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Tech vs Merkur 34C

I have been DE shaving for about 5 or 6 weeks now and have been going back and forth between the Merkur 34C and a few vintage Techs. I have tried the Techs with the vintage Fat handle, ball end handle and a new SS iKon Bulldog handle. I seem to get less irritation and a closer shave with the Merkur 34C every time. For some reason, I just can't seem to work the Tech just right. I have mainly been using Astra SP blades after moving on from the Merkurs.

Why is this?

Is the Tech so mild that the "angle" must be perfect to get a close shave?

I really want to make the "vintage" work but I keep going back to the modern one for the better shave.
 
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You may have to try different blades. A mild razor like a Tech needs a sharp blade like a Feather, KAI, or Yellow Gillette. Does your tech have the triangular slots on the bottom plate? It performs slightly differently than the standard oblong slot holed Tech bottom plates.
 
Does your tech have the triangular slots on the bottom plate? It performs slightly differently than the standard oblong slot holed Tech bottom plates.


I have both but have only used the newer with the standard oblong slot. I have not had time to clean up and try the triangular slot Tech yet.
 
The Tech is very mild. Angle must be good throughout the shave. Use a really sharp blade, and definitely fire up the triangular slotted one ASAP, as that one is slightly more aggressive.
 
I really want to make the "vintage" work but I keep going back to the modern one for the better shave.

You're not alone with this experience. I got a much better shave with my 34c than with either a Tech or a Super Speed. I tried really sharp blades in the Tech, but it's such a mild razor that it just didn't do the job for me. Since I wanted to go vintage, I moved on to a Slim adjustable and never looked back. That's the best razor for me, since I can pick the right level of aggressiveness.

Nick
 
I know I will eventually need to probably move up to something a little more aggressive, but I just don't want to go adjustable. For some reason, I am just not fond of them. Maybe it's the looks, more moving parts to fail, etc. I don't quite know why other than I just prefer the smaller, fewer parts involved, 3 piece vintage razors. I also have a long comb NEW, but I have kind of thought that may be too aggressive right now. Don't want to go too far too fast.
 
When I first started, I couldn't get a close shave with a Tech. A year or so later, I pulled it back out and was surprised how much better it had become. Since then, of the dozen new and vintage razors in my rotation, I reach for the Tech the most. Once you've got your technique down, they give an effortless and comfortable BBS shave. I find they work with most any blade for me.

For what it is worth, I found that my shaves improved dramatically after shaving with an open combed razor for a while. I found it was easy to determine proper blade angle by looking for tracks, or better yet, lack of them, left in lather as I shaved. Once I became accustomed to holing the OC razor at the correct angle, my shaves were much better when I went back to those with a safety bar.

Mike
 
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