Merkur 42C (Closed Comb) About To Use For The First Time

I am going to use my brand new Merkur 42C closed comb safety razor for the first time tonight. I have a blade sampler pack; so, I have not decided which blade I will use with it. I have used Shark razors, SE, with Dovo Shavette. Now I have only used my shavette twice, and this is going to be my first safety razor shave. I apologize if I did not use the search feature properly, but is there any advice I should take to heart before shaving tonight? I was thinking of starting with the feather DE blades.

Feather is the sharpest out there. You might want to start out with another.

Just watch your angle and don't apply pressure and stretch and you should be OK.

Opps hit the wrong button and sent a PM to ya, sorry.

How do I find the right angle? I know every face is different, but I know that there is a method for finding these things.

I will save the feather for when I know what I am doing, thanks.

Start flat with the handle parallel to your face, and move the handle away only as you need to....more angle = more blade contact (to a point) and more blood. And tighten the head firmly on the handle first.

Alright so I go in flat and move slow and gentle with no pressure down to my skin and then let the razor do all the work?

I just got done shaving. I must be doing something wrong. It would barely remove hair. I did not try applying tons of pressure to see if that was what I was doing wrong. I ended up grabbing my Dovo Shavette to finish shaving.

Any ideas what I did wrong? I put the safety razor to my skin. I titled down til the razor would touch. I then would shave.

I used the Merkur DE razor that came with the 42C.

You just did not get the angle right I guess. Go about 2:30 minutes into this video Traditional Shaving: Proper Blade Angle (DE/Safety Razor and /Straight Razor) - YouTube .

Bob

Yeah my angles were all wrong. I will have to practice holding the safety razor properly. I bet my angle drifted as I was shaving causing it to work for a moment and than to fail the next.

Thanks for the help!

That's exactly the opposite of what I do...and what I was taught to do 55 years ago. Whatever works for a person is what works! I wind up at some of the same angles. But work from the guard resting flat on my cheek, handle straight down, and then move it away until I feel the blade grab beard. :shrug:

Many ways to skin a cat Haroldg48?

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Originally Posted by Wynfrith

Yeah my angles were all wrong. I will have to practice holding the safety razor properly. I bet my angle drifted as I was shaving causing it to work for a moment and than to fail the next.

Thanks for the help!

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You are welcome. If you are coming from using a cart razor you have to remember that the cart head pivots and there is no pivot on a traditional DE. You have to keep adjusting the angle as you go with the handle to follow the curves in your face. Better luck next time, just takes a while to get there.

Bob

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Originally Posted by Wynfrith

Many ways to skin a cat Haroldg48?

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Yes, you just have to find one that works for you. After you have done it for a while with the same razor you just automatically go to the right angle straight off.

Bob

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Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Feather is the sharpest out there. You might want to start out with another.

Just watch your angle and don't apply pressure and stretch and you should be OK.

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I would have to agree with thebigspendur on this point if your face is not used to that sharp of a blade you can do more harm than good. I have tried about 10 different blades from Feather platinum to the Wilkerson(junk blade). If I may be so bold as to suggest a Kai blade, they are sharp but not to sharp and are not very expensive eBay has been my shopping ground for blades. The Gillett platinum and the Persona red platinum are also very god blades that won't break the bank but like you will see and hear from a lot of guys on here is you need to try a few or a lot before you find the one that fits. What ever you do don't give up you will love it. I also use a Murker (30C though). Ant way, always remember to ask questions all of the guys on here are very helpful and know a lot about wet shaving as well as being very nice. They don't treat you like a complete idiot for asking questions.

Have fun and good shaving!

I thought I would give an update. I went back to using my Dovo Shavette for a while, but today I just finished my first successful safety razor shave! It is nice.

Astra makes a good blade. A pack of 100 blades costs in the neighborhood of $10 on Amazon. I guess I got lucky. When I started I thought a DE blade was a DE blade...didn't matter who made it. But I just happened to buy those. There was blood in the beginning, but not enough to deter me.