Merkur 37C Quality Control

First I apologize if this is in the wrong forum.

I received a Merkur 37C yesterday from England (delivered at my workplace). My first impression was that the chrome finish was nowhere near that of my DE89, even if the DE89 was cheaper. Anyway, as soon as I got home, I opened it to insert a blade, but noticed some defects in the chrome finish (see pictures). Do you guys think this is normal? I am just worried that this will get worse over time. There is a similar spot on the other side of the threaded piece.


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Yes, there are quite a few comments on the net about the finish of Merkur DEs not being as good as the finish on EJ DEs. Personally I do not think the finish is terrible on my 37C and it may not be as good as the EJ DEs. I don't have an EJ for comparison.

I do think that you have grounds to complain about the threading on your 37C. Mine does not have that problem, just checked. I'd suggest that you contact the seller, explain the issue and include the photo. I'd ask for a replacement razor.

Bob

I did not use the razor. I have e-mailed the seller, and waiting to hear back from them.

Mine has no such problem, and I'm happy with it.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

I did not use the razor. I have e-mailed the seller, and waiting to hear back from them.

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Be sure and let us know how it all shakes out in the end. To bad really, the 37C is one heck of a good shaver for me. Only a few others can shave marginally closer for me.

Bob

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Originally Posted by Haroldg48

Mine has no such problem, and I'm happy with it.

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I guess I must have been unlucky.

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Originally Posted by BobH

Be sure and let us know how it all shakes out in the end. To bad really, the 37C is one heck of a good shaver for me. Only a few others can shave marginally closer for me.

Bob

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I will let you guys know. I would be fine if the seller just ships me the top part of the razor, but I have to wait to hear what they proposed. The price and shipping time were very good. Ordered late last Friday and got the products on Friday morning.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

I guess I must have been unlucky.



I will let you guys know. I would be fine if the seller just ships me the top part of the razor, but I have to wait to hear what they proposed. The price and shipping time were very good. Ordered late last Friday and got the products on Friday morning.

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Yes, I think you were just unlucky. Even German made products suffer a quality control issue from time to time. Good luck with the outcome.

Bob

I have not heard from the seller. Usually, I get a reply the next day because of the time difference between UK and Canada. If by the end of the day in UK, I have not head back from the seller, I will be initiating a product return through Amazon.

I re-checked mine yesterday, and saw no blemishes at all. I think you were unlucky and I think it should be returned, since that is a point of weakness (future rust). Most razors like that stay damp in that threaded area unless you are more meticulous than I and take them apart to be dried every time you use them.

I still have not heard from the seller. Yesterday, I put in a request to return the razor through Amazon. The seller has up to 48 hours to respond. It's a waiting game now. I am glad I have my DE89, and not counting on this razor to be my first safety razor.

Have not heard back from seller, even after I submitted a request to return product through Amazon. I finally had to submit a claim with Amazon and they are looking into it. Amazon said that the first step was to get in touch with the seller. They also said that they could see in their system that I did this and that the seller did not respond.

As annoying as the procedure is getting keep going and don't loose patience. It sometimes takes great persistence to get a good end result.

Have you tried contacting Merkur and explaining the situation with regard to the flaw and the seller being non communicative?

Bob

I have not contacted Merkur. It has come to a point where I just want my money back. I will have to post a review about this seller. Also, by going through Amazon, they can see if they need to take actions against the seller so that other buyers don't get burnt. That was my thinking.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

I have not contacted Merkur. It has come to a point where I just want my money back. I will have to post a review about this seller. Also, by going through Amazon, they can see if they need to take actions against the seller so that other buyers don't get burnt. That was my thinking.

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Was just a suggestion as an alternative to the route you are going.

Hope you do get a full refund.

If you plan to post a review of the seller on here it might be a good idea to contact the mod to see what qualifies as "bashing".

Bob

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Originally Posted by BobH

Was just a suggestion as an alternative to the route you are going.

Hope you do get a full refund.

If you plan to post a review of the seller on here it might be a good idea to contact the mod to see what qualifies as "bashing".

Bob

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Thanks Bob. I was actually thinking about writing a review on Amazon rather than here. I am a bit disappointed that the seller did not find it important to at least reply to my messages. I also bought a Tabac shaving soap from them, and was actually thinking about buying more from them since their price and shipping time were good. I guess I will stay away from them now. By the way, the soap container lid had a small nick, but I did not care because it did not affect anything. But the razor was a different story.

It also might be a courtesy to Merkur to inform them that at least one flawed razor did get out to a consumer. The wet shaving community is really small and any word of a flaw spreads quickly so it is in the makers interest to correct the problem if one exists in the production line but they have to know first that a problem may exist. The other thing is that they have the most to gain by making sure a customer is satisfied by correcting the problem through replacement. It is one thing to hear about a problem and the hard time a person has getting it properly addressed and another to hear that there was a problem but the maker quickly put it right.

Bob

You have some good points Bob. I will write to Merkur.

Yea, can't hurt any at this point.

Bob

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Originally Posted by BobH

It also might be a courtesy to Merkur to inform them that at least one flawed razor did get out to a consumer.

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They know. Believe me, they do. Dovo Merkur know about their quality problems. Not least because they have been de-listed by more than one German retailer.

