Parker 96r

My wife bought me a 96R for X-mas this year. It is my first DE razor, and I am impressed. I ranked it a little low on aggressiveness, but that is actually a good thing for me starting out. No nicks or cuts.

The grip is great, and while learning my technique, I found the weight of the head is perfect for my face. Nice clean shave everytime.

I use Feather blades in mine, but I might try some other brands. All in all, I would highly recommend this razor for the newbie

This is my first and current razor. I've used it 4 times and on the 4th shave managed a perfectly smooth shave all over with ZERO irritation, weepers, nicks...nada. It's priced fairly. You get what you pay for. It does not appear cheap in any way--in fact it looks very handsome with the black handle and chrome plating--and feels solid in the hand. It's a good starting point for someone looking for a cheap first razor. With the butterfly mechanism, blade changes are a breeze. I did note that the blade does not center quite right by itself when it is tightened. The grip is great, easy to hold onto with the diamond pattern. It doesn't seem very aggressive. Since I'm fairly new to this, I figured I would have had some nicks or something, but I haven't had a single cut or nick.

Overall, I think this is a nice, well-made razor. Top notch? No, but it is a respectable, solid performer.

I have been using the Parker 96r for about a month now and I am fairly happy with its performance on the whole. It is a nice light weight razor that appears to be pretty low on the aggressiveness scale.

Price: Price was decent. I purchased mine for about $25, which is slightly less than what your baseline Merkur models appear to be going for.

Quality: Construction seems solid enough. It is not stainless steel but appears to be a chrome covered metal of some other sort. Articles online indicate it is brass, but I cannot confirm.

User Friendliness: Being this is my first razor I found it to be extremely user friendly. The butterfly mechanism works smoothly and closes evenly. The blade is secured in place nicely. The overall gentleness of the razor made it very comfortable for me to shave with. I never once felt I was going to cut myself.

Grip: The grip is a nice diamond textured groove and the medal grip is decent, but the grooves could be deeper.

Ease of Blade Replacement: Blade replacement is extremely easy with the butterfly mechanism. Unscrew it open, drop the blade out and drop a new one in. The blade is held securely.

Aggressiveness: I have no comparison for the aggressiveness scale, but I found the razor paired with Merkur blades (also apparently very mild) to be very gentle. Sometimes perhaps too gentle due to the lack of natural weight in the head. If the blade is not freshly sharp I got "skipping" of the blade across my check and slight tugging. This forced me to apply some pressure with my hand myself. Again, because it is so mild I still never had a fear of cutting myself and this is perhaps why it might be a nice starter razor for others converting over from cartridge shaving. The razor appears to be very forgiving if you begin applying pressure or just have old habits.

Balance: I am assuming this refers to balance measured at where the neck meets the head. If that is the case this is actually slightly bottom or handle heavy.