Adjustable? No thanks.

A doubt pervades me every time I see recommending the Merkur Progress a neophyte.
Even worse with less balanced adjustable razor.

This doubt derives from my experience.
I had them, appreciated and sold them.
All, except the Merkur Futur that I don't use for its aggressiveness ... but I admire it as a design object.

At the beginning they are comfortable and bewitching.
You still don't know your preferences, maybe the technique is still unripe, the idea of having so many options, the undoubted charm of some vintage models (for me in descending order ... Gibbs Reglable # 17, Gillette Toggle, Fatboy , Black Beauty Super-109, Slim).

But over time, you understand that performance is related to geometry.
As the gap increases the arch should increase, and since it is impossible for now what increases is the exposure ... then the positive asset, that is the sensation (feedback) of the blade on the skin.

Not to mention the rigidity of the blade, produced only with fixed mechanisms (not movable) that support it strongly on both sides.
All at the expense of comfort.

The refinement of one's perceptions and preferences also plays an important role.
Today I know my ideal razor.
I'm not looking for alternatives that are too far away.

So personally I don't recommend an adjustable.
But above all I do not recommend it to a person with little experience.
I find it much more useful to concentrate one's efforts on a single razor, possibly balanced, for the time necessary (a few dozen shaves, better every day) to refine the technique and consistently achieve a good result.
Only then can you choose an alternative, in a more conscious way.


What is your experience about?
Here a poll to see how average of us use adjustable razor.
https://forms.gle/34cKfMM2kvw3TQFA7

Enjoy.

 

At the moment, on 103 votes more than 50% do NOT use adjustment.

 

Maybe not during the shave but different adjustments for different beard/stubble length - 1 day vs 5 days for example.
If I usually shave daily on setting 3 that might not gonna cut it with a five day growth.

There's another use case as mentioned in the Gillette Salesman's Manual: Using a lower setting for a milder second clean-up shave in the afternoon/evening or when skin is otherwise impaired by sun burn or whatever.

Makes sense to me.

I prefer mild razors and non adjustable - and my favorite is the short Weishi 9306 (not exactly known for its blade rigidity), then Tech & Super Speed. But thats also because I shave daily. Not the best tools for one week of growth I assume.

I'm fine using my FaTip Piccolo on 3-5 days of growth, works great - but as a daily shaver? No, thank you. Not for me.

Different aggression for different use cases/stubble length - and if you don't wanna be a crazy nutjob like me, who has 3 dozen DEs laying around and are an infrequent shaver, a Slim Adjustable or Progress might be the right choice for you.

But I agree with the "beginner shouldn't play with settings to much during shaving and stick to one setting" thing.

What IS your ideal razor?

 

I have 4-5 adjustables in my rotation.
For each one I have found the optimum setting for me.
Same for all three passes. Set it and forget it.

 

I have had two Merkur Progress razors. Yes, it gets a lot of love, but I couldn't warm up to it (them). Now, I have my Fatboy, which is pretty much always set to 9.
IMO, the best adjustables are my straight razors.

 

About DE, a Standard geometry head with a long and light handle.
My fav is a frankenrazor I named PP1489:
• Edwin Jagger DE89
• Maggard MR14 AL

A little less 60g. Almost perfectly (1:1) balanced.
Easy, fast, smooth, efficient, cheap.
In one word perfect ... for me.

 

I have one adjustable and don't change the setting. I did when I first received it. I absolutely love the Lupo 95 and would be happy to have it as my only razor.

 

I never developed a fondness for adjustable razors and tend to stay away from them.

 

My first razor (after using Dad's) was a long handled Black Beauty. Seems like I kept it on 1 for a couple of years then maybe progressed to 3 at college.

Much later (35 years), I found the Slim Adjustable birth year razor and used it maybe 5 times. It felt "chattery" to me. I started back with a Merkur 34C and have now settled in with an Above The Tie Windsor for my daily(ish) shaves. I just enjoy the solid feel and 'same' shave each time I pick it up. Was sad to see ATT was out of business.

