Hi, guys. I'm about 8 or 9 shaves in with my Canadian fat handle Tech (1938-45 with triangular slots). I'm really enjoying the razor and the shaves I'm getting. Along with this razor, I also got an extremely shiny Merkur head which keeps calling me to try it out. With the Merkur head being shaped differently and the fact that it seems to be a fair bit heavier than the Tech head, I'm wondering if I'm asking for trouble by putting it on the fat handle and taking it for a test drive?. I'm also considering adding weight to the handle to balance the razor a bit better. Too many changes too soon for a newbie? Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

It's best for serious newbies to learn factory razors and learn basic technique first, before experimentation.

You said it better than I: "Too many changes too soon for a newbie."

You have many more shaves ahead of you. 8 or 9 shaves in, your still trying to figure out what your doing.

I know I'm still figuring things out, but that Merkur head is sooooo shiny!

Go for it. You'll learn real quick if it was a bad idea. If it was, let your face rest a day or three, then go back to what you know.

And then again, it may go great - You WIN!

I Decided to give it one shave tomorrow. Then I want to see how a Silver Blue is in the Tech.

Do it. It's only shaving.

Easy for you to say. It won't be your blood, either. I've got the razor sitting right here where I can see it. It's too pretty to not shave with tomorrow.

No, it's not my blood, but who says there will be blood? Just be careful ;-)

It's your shave. Do as you will with it.

Please let us know how it goes.

Wow! The Merkur head with a Gillette Silver Blue was awesome. Probably my best shave yet.

Always go for it, you don't have a lot to loose, experimentation is the fun part in classic wet shaving (for me at least)

I am glad it went so well.

Thanks, Mark. Today I'm gonna try that Gillette Silver Blue in the Canadian Tech. I've heard a lot of good things about that particular combo, but I was really dying to try out the Merkur at least once.

It takes time and money but once you find the right combo then it's easy sailing after that. All you have to do is keep ADs in check . After a Fatip, Weber, and a RazorRock I settled with the Tech with a Red IP and have some more Labs in the mail to test them out in my Frankentech.

I'm not sure I wanted to get into this, but seeing as I'm currently unemployed and will be homeless in a week and a half, any type of ADS shouldn't be a problem for a while.

I hope that these things change quickly for you in a more positive direction.

Thank you, Gary. I really appreciate that. I wasn't kidding when I said I stumbled on this because I REALLY needed to find a cheaper way to shave. It should be interesting to see if any of the homeless shelters around Chicago have DE blades laying around. All I've seen is cheap disposables, but a guy can hope. After next week, I'll still be checking in from the library when I can. I'm sure I'll say it again, but I want to thank everyone here for there help, advice and support. Bless you all.

I can heartily recommend a Gillette SB in a Canadian Tech! It's going to take something special to top the shave I just got.