Finally heard from the seller. They are asking for photos even though I sent them one already. I have no problem shipping the razor back to them even if shipping cost is relatively very high in Canada. They have to refund me the cost of shipping anyway.

Also, I have not heard back from Merkur. I am not holding my breath though.


Thank you for your email. Sorry for the late reply.
Sorry to hear that the razor has not arrived in perfect condition, could you please send photos of the damaged areas (this is just for our own records).
For a return we would ask for you to send back the razor and then once we have received the razor we can process the refund and the cost of your postage.
Due to the distance and time this might take after photos have been provided we could refund the cost of the razor without the need to return.

Got a reply from Merkur:

Thank you for your email and the photo. This spot is fairly normal, because the top plate (including the screw part) is chrome plated, and since the plating is an electrolytic process, the parts have to be hung into a chrome bath. Hanging them up means a contact point somewhere on the thread, and there is no chrome at said contact point. Chrome plating is not possible any other way.

Really? How does Edwin Jagger do it then? I will never every buy a Merkur razor again. And if I do buy a straight razor in the future, I will probably buy a Boker.

Sad man. I realize your beef was with the spot but you have to wonder why the treading is interrupted too. Checked my Merkur 37c again and the threads are not interrupted either.

Yea, so much for Dovo/Merkur. They are now off my list too especially considering the final outcome of this post http://straightrazorpalace.com/shavi...tur-today.html . Seems it was a similar problem and the issue was quickly resolved bu the seller.

Bob

Something good out of all this:

The seller did get in touch with me, and offered to refund me the cost of the razor without me having to ship the razor back since shipping cost (also refunded) will be quite a big percentage of the razor price.

So, since I got to keep the razor, I decided to shave with it yesterday. All in all, it's not a bad razor.

What I liked:
- Very little irritation on the cheeks, and neck area. There is a particular area under my cheek that is prone to irritation.
- Easier to shave jaw line

What I did not like:
- Not smooth under my lip.
- Handle too short
- Had to adjust blade alignment. This is something I never had to worry about with my DE89 and my Wilkinson plastic razor.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

Something good out of all this:

The seller did get in touch with me, and offered to refund me the cost of the razor without me having to ship the razor back since shipping cost (also refunded) will be quite a big percentage of the razor price.

So, since I got to keep the razor, I decided to shave with it yesterday. All in all, it's not a bad razor.

What I liked:
- Very little irritation on the cheeks, and neck area. There is a particular area under my cheek that is prone to irritation.
- Easier to shave jaw line

What I did not like:
- Not smooth under my lip.
- Handle too short
- Had to adjust blade alignment. This is something I never had to worry about with my DE89 and my Wilkinson plastic razor.

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Happy ending after all. Once you adjust to it you may like it better. The blade aligns parallel to the top cap not the teeth on Merkur Slants. Simply put the top cap inverted on the counter, drop the blade on and attach the handle. Never had a problem with blade alignment that way.

There was a thread on another forum about how the blade should align and someone posted a letter from Merkur basically stating the above. Saved a copy of the letter somewhere.

Bob

Yes, I have to adjust to it. I just wish the handle were a bit longer.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

Yes, I have to adjust to it. I just wish the handle were a bit longer.

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Yea, everyone is different. I like the short handle. How have you been aligning the blade?

Bob

The very ends of the blade extend past the top cap enough that I make sure the blade exposure is equal by making any adjustment with my thumb and forefinger, while looking down at the top cap, as I'm tightening the handle to the head.

If the short handle is uncomfortable for you the 39C 'slant sledgehammer' has the same head with a longer handle.

With Feather blades the slant is hard to beat IME.

I've been aligning the blade pretty much like JimmyHAD, making sure the shorter sides of the blades are pretty much the same at both end of the head, especially while tightening. I noticed that the blade would shift during this process.

I think I'll pass on the 39C...until Merkur improves the quality. It's a shame, because the 37C can produce great shaves. I now truly understand why people with sensitive skin can benefit from a slant razor.

If you are doing like JimmyHAD that should give you a blade edge running parallel to the top cap with equal blade exposure on both sides.
Just can't recall having the blade shift while tightening mine.

Bob

What Bob said is what I do, otherwise I find the slant makes my eyes play tricks with regard to blade alignment. I've never had an issue.

I am looking forward to using the 37c a lot, or at least as long as the razor does not break.

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

With Feather blades the slant is hard to beat IME.

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I know that when it comes YMMV always applies, but have noticed in my case that the 37C gives me a more comfortable shave with a feather blade than when paired with a Gillette Silver Blue. I was suprised because I love the Silver Blue when paired with either my Wilkinson Sword Classic razor or my DE 89.

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Originally Posted by patricksrp

I know that when it comes YMMV always applies, but have noticed in my case that the 37C gives me a more comfortable shave with a feather blade than when paired with a Gillette Silver Blue. I was suprised because I love the Silver Blue when paired with either my Wilkinson Sword Classic razor or my DE 89.

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I like Silver Blues, but the Feather is still the top of the heap IMHO. The old Gillette Swedes used to be equal in sharpness and smoother, but they are no longer made AFAIK.

I own both of these razors. No complaints about either, BUT the chrome on the EJ89 is outstanding at this price range. I've had mine several years, yet when I clean it up, she looks brand new.