Hi guys, A while back I got a Merker long slant. I heard that they give an excellent shave, close as it comes to a straight. I dont know if my face is over sensitive or my technique is horrible, but wow did it tear my face up. I used it consistently for two weeks and my face was in a world of hurt. Ive tried adjusting my angle, having a super light touch, and only going with the grain. Still my face is angry every time I shave with this thing. I do get a close shave, but in some areas too close. I dont think the slant is for me. I know some of you guys absolutely love your slants, I want to be like one of them, but I dont think its going to happen at this moment. Honestly im looking at getting rid of it and find me another razor to play around with. My wife thinks im nuts with all these razors I keep getting.
NO! DON'T GET RID OF IT!!! I experienced the same thing with my slant that you are going through now. I sold it. It was early in my DE days. Looking back I wish I had just put it on the back shelf and came back to it later after my technique had improved. My suggestion, do just that - put it on the back shelf for a few months. Come back to it this Thanksgiving. If you still don't like it then, then sell or trade it. But give your technique a chance to improve before you do what I did and regret it.
Yup, I would do as Steve suggests. I sold a number of razors once that just didn't do me well. And now, I spend a lot of time trying to repurchase those models. When I have been successful at acquiring them, I wonder why I got rid of them the first time.
Hi all, Thanks for the advice. I shelved it a couple months ago and havent tried it sense. Maybe I will try it again to be sure before selling it. I have tried different blades, but not the feather ones yet. I will keep you posted. Thanks
I'm a tiny bit late to the party but all I can do really is agree wholeheartedly with Steve's initial assessment. I am one of the ones who love their slant. I like the idea of a Thanksgiving shave with it actually.... Case in point.
I am just thinking about picking up a slant razor. Your post isn't going to put me off, I'm just sorry that you aren't liking it. I agree with the other guys as far as setting it aside for a couple months then going back to it once your technique has improved and see if it works better for you. Good Luck!
i only pull out my slant on sunday. i night shave mon - thurs, then take a couple days off on the w/end and get ready for work monday morning, by shaving with the slant on sunday night. it mows down a couple days growth on my sensitive face. i tried using it on a daily basis, but my face couldn't take it. so i reserve it for w/ends or when i'm off sick work or whenever i have 2-3days growth.
+1, I use the slant on occasions, the same as I use s/e's. I too find that too much of a good thing is bad for my skin.
When I first tried mine, my face was hamburger. I put it aside for a couple of months, went back and tried it again, with feather blades and it's one of the best smoothest shavers I have.
I started with the short handle Merkur slant with Feather blades. I loved it! I tried it with other blades, but never liked it as well. Then I got the Merkur Sledgehammer slant. For some reason, I never liked it as well. I really wanted to like it, but I got a better shave with the short handled slant. I finally sold off the Sledgehammer, but kept the short handle slant. Definitely try it with different blades too!
I will give that a try. I was doing it daily for a couple weeks before I gave it up last time. Might just be my problem, need to leave it for a once in a while shave. Darn this sensitive skin.
I have heard that Feather razor blades can be very sharp and some say, (in a review of blades....here) that they are not the best for face and newbies. There are some other blades that give close shaves and not feel rough to your skin. Take a look at the blade thread that discuessed the different blade. Also take a look at this youtube video of a guy shaving with a 1959 Fat Boy Gillette. I believe (opinion) that if it were dialed up in the higher numbers it could get real aggressive real fast. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXNNLoCD3V4 It almost sounds like you are pitching the blade too much to dig into the skin and whiskers. Try using a nice lather and leave it on the face for at least 3 minuts before starting. WET your face down several times with a hot wet wash cloth before adding the lather. The whisker has little "scales" on the outside that kind of look like if you were to stack up paper cupcake holders on top of each other, and the water, warmth, and soap (hydrating) has an effect of causing these "scales" to open up in a microscopic way, flare out a bit. This is what allows the blade to be small enough on the edge to get between one of these "scales and actually grab and cut. IF YOU DON'T prepare the face for the shave and give it enough time to do what I described, the razor blade, any blade, will have a hard time connecting with the hair well enough to cut nicely. I shave with straight razors and have about 24 or so of them. About 10 I use as regular shavers, some are moe "antiques" than the main shavers, but I can and have shaved with them. Face prep is very important. In fact, I suggested to one straight shave to try some Udder Cream hand cream. It was developed for the dairy indsutry for milk cows, but the workers really liked the effect on their hands and they make it now for people. I suggested to him to get some, put it on about 2-4 mintues before lathering up and then put the lather right on top of what he had applied to his face. When this stuff gets a little wet it is very slick and lubricating by itself. Combined with the shave soap I used, it really makes even a straight razor glide along a lot less tugging and pulling. http://www.uddercream.com/ you can find it at Walmart and other places. The whole family uses the stuff in the round lidded container, and we love it. Now, when you shave try this. Come down on your face with the grain, and try to keep the handle near parallel to your face. If it don't get what you want, re-lather and do it again, but tilt the handle just a wee bit further away from your face and make a pass down. IF you get it (handle) too far removed from your face, making the blade the only thing basically hitting your face you are looking to invite razor burn and weepers. Just my 2 cents. BTW I started wet shaving in 1968, but only straight shaving since Feb of 2011. Having fun with it!!
Like the other guys said, hang in there with the slant. Let he weight of the razor do the cutting. Work up to daily use by alternating another razor or razors. You might also want to try something different after you shave. I found that witch hazel makes my face feel great and a drop of tea tree oil restores the natural oils.
I made myself use the slant 5 times before I gave up on it. By the fifth time, I knew we could get along.
Ok, so before I really decided to get rid of it, I gave it another shot last night. This was after it had been put away for about three months now. Here is my blog post link, http://manandhisrazor.wordpress.com/2011/07/06/back-to-the-slant/ . Lets just say it was much better than before. I like it now. Thanks guys Brian
