What happened to my Merkur Futur

xcubbies · Feb 23, 2015

I'd purchased a Merkur Futur about a year ago, used it maybe twenty times, cut myself on a number of occasions and then put it in my toiletry kit, wrapped in a cotton wash clothe.

Last week I looked at it and saw that there was significant pitting on the handle. (I've tried to upload some photos) I contacted Merkur customer service, shared photos with them. This morning I received an email from Merkur saying 'while they're not saying it is my fault that there is pitting, they're sure that it is not Merkur's fault.' Of course they're not doing anything futher. Earlier they had suggested that I had used some sort of decalcifier; I've only used water, shaving soap.

Any thoughts on the matter?

sub vet · Feb 23, 2015

Don't buy Zamak razors, especially from Merkur because they don't stand behind their products. I have a Futur in my junk drawer.

nuclearblast · Feb 23, 2015

It's not their fault ... it's your water's fault. That is their standard reply.

In a sense they're right, it's not their fault that people don't get tired of their QC issues.

I love my Progress but once it's gone, it's gone. I'll never buy another Merkur razor.

And btw, my comment has nothing to do with hating Zamak, yada, yada, yada ... Companies like EJ and Muhle always stand behind their products. Always.

Merkur does exactly the opposite and all they come up with are lame excuses.

Borderdog · Feb 23, 2015

Not sure what caused that, but your experience with their customer service is pretty standard.

GlennConti · Feb 23, 2015

It sure looks like they had moisture or some other sort of contaminant during the coating process. The damage is underneath the coating. Not your fault in my opinion.

vadim · Feb 23, 2015

Was the razor exposed to moisture in the time it was being stored? You say you put it in a toiletry kit, but was the kit stored in a dry place or as part of an actively used kit (even if the razor itself wasn't being used). If the razor is exposed to moisture and it infiltrates the thin plating, it will start to eat away at the zinc metal underneath.

I'm not saying it's your fault--clearly a razor should to be able to survive wet environments like a bathroom--but zinc-alloy razors do need to be kept dry. The tiniest flaws in the plating will let the water in and lead to very fast corrosion.

Merle · Feb 23, 2015

just dang! the things you never thought you'd learn along the way, right?
</sighs...

on the other hand, vintage might have a future in these if the (considerable) base decays so quickly...

coase · Feb 23, 2015

Just looking at that horrible picture makes me glad I prefer Fatboys and Slims. Sorry for your troubles.

Thank heavens there's literally nothing from Merkur I wish to acquire.

BSAGuy · Feb 23, 2015

You have been Zamaked and then Merkurred!

Bummer. Sorry for your loss.

patten1969 · Feb 23, 2015

BSAGuy said:
You have been Zamaked and then Merkurred!

Bummer. Sorry for your loss.

That's a double-whammy. While I have no problem with Zamak as a material, I do have a problem with Merkur QC and their (lack of) customer service. That's why Edwin Jagger has my business.

xcubbies · Feb 23, 2015

No, it was air dried, then put away in a dry, white cotton washcloth and left in the leather toiletry bag. I checked and there are no liquids in the bag whatsoever. An expensive lesson re: Merkur.

socialjunk95 · Feb 23, 2015

Oh that's typical of Merkur.
I have no problems with zamak but after two similar bad experiences with Merkur, I have decided that they'll never get any business from me.
Edwin jagger and muhle OTH, always stand behind their product.

xcubbies · Feb 24, 2015

Merkur doesn't seem to take the idea of customer service very seriously. About eighteen months ago I bought a new Merkur Progress on Ebay. When it arrrived I noticed that it was unusually difficult to turn the handle to change the settings. Opening it up, I found that the metal ring inside the handle was crimped. I contacted Merkur about it, but received no response other than that the person who handled customer service was out of the office for a few days. Finally I contacted the seller, who somewhat grudgingly replaced the ill-functioning Progress.

