The Merkur 34C was the second safety razor I ever owned. I liked it and still do. I debated on purchasing an Edwin Jagger DE89 but many have said the two give almost identical shaves in closeness. Therefore I never pulled the trigger. This week I received a DE 89 from a fellow wet shaver in a trade. I've used it only once thus far so I am by no means an expert on it, but I did find a marked difference in aggressiveness. To me the EJ was more aggressive; not by much. Both give excellent shaves IMHO. I was wondering how others feel about. For those who have used both, which one did you find more aggressive?
I never had a 34C, but I have a Maggard razor with the same head design and I started off with the EJ89. I could never figure out how to go ATG or XTG with the EJ89, and therefore had overpassing and terrible shaves. The 34C style head just felt more intuitive and easier to find the angles(or maybe it's practice). Both can be shimmed successfully to be more aggressive.
I've heard that they were about the same or that the Merkur was more aggressive and went with the 34c because I thought I "needed" more aggressive for my dark thick beard. Who knows what to believe anymore. I have the 34c and it gives me my best shaves. I am wanting to get the EJ DE89 just because I want it.
I think the EJ is the milder razor. It is certainly more forgiving than my 34c. While the heads look similar, the geometry of the 34c holds the blade in a more parabolic shape, which makes it more aggressive than the EJ with the blade held flatter.
Proving the YMMV part of shaving. I started off with both the EJ and Merkur 34c. I found the 34c to work much better for me. I kept the EJ DE89 and would shave with it occasionally. I never came to terms with the razor no matter how many times I tried to use it. Ending up giving it to a new shaver here on the forum as a PIF.
I have wanted to try the 34c but the first Merkur I purchased had a terrible finish. You know what they say about first impressions.
