Thanks to Kevin, aka HolyRollah, I can cross off the 2nd item on my "3 things to try in 2014" list. The infamous Muhle R41. FIRST LOOK/HANDLING When I opened the packaging and removed the 3 piece razor the first thing that cought my eye was the head. I rolled it over in my hand and carefully examined the teeth as well as the valleys between. The craftsmanship was evident. Chrome flawless, teeth wide and far appart. This thing LOOKED aggressive. The handle was nicely textured.The only thing that threw me was the weight, although a gorgeous tool, it looked like it would be heavier. After the 1st shave the weight proved perfect. FIRST SHAVE. I used my regular line up as I wanted an EXACT comparison test. Here's what I used, Coconut pre shave. VDH Deluxe soap. VDH Badger brush. Gillette Silver Blue blade. I was told to go easy and although I have many years experience with str8's, I did just that. 1st pass WTG. I noticed right away I heard no report, that is no singing when the whiskers were cut. I thought this was odd but contributed it to the fact that I was using less pressure than I would with a str8. 2nd pass ATG. Again, easy does it. This time a faint report but not what I'm used to. After a rinse, I felt for stubble. I had the usual 2 spots both side of the wind pipe but the jawline which usually isnt BBS until pass 3 was slick, BBS. The 2 throat patches were still there but noticably not as thick as usual. Pass 3 and 4 XTG e to w and w to e, I'm used to the feeling that Im not cutting anything from my other razors but this time, with such an uber light touch, I had my doubts. After the final cold water rinse I went to it with the Barbasol. No sting,burn or any indication what so ever I had just dragged a razor across my face. The final examination was impressive. I expected BBS shave but didn't expect such a huge difference in the R41 and my SA on 9 in terms of what it took to get BBS. It seemed like the shave was just as close but with much less effort. Comfortable with zero drag or "scraping" I honestly thought I wasn't using ENOUGH pressure. My best guess would be the angle that the head bends the blade in is perfect in respect to the skin. I did notice a huge difference in blade angle when I compared it to my EJ and Matador. My first impression with the R41 is this: It's as comfortable as an EJ89 and as efficient as a Super Adjustable on 9. Best of both worlds. Tommorow I'm going to increase the pressure just a bit and see what this baby can do. So far I'm pleasantly suprised. I truly didn't expect such a difference. I'll update in a week, after I realy get the feel of this razor.
It sounds like you've already got a good feel for the razor! Time to push the boundaries! One thing I have learned about using the R41s is the razors will certainly let you know if you apply too much pressure. The resulting skin rash or irritation made evident by an alum block rub will temper one's desire to be heavy-handed with the razor head. This result is considerably more evident on the hyper-aggressive 2011 version of the R41. The 2013 is a tad more forgiving.
The Muhle R41 (2013) is without doubt my favorite razor. I've added the Weber Bulldog handle. I'm glad to see that the R41 compares to a SA.
I'm still waiting for my R101(same head as R41,different handle), hopefully it will come tomorrow..I have several handles I want to try it with(Weber BullDog,griestshaving "FAT" and "GS1" handles and my Sabi T2...I hope I can get as good a shave as yours...
If the shaves continue, or even get better (if possible) I will most definately be adding an R41 to my den. RazorBurn123, yes, absolutely rivals a SE, the comfort/closeness level is nearly identical. To me one advantage of the R41 would be the 2 cutting edges. Also like the SE's, It glides incredibaly easily with no "scratching" What is this R101? Same head, EXACTLY? Whats different about the handle? Being a bananna handed shaver, longer handles fit my mitts much bettter.
Glad you like the R41 '13. Compare the R41 shave with a str8 shave with respect to closeness, aggressiveness, etc.
I've been using str8s my whole shaving life. I rotated an old Schick my dad gave me with str8's passed down to me since I was 15. The R41 was a learning experience for me, I am proficient with my tools and can str8 and de in the dark but took my time with the R41. To awnser your exact question, I truly couldn't tell a difference in shave quality. The end results were near identical to my str8s with one exception. I have a wicked scar from ear to ear across my wind pipe, the str8 is too long to lay flat enough to get the 2 spots either side, right where the throat curves, no matter how you contort. The R41 gets in there nicely. My SA does as well but where the R41 is so much more of a gap, my scar doesnt catch between the plate and blade. Same irritation free comfortable, easy shave as a str8 with the bonus of reaching my 2 "impossible" spots. I truly am in love with this thing. I was too cautious the first run, next time Im gonna run it like my other de's. I think the R41 has alot to offer.
How so? A SE blade for me lasts twice as long as a DE and in terms of frequency of rinsing my 1912 holds much more lather than id be able to hold with a DE. Not to mention the greater chance of cutting your fingers with a double edge
For me a SE lasts 3 shaves, just like my favorite GSB. I rinse my Gems every 2 or 3 strokes and my de's 2 or 3 strokes on each side. I love my SE's, but it takes me longer to shave with a SE than a DE. As far as cutting your self, my hands are like rough stone. I have worked in Saltwater my whole life. The combination of 16 hour days with line,rope,chain,sun and saltwater has ruined my hands. I have never cut my self, not once. I run my hlades under the tap and rapidly rub top and bottom of a new blade to get off the glue I'm so not worried about cutting myself. Not downing SE's, I love them. My prize pieces are a matching set of mint gold tone Gem mmoc's. DE is just faster for me, you might be different.
No worries I was just curious how you thought. There's no one size fits all for shaving. I agree it is a faster shave with a DE. Other than that, for me SEs are better in every way. So much so as of today I own exactly zero DEs. Sold/PIFed em all.
I agree, LOVE my SE's. I catch myself using my de's more than my se's for some reason even though the se's have allways produced a much better shave. Until the R41. I give you my word, for ME, the R41 gave me as clean and comfortable shave as a str8 or se, Just quicker, much more efficient. It took me by suprise, I wasn't expecting the quality of shave I got. I own SEVERAL nice de's and while some are far better than others, they're all about what you'd expect. I didn't expect what I got from the R41. Now I know what all the hype is about. Remember when you tried your first se after using de's? Yea, its like that. YMMV, of course. I can only report MY results
I first tried the R41 about six months ago and was hooked. The 2011 is a bit less forgiving and much more audible than the 2013, but both provide great results. My First go with the R41 last August
If you get 2 shaves per blade in the R41, that means you have one? You didnt have the same str8 type results as me? The absense of audible feedback concerned me at first as every edge I own has some degree of report. I took that as a sign that my blade was doing its job. So not the case with the 2013 R41. feedback or not, this thing is sweeeet. Not so concerned with the feedback anymore.
As far as I know the head on the R41 and the R101 are the same,they look identical in the pics I've seen..The handle of the R101 is black resin, the R102 is white resin both look shorter than the R41 however.. Your review of the R41 has gotten me very excited to get mine and try it out..although I don't shave with straights, I loved shaving with my 1924 EverReady ShovelHead"... If you like longer handles the Weber SS Classic handle is 3 7/8" long as opposed to the R41 handle which is 80mm(3.14" long).. Cadet and some Sabi handles are also pretty long at around 4"....
It seems a shame to replace such a nice handle but I must have a longer version. I have baseball mitts for hands. Thanks for the info, I'll look into those.
