Considering a Merkur 37C Slant Bar Razor

With the Merkur, it's just about using the right technique. If you lay the cap on a towel with the post pointing straight up, drop the blade on, then lower the handle onto the post and tighten the knob, the blade aligns right every time. It's possible to misalign the blade pretty badly in the Merkur if you do it some other way. I don't know about the Ikon but I've heard there's a technique to loading it right too.

 

The Ikon blade alignment issue has become pretty common on the slants. It's probably the biggest complaint I read regarding what otherwise seems to be a pretty fine razor.
Myself, I've never had any problems with blade alignment on the Merkur slants—37 or 39—which is not to say they don't exist, but it has never been a issue for me.
Maybe my blade-loading technique is simply beyond reproach…

 

I'm just the opposite. If there's a way to screw it up, I'll find it. And I did.

 

Mine could have been a lemon.

 

My wife got me a 37c for Christmas. Looking forward to trying it out today. I angle the head of my current razor for certain strokes and do some j-hooking, so will be interesting to see the difference.

 

I started with a 34C for about 6 months and could not get BBS on my chin or neck. I have been using the 37C rot\r the last 3 months and for me it made a big difference. I tried a lot of blades and settled on Kai and get a great smooth and comfortable shave every day. I get 5 great shaves from each blade. Of course, YMMV.

 

I align the edge with the top cap and get great shaves, and while others prefer the opposite method this works for me. While the Slant's not overly aggressive it gets the under the jaw patches that even the 34C won't without fine tuning. It does help to use a blade like the Feather, Voskhod or IP Red, and then lighten the pressure.

 

I consider the Merkur Slant to be an outstanding razor that takes no special techniques to use. It gives close and smooth shaves even with average quality blades.
I have 60 razors and I consider the Merkur Slant to be among my top five favorites.

 

I tried my new 37c out yesterday and was very impressed.

Preshave: loaded a Lord Platinum; washed with Dr. Bronner's & jojoba oil; applied lather (Stirling Bay Rum) and then a hot towel.

Lathered in earnest and then put the razor to my face, mentally repeating the "no pressure" mantra to myself. The first pass was... uneventful. Easy, comfortable, not noticeably closer afterwards than with my NEW.

2nd pass, XTG, I began to gain confidence. The slant did not seem to demand special treatment. After the 2nd pass, I had a slightly closer shave than I normally would at that point, but nowhere near the 2-pass BBS I hear people talk about in relation to slants sometimes.

So I moved on to the 3rd pass, ATG, worrying a bit that it might be a bloodbath. On the contrary, I felt invincible, seemingly in no danger at all of drawing blood. I've had that same feeling with my RiMei, but the difference is that the slant was giving me an extremely close shave, whereas the RiMei requires endless touchups and still leaves a few rough patches.

I did need a tiny bit of touching up after the third pass, but less than usual and I was again invincible. One of my closest shaves, nary a nick or weeper, and here I am, almost 24 hours later, still with barely any stubble to speak of.

One data point is nothing to draw conclusions from, but I'm very happy with it so far.

TL;DR: The Merkur HD Slant is an extremely efficient razor, but at least for me, not aggressive at all.

 

Nice! It's great when you find something that really works for you.

 

Yeah, the Slant is a great razor. I agree that it's not aggressive as we would expect, yet because of how it slices the hair it's very effective.

 

I just ordered one the other day. I'm stoked! I hope it works out.

 

My 39C and 37C razors work with just about any blade, but the worst performer was the Merkur freebie that came in the package. When shaving, short concise strokes seems to work better than long ones. Hold the razor more vertical than you'd think it would be and let it do the job, don't press. Prep is the key, and relaxing seems to be the right thing to do.

 

It is one of my favorites. If I could only have one razor, it would not be the slant, but if I could only have three, it would be one of them. It is a fun and different razor.

 

I have a 37C coming in the mail as I write this. I am looking forward to trying it.

 

I have a 37C and a 39C, I have the 37C at my Mom's so I don't have to bring a travel razor when I visit. I missed it so much in my rotation that I got the 39C for home. I'm using straights mostly now, but if I shave with a DE it's the slant.

 

Last week,I finally bit the bullet and ordered my 37C slant. I had my first shave with it last evening.
I learned a valuable lesson about blade alignment. I have never had so many neck weepers in my life.
This was totally my fault, not the razor's. A word of advice to any of my fellow shavers who are ordering these, pay attention to the blade alignment!
This razor is unlike other DE razors you may have used, where you just pop in a blade, twist close and commence shaving.
9 times out of 10, when you load and twist this one closed, the blade will be misaligned. You want the blade edge aligned parallel to the top head.
The blade edge should not have more exposure on one side of the top head than the other. It should be perfectly straight and aligned parallel with the top head piece.
I found that the best way to do this is to load your blade, tighten until it's not quite seated, and pull up towards the top head piece using the non-sharp ends of the blade to adjust the alignment.
Once you have even blade exposure on both sides of the top head piece, tighten it down. I have learned that if the blade is not aligned properly, you will get irritation and nicks.
I hope this helps other shavers like myself who are new to this razor. I look forward to my next shave with my 37C !

 

I used to set the head of the razor on the countertop, and drop the blade onto it. Tip the handle upside down and slide it over the post and start screwing the handle down - it really helped keep the blade aligned 100% of the time. Actually, that habit transferred and I do that with all my DE's now lol.

 

I agree, I also load my other razors top down and screw on the handle upside down. It does align much better, and I've never had any problems with my EJ DE89L or my Merkur 25C.
But the 37 C ,even loaded upside down with the blade on the top head and screwing on the handle, was often misaligned... in my experience anyway. I have read many articles online about this razor, and have learned to twist it until almost tight and then adjust the blade edge evenly parallel to the top head on both sides before tightening it into place.

 

Doesn't Razorock have a slant coming out?