Problems with a Semi-Slant

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Puffafish

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The other morning I was happily having a shave, doing all that kuffule of life in the morning, and went to change the blade in my Parker Semi-Slant which I've been using as my daily go-to for over a year now.

I unscrew it, and it pops apart very quickly, which surprised me. And then I try to put the new bald in and discover that it isn't sitting how I expect at all.

It turns out that the threaded part of the top of the head has managed to snap off short in the handle, so that the blade now has to be compressed before I can screw it on.
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This isn't too much of an issue, the razor still works. But I am scared, holding a blade next to my throat with only a few threads (or at least less than the original design intended) is not a relaxing morning experience!
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Now, I'm sure I could contact the shop I bought this from, and ask for a replacement. This biggest thing I have stopping me doing that is that I have no idea which online retailer I bought it from! And a search through my emails has not been successful as of yet.

Has anyone else had this kind of experience? Any advice as to what could have caused it?
 
The head and thread is made of Zamak which corrodes very quickly when exposed to air and water. It's likely that the coating on the thread has worn off and the Zamak subsequently corroded through use until failure. It's a known issue with Zamak heads - not just Parker razors. Their longevity is entirely reliant on the quality of the coating.
 
Boycie83 said:
The head and thread is made of Zamak which corrodes very quickly when exposed to air and water. It's likely that the coating on the thread has worn off and the Zamak subsequently corroded through use until failure. It's a known issue with Zamak heads - not just Parker razors. Their longevity is entirely reliant on the quality of the coating.
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Oh right, so it's a probably just the coating wearing away. Do people get the same problem with the Merkur 39C do you know? I've really enjoyed the slant, but if it's a feature of all Parker Semi-Slants, I may replace it with an alternative which doesn't have the issue (or at least not as common).
 
Puffafish said:
Oh right, so it's a probably just the coating wearing away. Do people get the same problem with the Merkur 39C do you know? I've really enjoyed the slant, but if it's a feature of all Parker Semi-Slants, I may replace it with an alternative which doesn't have the issue (or at least not as common).
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To avoid the issue completely you'll need to go with a brass, aluminium, titanium, copper or stainless razor - all of which cost more.

Worth noting that many Zamak razors do go on for years though - including Merkur, Edwin Jagger and Mühle.
 
Boycie83 said:
To avoid the issue completely you'll need to go with a brass, aluminium, titanium, copper or stainless razor - all of which cost more.

Worth noting that many Zamak razors do go on for years though - including Merkur, Edwin Jagger and Mühle.
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I've had my EJ89 now for over 5 years and no issues with that one. I've also got a Claymore which must be at least 3 years now and is doing fine.

Any recommendations for a non-Zamak razor?
 
There are also slants in plastic (the modern bakelite equivalents). I've got a Fine Superlite slant, closed comb, and another, brown with a open comb, the make of which eludes me, but it is modern. Both have metal screw posts and metal threaded handle inserts, one being brass, and these will take other standard metric thread handles, including my weighted Rod Neep resin 95mm. This is just as well, as the standard handles on both are only 70mm and 75mm, which is on the short side.

Edit: The brown one is from Phoenix, who now seem to have gone mad with fluorescent and brightly-coloured plastic slants.
 
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culcreuch said:
As mentioned above....Fatip All brass. The Lo Storto is the slant and comes in Open comb and Closed versions
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Right well I thought I'd bite the bullet and get myself something to replace it....

While I enjoyed the Parker Semi, I thought I'd got for your recommendation. After giving it a couple of goes now, I agree, the Lo Storto is good, though I would prefer a longer and heavier handle (such as what the Parker had).
 
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