how to use Slant bar.

Use the slant bar as you would and other DE razor. It is important that you DO NOT press the razor on your face, let the weight of the razor do the work.

For me, the Slant and the Vision get equally close, but the Slant seems to meet less resistance as it glides across slicing off the stubble. OTOH, the Vision's weight means that any resistance is futile (as one of the members is known to say).

It would be nice if the slant bar razor was fitted with the new heavy, and longer handle that Merkur is going to market in a few months for their HD razor.

What do you guys thing about this?

I tried the Long Handle Classic and found that the handle was too long for my taste. The HD handle length seems quite satisfactory for it and the Slant Bar. I do recognize the Vision has a VERY long handle, but it seems to work well, given the overall heft of that razor.

Leisureguy said:

For me, the Slant and the Vision get equally close, but the Slant seems to meet less resistance as it glides across slicing off the stubble. OTOH, the Vision's weight means that any resistance is futile (as one of the members is known to say).

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Thanks for the info Mike! I haven't hurt myself in so long, I've forgotten what the septic is for, lol! I know YMMV/IMO, but does the Slant have the same capability of shaving along the jaw line as the Vision? I've learned to do a sort of tight rope stroke, just keeping the middle of the blade along the jaw to whack the stubble down on the final pass.

I'm going to feel like a newbie again while climbing up this learning curve.

The Slant and the Vision both work equally well for me, and I haven't noticed any jawline problems. Of course, all our faces are shaped differently, so this is definitely a YMMV. But the Slant is fun, so go for it.

galpman said:

I'm Curious, what blade did you use.

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I used a Feather.

Iceman said:

Is it just my imagination or is the hair popping sound almost gone with the Slant??

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You are correct, and even more so with a stealth Derby loaded in.

I loaded a 7 AM in my slant for the first time today. Very nice, smooth, close shave.
The slant bar has to be one of the all time great DE razors.

Eagerly awaiting shipment of mine. Come on, come on, hurry up postal system!

ouch said:

I've said this before- if you use a chevron stroke with a slant, doesn't that turn it back into a regular razor?

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There is a short answer and a longer one. But first, do not worry if you cannnot visualize the way the slant works, I couldn't visualize it until I had one in my hand and then I had a "eureka" moment and it made sense.

The short one is: No it does not.

The longer one is that it makes no difference what direction you shave in. Do not think about the direction of the razor, it's the angle of the blade as it contacts the hair that is in issue. Think of one of those vegetable slicers like the one pictured here:

http://www.creativecookware.com/images/food%20mill la6033131 part.JPG

You will notice that the blade is on a slant. This permits the blade to cut the vegetable with a slicing motion. That's exactly what the slant razor does. It holds the blade at an angle or a slant and when the blade cuts the hair, it cuts it at an angle creating a slicing motion. It does not matter which direction you move the razor against a hair, the blade slices through the hair by cutting it on a slant.

As an aside, this is completely different than an adjustable. Adjustables allow one to increase or decrease the blade exposure. They do not change the way that the blade cuts. The slant razor angles the blade "side to side" if that helps visualize it, so that the right side of the blade contacts the hair first, and that creates the slicing effect.

Think of a guillotine. Same idea, the blade edge is slanted and even though it travels in a straight direction, it slices when it cuts. The slant razor twists the blade when you tighten up the head, and that twist creates a slanted or an angled cutting edge.

So instead of thinking "slant" perhaps thinking "angle" of the blade would help to visualize it better.

And why is this so great? The answer is simply that a slicing motion is more efficient. A slicing motion will cut better, cleaner and easier. And that's the magic of the slant.

One caveat to everything I just said here and this information is found below in two posts by Ouch: if one precisely matches the angle of the slant, (which I cannot do even if I tried) then the razor can be used as if it was a regular razor.

Thank you Ontario, that was a great visualization.

Ernie said:

Thank you Ontario, that was a great visualization.

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You're very welcome. I think the slant is just one great piece of engineering. As an aside, from what I can tell, and I may be completely wrong, but I believe that Merkur has been making them at least since the 1930's, and the design has essentially remained the same. That's one very long run. There's a great example of the old saying: If it ain't broke, don't fix it. And I would add: if it can't be improved, just keep making them.

A slant forces the blade to slice at an angle when the razor is pulled normally, along the axis of the handle.

The slant bar mimics the motion of a regular razor used with a chevron stroke.

ouch said:

Ahem.

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Teriffic!! This is one of the things I just love about this forum. I believe that you are aboslutely right, no question about it.

I hereby amend my previous post: if one precisely matches the angle of the slant, (which I cannot do even if I tried) then the razor can be used as if it was a regular razor.

I think this would be a bad idea.

A very bad idea!

Your point that the slant makes a very advanced technique a "no-brainer" is right on the money.

Here's an interesting twist:

Unless I'm mistaken, Hoffritz was a New York cutlery company that in the 1930's used to sell Merkur slants under the Hoffritz name. There's a vegetable slicer on the market under the Hoffritz name that uses the slant design:

http://www.amazon.com/Salton-HF85116-Hoffritz-Stainless-Steel-Mandoline/dp/B00004RHNF

ouch said:

I think this would be a bad idea.

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My head jumped back when I saw that picture -- ouch!