At this point I think I've learned my lesson about doing business with Merkur. I suspect that the USA market is too small for them to really make an effort, and there's not really all that much competition out there for safety razors.

MrLara · Feb 24, 2015

My first DE was a merkur 34c, the plating on it looks flawless. And i used it for about 6 months before getting into vintage gillettes. While i had zero problem with the plating, i kept reading posts like this and decided to shelf it for a while. I still use it every now and then, but it does make me wonder how it will hold the test of time.

I also traded one of my OS mugs for a long handle merkur OC, and that one also had flawless plating. But i still wonder about it.

I guess my point is, that merkur buyers shouldn't have to worry about this kind of stuff. While both razors are great shavers, I don't use them that often.

santamariasteve · Feb 24, 2015

Sad story. The pitting is inexcusable.

On the bright side, the only thing I can think of is the pitting might make the handle more grippy, as some folks don't like the smooth handle. Otherwise the razor is an outstanding shaver in my experience. I dearly love my Futur.

Your unfortunate experience is a puzzle to me. I've had zero problems with Merkur quality, and I've used a variety of Merkur razors for 5 years.

My best to you in the future (no pun intended).

coase · Feb 26, 2015

xcubbies said:
Merkur doesn't seem to take the idea of customer service very seriously. About eighteen months ago I bought a new Merkur Progress on Ebay. When it arrrived I noticed that it was unusually difficult to turn the handle to change the settings. Opening it up, I found that the metal ring inside the handle was crimped. I contacted Merkur about it, but received no response other than that the person who handled customer service was out of the office for a few days. Finally I contacted the seller, who somewhat grudgingly replaced the ill-functioning Progress.

At this point I think I've learned my lesson about doing business with Merkur. I suspect that the USA market is too small for them to really make an effort, and there's not really all that much competition out there for safety razors.

Some German companies have had difficulty being responsive to customers. I read that when Lexus was invented as a subset of Toyota, they decided to target Mercedes buyers because many were upset with local customer service.

Doc Brown · Mar 28, 2015

What about the chrome version? Do you think that one would hold up better?

Highspeedlane · Mar 29, 2015

xcubbies said:
No, it was air dried, then put away in a dry, white cotton washcloth and left in the leather toiletry bag.

That could be what conducted moisture to the razor. Both cotton and leather are great moisture conduits. Though they may look and feel as if dry (particularly if infrequently inspected), there may be times in which moisture is absorbed and held like a sponge. I see you are in the same geographical region as myself (I'm by the coastline) and I know depending on time of year, the humidity can get pretty bad here.

I'm surprised their surface finish is not more resistant to corrosion than that. I also have a Futur I never use and it just sits in a junk drawer, though it's not in any sort of container (also does not appear to have any sort of corrosion issues).

Flintlock · Apr 27, 2015

Highspeedlane said:
That could be what conducted moisture to the razor. Both cotton and leather are great moisture conduits. Though they may look and feel as if dry (particularly if infrequently inspected), there may be times in which moisture is absorbed and held like a sponge. I see you are in the same geographical region as myself (I'm by the coastline) and I know depending on time of year, the humidity can get pretty bad here.

I'm surprised their surface finish is not more resistant to corrosion than that. I also have a Futur I never use and it just sits in a junk drawer, though it's not in any sort of container (also does not appear to have any sort of corrosion issues).

I agree, I don't think wrapping it in a cotton towel was a very good idea. No air exposure. If you like the Razor maybe a re-plating.

Anthony

kcb5150 · Apr 27, 2015

I think all of their issues stem from using the same tooling for far too long. Using a stable alloy of zamak and making crisp castings goes a long way to prevent ppl from having issues. It stinks because they still make the best shaving safety razors you can buy today... Dovo just reeks of being a company that needs some new blood/outside investment to get it back up to snuff... The straights are diabolical Hal the time... Diabolical... Makes the de look perfect

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