Entry Level 3 Piece Razors

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I have recently started picking up DE/R89 clones and other entry level razors. I started with a Wilkinson Sword Flip top in 91 and went onto a Vintage Krona in the mid 00's. Only in 2015 did I pick up the EJ Kelvin. I hadn't really got into DE razors until the Fatip Testina Gentile arrived last year or early this year. I haven't caught the expensive stainless steel DE bug...

What are your favourites? What did you progress from?

20211022_234432.jpg


EJ Kelvin
Fatip Testina Gentile
Yaqi DLC
King C Gillette
Mühle R89 replacement head
Merkur 33C
Yintal - also available from Qshave. Maybe a Maggard v3a head. A Feather AS-D2 style handle.

Open Comb
Fatip Gentile Grande

As most are recent acquisitions that I haven't used intensively I cannot advise on differences or how aggressive each razor is.
 
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When I came to traditional shaving, after much agonising I settled on the long handled Merkur 23C as "the right choice for me" ... a pal from a different hobby sent me some vintage to play with (Gillette Parat, Gillette Superspeed Red Tip and a Gillette New) and the doors blew wide open. Within weeks I'd tried all manner of vintage and that continued for a good two to three years where I tried out literally everything ... and I mean, everything.

It was probably a year before I tried an actual DE89. It was the special edition Jet model (DLC coated), which was quite a thing at the time. Lovely shaver, that. My son took a liking to that one and I managed to get another (thanks @MrK1 as the limited run had indeed finished) and he still uses that as his sole razor.

I have a cigar box that holds a small collection of favourites of this type of razor ...

Muhle DE89
Muhle R41
Merkur 15C
Bevel (Clone)
RazoRock Teck
Yaqi Open/Closed Comb (DLC)
Gillette KCG ... sort of an R89/M23 cross

... but since the release of the Muhle Rocca, this lot rather feels like a previous epoch that has been well and truly surpassed.
 
The first razor that really ‘clicked’ for me was the Edwin Jagger DE89L (lined handle) back in 2012 - I still have it. Merkur’s 34c was great for me too and is one of my favourite razors simply for its looks even if Muehle and EJ are light years ahead in terms of plating quality and overall finish.

Upon reading that Muehle upgraded their top cap to include a solid brass threaded screw post, I invested in another head just after ‘losing the beard’, earlier this year. Bizarrely, I’ve only just gotten round to trying it out with my custom stainless handle. This literally could be the only razor I ever need as it it shaves close and irritation free with ease although the lovely handle is just a tad too long for ultimate comfort. Now where did I put that iKon 80mm Bulldog? The R89 head performs so well that it is really the only shaver I’d ever need but I’m not sure I could brush aside my love for vintage English Gillettes or this underlying, lingering lust for modern stainless steel.

One preference I must remark upon is the convenience of one and two piece designs for ease of post shave cleaning and maintenance. It might not appear to be that big adeal but when you’ve been using nothing but Gillette TTOs for a while, dismantling a traditional 3-piece feels quite the faff.

I’ve said it so many times before but why neither Merkur, Muehle nor EJ, have released a stainless steel version of their closed comb, best selling razors is beyond me. ‘Shelves’ and ‘flying off’ spring immediately to mind.

Matron! I’m feeling ever so clever…
 
I kept the R89 in my rotation; it shaves at 30' (an intuitive, ergonomic and comfortable shaving angle for a DE), it shaves through a relatively wide-angle range, its efficiency increases with familiarity and technique, it is superbly balanced and weighted with certain handles, it has a scalloped safety bar, the brass centre post and female thread increases durability, the chrome plating, which is the best I have seen, ensures superb glide, it is forgiving and easy to use. I find it more efficient or smoother or more ergonomic than many Gillette's of yesteryear. That said, I am enamoured with my £4.99 Lord Smart S625 which is more efficient than the R89 and far better than the Merkur it is based on.
 
I kept the R89 in my rotation; it shaves at 30' (an intuitive, ergonomic and comfortable shaving angle for a DE), it shaves through a relatively wide-angle range, its efficiency increases with familiarity and technique, it is superbly balanced and weighted with certain handles, it has a scalloped safety bar, the brass centre post and female thread increases durability, the chrome plating, which is the best I have seen, ensures superb glide, it is forgiving and easy to use. I find it more efficient or smoother or more ergonomic than many Gillette's of yesteryear. That said, I am enamoured with my £4.99 Lord Smart S625 which is more efficient than the R89 and far better than the Merkur it is based on.
It was you, my dear fellow, that put me onto the R89 head having the brass centre post. Previously, I would rather have bought EJ. Thank you.
 
I kept the R89 in my rotation; it shaves at 30' (an intuitive, ergonomic and comfortable shaving angle for a DE), it shaves through a relatively wide-angle range, its efficiency increases with familiarity and technique, it is superbly balanced and weighted with certain handles, it has a scalloped safety bar, the brass centre post and female thread increases durability, the chrome plating, which is the best I have seen, ensures superb glide, it is forgiving and easy to use. I find it more efficient or smoother or more ergonomic than many Gillette's of yesteryear. That said, I am enamoured with my £4.99 Lord Smart S625 which is more efficient than the R89 and far better than the Merkur it is based on.
is it the edwin jagger or muhle r89 youre referring too?
 
When I came to traditional shaving, after much agonising I settled on the long handled Merkur 23C as "the right choice for me" ... a pal from a different hobby sent me some vintage to play with (Gillette Parat, Gillette Superspeed Red Tip and a Gillette New) and the doors blew wide open. Within weeks I'd tried all manner of vintage and that continued for a good two to three years where I tried out literally everything ... and I mean, everything.

It was probably a year before I tried an actual DE89. It was the special edition Jet model (DLC coated), which was quite a thing at the time. Lovely shaver, that. My son took a liking to that one and I managed to get another (thanks @MrK1 as the limited run had indeed finished) and he still uses that as his sole razor.

I have a cigar box that holds a small collection of favourites of this type of razor ...

Muhle DE89
Muhle R41
Merkur 15C
Bevel (Clone)
RazoRock Teck
Yaqi Open/Closed Comb (DLC)
Gillette KCG ... sort of an R89/M23 cross

... but since the release of the Muhle Rocca, this lot rather feels like a previous epoch that has been well and truly surpassed.
What's the muhle rocca like compared to the r89?
 
I have recently started picking up DE/R89 clones and other entry level razors. I started with a Wilkinson Sword Flip top in 91 and went onto a Vintage Krona in the mid 00's. Only in 2015 did I pick up the EJ Kelvin. I hadn't really got into DE razors until the Fatip Testina Gentile arrived last year or early this year. I haven't caught the expensive stainless steel DE bug...

What are your favourites? What did you progress from?

View attachment 78837


EJ Kelvin
Fatip Testina Gentile
Yaqi DLC
King C Gillette
Mühle R89 replacement head
Merkur 33C
Yintal - also available from Qshave. Maybe a Maggard v3a head. A Feather AS-D2 style handle.

Open Comb
Fatip Gentile Grande

As most are recent acquisitions that I haven't used intensively I cannot advise on differences or how aggressive each razor is.
A Weidi and another Yaqi.The Yaqi head is the same as the Yintal without the indentations on the guard bar.

20211027_165612.jpg
 
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