If you add pressure, it gets worse and you will be raw and red after shaving and your beard may not have been shaved as close as you would like. Many attempt to adjust the settings on an adjustable razor to make it "less aggressive" but trying to adjust away improper technique is rarely successful.

5. Adjustable safety razors are fun, have dodads you can twiddle, and most gents can't seem to stop playing with the settings. I have had 3 different adjustable Merkur razors and all three ended up getting set to the same settings as a fixed Merkur HD, which is now my only DE razor.

6. There is this "issue" of Merkur Vs Gillette I would like to mention. I have found over the years that gents are rather polarized about such razors. I for example, cannot get a decent shave out of a Gillette razor to save my life, and I have tried and tried. Other gents swear the other way, only shaving with Gillette razors and nothing else.... I cannot explain why this is, but it just is.

7. All that remains is the prep work.... Lots of water with soap or cream (none of that Gel or Foam out of an aerosol can, it does not work), warm wet beard and everything else should fall into place.

8. About nicks and cuts with razors. Generally, it's very hard to cut your skin if properly lubricated with lather if you use a push cut. But, if you allow the head of any razor to move even the slightest bit sideways, cuts can happen very quickly. Small pimples and the like CAN get knocked off in spite of correct razor head movement, but these end up being what we refer to as weepers.... rarely causing any issues and are usually healed and gone by the next shave or two.

9. And last, but not least... you must learn when to say when. Sometimes, it is simply not possible to shave BBS (Baby Butt Smooth) over ones entire face. I have such a spot where there is simply nothing I can do but accept a slight stubble feel in that area, no matter the type of razor. If I attempt to remove that last little bit in that area, my results are either ingrown hairs or a blood bath, with the stubble remaining. So... I chalk it up to life and luck of the draw and I just don't worry about it any more.

I hope this helps you out.

Regards

Christian

Wow,....nicely done Christian.
You covered that very well,...thanks,
Ralph

Christian summed it up very well above. But I would recommend you dial down your setting to a 2. I find that easily sufficient to shave me very closely and more importantly very comfortably. You may think that setting is not efficient enough, but I would advise you to give it a try and just let the razor glide over your face with almost zero extra pressure being used.

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. Says a lot about guys who think about what's best for someone else than just themselves. I think I will give it another shot. I will first just use my regular method. I shave in the shower at the very last. I'll use my Edge shaving cream. I have an assortment of blades. Which one do you suggest?

We're not only nice, we're poor losers. No one here wants to lose you to a measly cartridge razor.

I have no valid input as to blades since I don't shave with a DE, but you may want to explore a nicer shave soap/cream that will help improve the shave performance and lessen any irritation. E.g., Tabac, Mitchell's Wool Fat, Speick stick, etc. Get yourself an inexpensive badger brush and a nice soap. Even if you sell the Merkur, you can still use this improved lather prep with your cartridge should you decide to quit on us.

Could not have described it better ! Great response.

Originally Posted by lambwd

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. Says a lot about guys who think about what's best for someone else than just themselves. I think I will give it another shot. I will first just use my regular method. I shave in the shower at the very last. I'll use my Edge shaving cream. I have an assortment of blades. Which one do you suggest?

I will BEG you to throw that EDGE as far away as you can. It is honestly useless... You will have better success with a bar of shower soap. In fact, I will sometimes use Williams Mug Soap or Pears Glycerine soap, lathered with nothing more than my hand with good success, and I dare say infinitely superior to *anything* in the Edge product line. Use soap and WATER, it is wet shaving after all. A brush is nice, but using either of the above two soaps with just your hand to create lather is sufficient. In fact, I would propose that the current Williams Mug Soap does better without a brush than with.

As for brand of blades... it's very individual, my favourite blade may be the worst you have ever shaved with. It sounds as if you have a sampler pack, in which case select whatever blade you wish to try... Use the blade until it needs replacing and replace it with another blade from the same pack. Continue until the pack is empty... then, and only then, will you know for sure what you think of that blade for you. Every so often you get a *dud* blade.... even if it's your favourite, you will on occasion run across a bad one. If you do, just toss it and grab the next one. You never really know if the first blade you try is a good one, so use the entire pack before trying something else. I know it sounds boring and switching brands every time seems more fun, but may keep you from finding that elusive favourite blade and thus waste your time/money/effort.

It's a brave world out there.... when I first returned to wet shaving in the early 2000s, there were maybe 3 brands of blades one could obtain.... Thanks to the internet, more and more blades became available to us over the years.

And one last thing... if you live in an area that has HARD water, it WILL mess up wet shaving, and you *may* have to take steps to find some soft water for shaving only.


Good luck


Christian

Originally Posted by lambwd

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. Says a lot about guys who think about what's best for someone else than just themselves. I think I will give it another shot. I will first just use my regular method. I shave in the shower at the very last. I'll use my Edge shaving cream. I have an assortment of blades. Which one do you suggest?

If you are getting good shaves with your cartridge razor and the other products that you are using, then stick with them. However, if you want to continue with a DE razor and you want to keep your Futur, use it at setting one, get a good soap and a cheap synthetic brush and practice. Unfortunately, it does take some time to acclimatize yourself to DEs, but they do work, very well, once you refine your technique.
Regarding DE blades, you'll have to experiment as this is extremely subjective, for all of us.
Good luck.

Originally Posted by kaptain_zero

I will BEG you to throw that EDGE as far away as you can. It is honestly useless... You will have better success with a bar of shower soap. In fact, I will sometimes use Williams Mug Soap or Pears Glycerine soap, lathered with nothing more than my hand with good success, and I dare say infinitely superior to *anything* in the Edge product line. Use soap and WATER, it is wet shaving after all. A brush is nice, but using either of the above two soaps with just your hand to create lather is sufficient. In fact, I would propose that the current Williams Mug Soap does better without a brush than with.

As for brand of blades... it's very individual, my favourite blade may be the worst you have ever shaved with. It sounds as if you have a sampler pack, in which case select whatever blade you wish to try... Use the blade until it needs replacing and replace it with another blade from the same pack. Continue until the pack is empty... then, and only then, will you know for sure what you think of that blade for you. Every so often you get a *dud* blade.... even if it's your favourite, you will on occasion run across a bad one. If you do, just toss it and grab the next one. You never really know if the first blade you try is a good one, so use the entire pack before trying something else. I know it sounds boring and switching brands every time seems more fun, but may keep you from finding that elusive favourite blade and thus waste your time/money/effort.

It's a brave world out there.... when I first returned to wet shaving in the early 2000s, there were maybe 3 brands of blades one could obtain.... Thanks to the internet, more and more blades became available to us over the years.

And one last thing... if you live in an area that has HARD water, it WILL mess up wet shaving, and you *may* have to take steps to find some soft water for shaving only.


Good luck


Christian

Hmm. Maybe it's the water thing. I do know that my body soaps don't lather very well. I'm originally from Western KY and my soaps lather very well there. But here in Eastern KY there is a high amount of limestone that affects our water.

Now, about the Edge. I have tried regular soap before and I can tell you it felt like my razor was ripping every hair out! The Edge is by far superior to regular soap. However, if the Williams Mug is as good as you say it is, I will be glad to try it. Will order some today and compare. Thanks!