If you are enjoying your 2011 R41 then you will find the Ikon slant very mild.... but it does look good. I added a short but heavy handle to my R41, the Ikon slant is already heavy I just wish is was more aggressive.
Very nice Informations here so far. Great!!! I will have my first shave ever with a Slant today. My weapon of choice is the Merkur 37c. Next Week i will try the iKon Slant. Both razors are lent from a member of our german forum. I'm very very curious...
I am also interested in slants after reading here and in the gourmet shaving book. I was lucky enough to be able to stop in at Pasteur's yesterday and but a Merkur 37c. I was too eager to try it, my new brush, and the Tabac soap, that I was careless and earned an angry burn with my smooth shave. I've learned a valuable lesson! Take your time and no pressure!
Bingo! No pressure = let the weight of the razor head do the work! I learned VERY quickly with the slants that a light, deft touch initially will result in a very close, comfortable shave. With further shaves (and growing confidence), you can apply additional pressure if needed, but best to start slow. Learning and using a light touch on the slants helped me prep confidently to use the considerably more aggressive Mühle R41.
Like i said, i had the first shave EVER with a Slant (37c) today. The razor seems to have the right mix between "agressivness" and "smoothness". This has been the positiv i got out of the shave. The shave itself was not the best i had so far.My skin was a little irritated because of the stress on the work during the week. I had made way too many hours...So my skin felt not very good after the shave,but i think it was a little my problem too...i think i used just a little pressure for shaving...don´t know why...As i used my Alum block after the shave my face burned like hell... It burned the next few minutes after shaving too.Not a very good feeling. But don´t blame the razor for it.Seems to be the fault of my skin and my handling of the razor. I´m BBS as hell right now and now (4 hours later) my skin feels very good but i don´t know what has "ruined" the shave...Maybe a mix of some negative aspects. Next shave will be with the iKon and i hope that will be a better shave.I couldn´t enjoy this one that much... Greetings Thorsten
Well fellas I must say the Merkur 37c is a darn good shaver. Not to be feared if respected. I just let the weight of the razor do the work. My first attempt using it was with formidable 5 day stubble and a fresh Voskhod blade. I feared the razor would tug something terrible on beard that heavy. Truth is I barely felt it. Tore through my whiskers like a hot knife through butter. I was rewarded with a true 2 pass BBS without even trying. Not a weeper in sight and zero irritation. My only gripe is that the plating on the underside of the head could be better but it does not affect my shave in any way.
Jason, a two-pass BBS on a 5-day growth speaks volumes! I love my slant and always look forward to when it comes up in rotation. It sits comfortably smack-dab in the middle on the 'aggressiveness scale' between my other non-slant Merkur and the hyper-aggressive Mühle.
I was very pleasantly surprised how it laughed off my ridiculously heavy beard. I normally must use an electric beard trimmer first. It is the perfect razor for me seeing that I scarcely shave more often than every 2-3 days. If I did though I doubt it would be a great daily shaver given it aggressiveness. Like bringing a gun to a knife fight so to speak.
YOU, my friend, according to an interview with the company CEO I read, were the audience whom the Mühle folks had in mind when they came up with the 2011 version of the R41! When fellow TSD member Bob (Battle.Munky) turned me on to the Slants, he said just wait until you try the R41! I think its all a plot to feed the RAD that lurks within us all! Enjoy that 37c!
Allrighty then. I'm going to buy a Slant! I still don't know which model, but I'm gonna do it! A question for slant users if I may digress slightly from the focus of this thread, do you shave everyday with it and do you go ATG? Cheers!
Ikon...smooth, quality shave at a price ($$); Merkur 37 & 39c both have identical heads—depends if you like a longer, heavier handle or not (I do!), quality shave for 1/3 the cost of the Ikon. I have shaved consecutive days with my slant. It is still smooth and comfortable with each use. My beard is LIGHT, and I really don't need to shave so close everyday, but with the Slant I can with no irritation issues. With my Mühle, it's not as forgiving, so I do not go back-to-back days with THAT razor. With the slant, absolutely no issues...and I have sensitive skin. I rarely go ATG with the slants—nor most of my 'close shaving' razors—as I can pretty much do the job in two passes. Those with heavier beards can speak with more experience on the ATG passes. When I do go ATG, I have no problems—even on my 'tough' areas (upper lip corners, adams apple area).
It's a good choice. I have a 39c and I don't shave with it all the time but I usually throw a blade in it and use it until the blade's done - using it every day for at least a few in a row. No irritation problems at all unless I'm off my game and use a little pressure. I think the ATG pass is one where the slant really shines. For some reason it feels just a little smoother going ATG than most razors. It really likes sharp blades though. If you like Feathers, I'd just start there. Seriously, for some reason a blade that's sort of just sharp enough in a normal razor feels duller to me in my 39c. Even Personna Labs and Astra SP's felt a little marginal in it to me. Gillette Silver Blues and Feathers work well in it for me though. YMMV of course
