MÜHLE TRADITIONAL R41 Double Edge Safety Razor (Open Comb) For Men - Perfect for Every Day Use, Barbershop Quality Close Smooth Shave

I've used a Merkur 34C for 10+ years and an open comb 1930's Gillette which I picked up last year and enjoy very much. The Muhle R41 has a heavy head, which carries a lot of heat so when the hot water hits it it gets hot and stays hot, which is very nice (don't get it too hot). Additionally, the shave delivered is excellent. The ease is outstanding. More aggressive than the Merkur, and less than the Gillette. It pairs excellently with the Derby blades. The Muhle blade it comes with is very average, similar to Shark or Gillette or Astra or any decent quality blade. I took one shave with it and will probably swap it out for a Derby or Feather (which I have not loaded in this razor yet). I have a pretty average beard, so maybe someone with lighter or heavier beard would like the blade more in this razor--I don't care for it. The handle is very smooth, but not slippery. It's also a little thicker so it's easy to grip. The build feels excellent. Ease of Use: 9 Closeness of Shave: 9 Quality: TBD (seems very good but it takes several years to evaluate the corrosion resistance of the finish, etc) Weight: Heavier, so very little pressure should be applied Comfort: 10 Head stays hot, smooth traverse on skin, thoroughly enjoyed Comparing to the Merkur which is recommended as beginner friendly, I think this is easier to use. It's heavier, so you need to be careful with that, but it's very forgiving. Where it's NOT beginner friendly is that with multiple passes it's not the greatest, but it's pretty thorough on the first one. If you have good technique this is your friend for a fast, extremely close shave. If your technique is not very good, you might hate this razor since it's pretty harsh to be doing multiple passes. If you can get it mostly in one with an occasional touch-up, it's wonderful.

Preface: I have been wet shaving with a DE razor for about 9 years, minus the occasional tryst with a multi blade just for nostalgia. My razor of choice is the Merkur 38C, which is a great razor. I also had a Merkur 34, which I hated and got rid of. In fact it almost drove me back to multi blades for good. I like the German quality of Merkur, but I wanted to try something new. So I settled on Muhle. I picked out the R41 on a whim and didn’t think much of it. A few days later I read the reviews and it was too late to cancel. I ended up ordering the R89 Grande also. The good: When I got the R41 I couldn’t bear to send it back! I watched a ton of videos and read the reviews and had to try it! So i did.... The razor is beautiful and well made. The head locked up nice and square and not a hint of wobble. It feels nice in the hand. The knurled handle gave a nice grip even when wet. I took a shoer, used a new Derby blade, art of shaving pre shave oil and cremo sandalwood cream. I had a 3 day beard being a Monday morning shave today. It shaved me almost completely smooth in 1 pass with the grain. And with practice I could probably get a smooth shave in 1 pass. I made a second pass against the grain and it was baby smooth. I touched up a few spots with a quick swipe. You can definitely feel the blade, but it did not irritate my face. And I have very sensitive skin. I had a few very minimal nicks, so small I hesitate to mention them. No redness or irritation thou and I was surprised. My sink looked like a butcher shop after the 34C. Im writing this 12 hours later and most of my face is still smooth. The not so good: Did I mention you can feel the blade? Like for real. It is an AGGRESSIVE razor! I prepped and Gave myself extra time to shave. I took my time and and SLOW. But it was still a little nerve wracking. You feel every a stroke of the razor. Even without any blood shed, it felt like it was imminent. I also didn’t touch up the few spots along my jaw line that needed it because I wasn’t going to push it with a final swipe. The verdict: Top quality razor. For sure. Smooth shaving, no irritation I shave 5 days a week. So. Maybe a Monday or “special” shaving razor? Yeah ok. But definitely not my daily driver. I like to move it along and most mornings and prefer the ability to swipe and slash with a more forgiving razor like my 38c (it takes me less than 5 minutes with that razor and it’s smooth and no irritation). As I said i am a 9 year DE shaver, so I think my technique is at least decent. That said I would definitely not recommend this razor to a rookie. But every one is different. The 34C is billed a a great razor and i hated it. Update: 9/1/20- I have a few more shaves under my belt with this R41. I stand by everything I said originally, but I bumped it up another star. The razor is flawless, you just need to do your part and not flay yourself. Definitely not a beginners razor though!