 

And it's a NO for me.
Thanks!

 

I have several birth year/birth quarter adjustables. I shave with 'em wide open most of the time. Shaves are good, but the head geometry requires additional effort to get a clean shave directly under the nose.

 

I find it rich that some people in general who complain about adjustables are the same people who have a bad case of razor ADHD and use a different a razor each shave. I use both and for me adjustables are a dial it in and use that same setting on all passes and shaves.

 

I've a few adjustable razors in my rotation, and they all give great shaves. It's simply a matter of figuring out their individual quirks and adjusting technique accordingly for each tool.

 

I think the adjustable razor was invented to be a one-size-fits-all kinda thing. But that's just a theory of mine.

I like them because I think they're cool.

My current rotation of 3 razors does not include an adjustable. I have many, though, and I'm sure I will use them again in the future just for the halibut.

I think that adjusting them mid-shave is just like a dog chasing its tail.

 

Maybe an adjustable razor is the same as how a calculator watch or a mechanical pencil was cool as a youth. Although there is more to it. I prefer a large blade gap. I open up all adjustables to the max setting and leave them there. Even though I do this, I still like that there is an option to lower the settings if I felt like it. Also, adjustables tend to be heavier and bulkier. I also like these attributes in a razor. That being said, in the past there were less options for these preferences. Now there are many fixed head options with blade gaps just as large as adjustables on their Max setting and fixed head razors with weight and bulk meeting or exceeding any adjustable. I still enjoy many other types of razors. Adjustables I have 11, not counting duplicates or slight variations like the brass Futur or the Rockwell T2/SS. Fixed head, I have 11 not including duplicates or variations like the Muhle R41 GS. My variation exceptions of course not all will consider counting as only one razor. Now that I've inventoried, I don't feel too bad about how many razors I have if I loose some of the "back-ups".

 

They're basically a marketing gimmick, albeit a quite useful and ingenious one. Instead of several razors, you simply have one that can be adjusted to suit your shaving needs.

 

Raise your hand if you only have one razor, and it's an adjustable.

 

My last adjustable shave was over two years ago (a Slim), and the one before that was four years ago (a Rex Ambassador). My heaviest recorded use of an adjustable, since I began logging shaves, was with a humble Parker Variant in 2018. That razor is pretty hard to maneuver under the nose, but other than that, it worked quite well for me.

I think two reasons led me away from adjustables. First off, I started sticking with the same razor for varying lengths of time as a means of improving my technique. This can certainly be done with an adjustable, for example, by always setting the adjustable to n1 for the first pass, n2 for the second, and n3 for the third. But I opted for the simpler approach in the belief that, for me personally, it would help me pay better attention to angle and pressure. Secondly, I developed a strong preference for single edge razors, a preference which is not exclusive, but which stays with me to this day.

I have long since sold off the Rex Ambassador and the Variant, but I have held on to some injector format adjustables. Perhaps they should go too, but I am not yet ready for that. More recently, I was tempted when the Tatara adjustable came out, but decided to track a then ongoing pass around and assess the early adopter feedback. When the smoke cleared, and despite being a huge Tatara fan, I eventually took a pass. And currently, for the first time in a long time, a "soon to be released" adjustable is pinging big time on my radar. The adjustable in question is the Blackland Osprey. Shane Swartzlander, of Blackland Razors, has IMO done a masterful job of explaining the technical details and beauty of the design. Not that these things should matter to everyone the way they matter to me. But for comparison, I am stoked about the Osprey the same way I was stoked about the Tedalus Essence - a much simpler razor, but one which is elegant in form and function, and which I still proudly and gratefully own and use. In any case, depending on how things go, I may soon be full circle back into the adjustable ball park.

So that's my adjustable story (so far ). At the end of the day though, to each his own works fine for me too.

 

I didn't say it was a successful marketing gimmick, only that it was a useful and ingenious one.