Are Merkur head and bodies inter-changeable?

**Jobol** · 02-23-2010, 05:36 PM

So I bought a 1904 Merkur OpenComb, which I have been told is the same head as the Barber Pole HD 38C (hopefully that person is right).

I want to buy now a Merkur HD and I was thinking of buying the SlantBar version 39C since like this I will hopefully have 2 different heads and 2 different bodies.

My questions is the following:

Can I use the Open Comb head say on the 39C body and vice versa? if not, I might consider buying a HD 38C (open comb) instead.

Thanks for your replies.

**michiganlover** · 02-23-2010, 05:46 PM

Originally Posted by Jobol

So I bought a 1904 Merkur OpenComb, which I have been told is the same head as the Barber Pole HD 38C (hopefully that person is right).

The heads are the same between most Merkur's, but you can't swap parts around between the 1904, and the 38C, as the 1904 is a 3 piece razor (head in two parts, plus the handle), while the 38C/ Barberpole, and HD are two piece razors (the handle, and base plate are one piece, the cap is the other).

You can swap parts around on the 3 piece Merkur's however you see fit.

**Jobol** · 02-23-2010, 05:51 PM

Originally Posted by michiganlover

The heads are the same between most Merkur's, but you can't swap parts around between the 1904, and the 38C, as the 1904 is a 3 piece razor (head in two parts, plus the handle), while the 38C/ Barberpole, and HD are two piece razors (the handle, and base plate are one piece, the cap is the other).

You can swap parts around on the 3 piece Merkur's however you see fit.

Thanks for you reply. Maybe I am not understanding this right. If the heads are the same, shouldn't all of them be 1 piece?

Or maybe the real "head" definition is just the top part without the part were the blade rests?

I imagined like the body is one piece, and the head is another piece that screws into it. I am unable to find pics of them disassembled.

rainman · 02-23-2010, 06:40 PM

The HD and Barberpole handled merkurs are 3 piece spindle razors. The bottom head piece is connected to the handle and the top head piece screws into the bottom knob piece.

The lighter weight thinner handled Merkurs are 3 piece tech style razors where the head comes off as two pieces and you have the handle. These type you can change around.

**Stick Monkey** · 02-23-2010, 06:43 PM

On the HD, the "HEAD" sits on top of the blade.

**Jobol** · 02-23-2010, 08:32 PM

Gotcha. Thanks all for your explanations.

**michiganlover** · 02-24-2010, 03:40 AM

Originally Posted by Jobol

Thanks for you reply. Maybe I am not understanding this right. If the heads are the same, shouldn't all of them be 1 piece?

Or maybe the real "head" definition is just the top part without the part were the blade rests?

I imagined like the body is one piece, and the head is another piece that screws into it. I am unable to find pics of them disassembled.

When people say the head is the same among Merkur's, what they mean is that the geometry of the head is identical (not necessarily the actual physical makeup). So effectively, the razors should shave the same, as they share the same head design.

I have only owned one Merkur, so I can't provide any real data for the heads on non-slant bar Merkurs shaving identically.