Ich habe eine starken Bartwuchs mit sehr dicken, drahtigen Haaren. Daher kommt für mich schon seit der Pubertät nur Nassrasur in Betracht. Nach einigen Jahren mit Sytemrasierern, deren Mehrfachklingen einerseits sehr teuer waren und sich zum anderen immer sehr schnell zusetzten, habe ich mich zum Wechsel auf klassischen Rasierhobel entschieden. Start mit Wilkinson (Schrott), danach Wechsel auf King C. Gillette (geschlossener Kamm), das war so lala. Ich wollte dann was vernünftiges, wegen der Warnungen habe ich mich aber an den Mühle damals nicht rangetraut. Daher habe ich jetzt einige Jahre den Merkur C41 genutzt, der war ganz in Ordnung und für Anfänger auch recht sicher zu nutzen. Wenn es ganz ordentlich werden sollte, habe ich zum Rasiermesser gegriffen und nur die schwierigen Stellen mit dem Merkur rasiert. Das war aber halt sehr aufwendig. Nach einigen Jahren habe ich mich dann jetzt endlich an den Mühle R41 mit offenem Kamm herangetraut. Ich nutze das Gerät mit sehr scharfen Klingen (Astra Superior Platinum) und kann sagen, das ich ein völlig neues Rasurerlebnis. Durch die deutlich exponierte Klinge muss man tatsächlich sehr vorsichtig arbeiten, aber wenn man mit einem anderen Hobel schon viel Erfahrung hat, passt das schon. Bereits beim ersten Zug mit dem Strich wird die Haut sehr glatt. Mit einem weiteren Zug orthogonal und einem Finalzug diametral ist man dann schon fertig. Dabei ist die Hautreizung deutlich geringer als mit dem Merkur (mit den gleichen Klingen), ganz einfach weil man insbesondere gegen den Strich mit deutlich weniger Anpressdruck arbeiten kann. Das Ergebnis ist eine tadellose Rasur in der Hälfte der Zeit mit deutlich weniger Irritationen. Aufgrund der Aggressivität empfehle ich Vorbehandlung mit Pre Shave Creme und heißem Handtuch. Für erfahrene Anwender ist dieser Hobel ohne Frage das High-End-Gerät und vorbehaltlos zu empfehlen. pro: + gute Verarbeitung + günstiger Preis + sehr gründliche Rasur contra: - nur für erfahrener Hobelrasierer, für Anfänger definitiv nicht zu empfehlen - gute Vorbereitung erforderlich

A while ago, I decided to switch from traditional disposable blades. I used a number of brands including Bick, Schick, and Gillette. They all offered me the same experience: much skin irritation, razor burns, and nicks...terrible. I researched DE safety razor shaving, and it seemed to me I was not alone. A number of others were making the switch. I decided to switch too. My first DE razor which I bought a few months ago was a Van Der Hagen. The experience was much better, but as I got better at it, I noticed that the Van Der Hagen became no different than the disposable razors I used in the past: much skin irritation, razor burns, nicks, and having to do several passes on my face to get a good shave. I started to look around for something better, and came across the Muhle R41. Of course, there were a lot of pros and cons about this thing, and that this "Beast" required much more effort to use compared to other DE razors so as to avoid the so called "blood baths"...But here I was more than willing to take my chances. After purchasing the Muhle R41, and using it for the first time, I must say, this has got to be the best shaving experience I've had. And although I only used it once, I did have to be a little more careful when using it, but overall it gave me a good clean shave in very little passes (about 2). Along with that I did not experience any skin irritation, razor burns, or nicks. And the blade I used was a Feather. If I had done the same with the Van Der Hagen, it would have been a completely opposite experience. I think I am ready to retire my Van Der Hagen, and moving forward, begin using the Muhle R41 as my weapon of choice. Highly doubt anything else will do, that is, unless I decide to try straight razor shaving. And, I should also state that this razor is not recommended for beginners, and does require some experience before using. Overall, this DE razor seems to be the perfect choice for an excellent shave.

This product is great looking and was a really good product. Unfortunately the delivery was delayed because of all the Christmas backlog. I will really recommend this product but it should be ordered with some spare time for the delivery

Excellent

My Merlin 34C broke after 9 years of constant use. And I decided to go for the open comb Muhle R41 this time. A decision I immediately rued. The razor is quite aggressive and you have to be very patient using it. The whole pressure didn’t make it an enjoyable process for me. For records, I use Feather blades. I can try it with something more forgiving like Derby. But then I decided to buy another 34C to use with the Feathers - the best combo I e come to settle upon.