The latest addition is the Cutlass which, like its Scimitar razor, is finished in dark, polished grey and has the Bluebeard’s Revenge skull-and-crossbones logo engraved smartly on the head. As with most safety razors, the Cutlass comes in three parts: the handle, base plate and top plate. Blades are replaced by unscrewing the handle and taking all of this apart, then reassembling afterwards.

8 Best Eco-Friendly Razors for 2022 - Healthline

If you want the very closest shave, on the other hand, you could choose the Japanese-made Feather blades, which are renowned for their sharpness. We find these a little too aggressive for our liking but your mileage may vary.All safety razors operate on the same general principles, but there are several different types available. Bear in mind that each of these will have a slightly different sharpness and feel to it. My blade of choice is the Astra Superior Platinum because it gives a close shave, lasts a couple of weeks and isn’t too sharp, so I don’t need to worry too much about being precise with my technique. Our tester has been shaving with this model for years and it’s never let him down. You do have to go over the same area multiple times to get the shave super close, though, something that’s easier with an adjustable razor like the Merkur Futur or a more aggressive model such as the open comb Merkur 25C.

Plastic Razors - Etsy UK

We had to fiddle with it a touch to get the blade to sit dead straight but once we had managed that, we had no problems at all with it. The razor has an average-length handle that’s slightly longer than the classic Merkur 34C but it feels lighter, which is likely due to its aluminium handle and zinc alloy head. The Futur also has a number of useful extra features. To access and replace blades, the top pops off instead of unscrewing – simply lever one end off with your thumb. It’s also adjustable, allowing you to tweak the angle of the blade and the size of the gap between the razor’s edge and the safety bar below it. Just twist the bottom part of the handle.

Evaluating safety razors is a fairly straight-forward process: a good razor needs to deliver a good shave without slicing the skin to ribbons. With traditional safety razors requiring more patience and a more precise technique, though, it’s essential to master the technique before diving in – something all men should do before wielding this particular kind of razor. As for the shave, the closed-comb head of the DE89 delivers a similar experience to the Mercur 34C. It’s comfortable and feels precise, but even with fresh blades you do need to go over an area a few times to get a really close shave. Other, less common types of safety razor include the adjustable safety razor (see image below), which allows you to tweak the angle of the blade and often also the gap between the safety bar and blade for a super-close, aggressive shave. These are ideal if you find a normal closed or open comb razor doesn’t do the job for you, allowing you to adjust the shave to your liking.