Merkur Progress Safety Razor the Nitty Gritty (Full Disassembly)

[@clontstable1]

I actually like the cream plastic knob. The plastic itself does not feel cheap & feels quite solid.

[@GilaMonster971]

I hated the knob so soaked it in black liquid fabric dye over night. It’s pitch black now and looks evil. 🤣

[@ridif]

very helpful in reparing mine ! The ring/spring to reinsert the base can get stuck under the lip and difficult to release. Squeezing the ring can be tricky too.

[@elmanitasdeplomo]

Agreed! People need to be careful when putting it back together because that c-clip is quite easy to bend out of shape.

[@jensebu78]

Thanks for that review! I got mine today. Paid for 39 Euro. The travel cases is damaged but the razor is new. Normally they cost 65 Euro, so the deal is great. I found a little damage in the finish at the corner. Hope it won't get a problem. Looking forward to the first shave

[@kevinbeermann7649]

My wife's grandparents recently moved into a home behind us. I asked her grandmother if she had any old safety razors (they keep EVERYTHING). She came back with this Merkur Progress and a Gillette Fat Boy Standard. I about s*** my pants. Still in the case!

[@elmanitasdeplomo]

I just bought a new mold version, second hand but pretty much like new for forty euros. It’s a fancy looking razor imho and it shaves fine. My only complaint is that there is some left-right movement between the lower fixed part of the head and the piece that moves up and down which has the triangle on it. I also disassembled and added a couple of drops of clipper oil on the piece which has the c-clip on it and also into the part which houses the spring, it operates quite a bit smoother now.

[@The_Spectre.]

One of my favorite razors also.

[@shave-a-thon3415]

I'm surprised you didn't push down the base plate in order to twist off the top bridge with the attached spring. Merkur also advises a drop of light machine oil be placed on the threads after cleaning. I'm not sure about the spring. Thanks for mentioning that it goes around twice. I noticed that almost instantly when I bought it last year. A few weeks ago, I was shaving on what would be setting 10 (twice around) and didn't even realize it! I thought I was on setting 5. I think you can probably go up to what would be setting 11 with it before the threads would become loose.

[@chirhomin]

Shave- a-thon this was just a basic tutorial. While you CAN oil them, there's really little point to it, since it's soaped up constantly.

[@Led_Zorq]

There is an silicon waterproof lube for it

[@scousewillo62]

Thought I had a Mergress XL but think it is now a Digress HD, It is the long handle version with a brass adjuster. It doesn't have a painted dot. Which ever model it is, I love it. Totally agree I would have it as my only razor if I had to. I would have my satin Futur as a reserve with my 37c for my head shaves. Enjoyed the video, ty. new sub p.s. paid £50 from shave forum, mint condition.

[@chirhomin]

+Roy Williamson awesome! Thanks for subscribing! The Futur is on my short list!

[@livebyreason]

To date, there are no vids on YT showing a true FULL DISASSEMBLY. Two implications, they can't be FULLY cleaned and buying one used will always present additional risk - sanitation and mechanics.

[@Kanoasurfer]

Excellent review. Thank you.

[@cariza5]

I am thinking of buying a Merkur Progress Short Handle, when you remove the top head of that Razor, you see the metal bar that has 3 holes, can that be removed for cleaning the razor.

[@markdavid3076]

I'd like to know too

[@darko3582]

I love it and I love that plastic knob

[@scottrollins5946]

How do you know before you buy one if it has the metal collar or the plastic collar?

[@jeremyvuozzo9677]

I was surprised by the weight. It's as heavy as my EJ Chatsworth. I like the Chatsworth but the balance is not perfect: it's a little bottom heavy. Can you tell me anything about the balancing in the Progress? Great video as always. Thanks for posting.

[@chirhomin]

+Jeremy Vuozzo The balance is very good. Since this is more like a three piece razor than a TTO (Twist to Open), it retains a lot of "head weight." However, since it's a long handle, it's still a little bottom heavy. I like the weight of the long handle, but I have the short one as well, and it seems a bit better balanced with the shorter handle. If you'd like, I could do a Nitty Gritty on the short handle, also.

[@jeremyvuozzo9677]

+chirhomin I would appreciate that, when you have the time of course! Thanks. Jeremy

[@jeremyvuozzo9677]

+chirhomin I bought this razor. The first time I used it, I had the cap on the wrong way. It shaved well, but #2 was an aggressive shave. The second time when the cap was properly aligned with the notch, #2 was mild. I had to do a 360 on the dial to get close enough. Also I decided to take the bottom part out; big mistake. I had a heck of a time to get it back in!

[@chirhomin]

Yes, if the compression ring is really spread out, you'll have to squeeze it to get the razor back together. The cap definitely makes a difference because it will change where the inner tube catches the cap threads. That will change the performance more than you might imagine. I hope that you get used to it. I really like these razors a lot--they're one of my favorites,and I think that they look great!

[@scousewillo62]

I did that with my 37c, its easy when you know how.. but i was panicking for a while

[@mikeyb917]

Hi, great razor but for some reason it will not go back together. It was easy enough to disassemble but assembly does not work. This is a newer model with the metal collar. I followed your video instructions exactly and it will not push inside the tube. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[@MrJim723]

I have the same problem, did you ever get it to work?

[@user-yn3uk5li3f]

I have a 38C, which has the same type split expansion ring, which is made from a stiff spring-like metal: I'll admit it's not easy, but the rod can be reinserted by first sliding the ring so it fully seats in the rod's groove. Now the difficult part is to grip the bottom edge of the ring between your thumb and index finger at the 3 and 9 o'clock position (the gap in the ring being at 12) and to squeeze very hard closing the gap, while pushing the top edge of the closed ring, together with the rod, back up inside the barrel of the handle.

[@GilaMonster971]

Yeah it’ll go back together but it isn’t easy. I don’t ever pull the knob out now because I hate trying to put it back in.

[@owenmargolis4281]

After disassembling the razor completely for the first time (its brand new) I am having difficulty reattaching the the handle. The compression ring appears to be sliding up to the end of the shaft when I attemp to push it back together. Any thoughts on how to rectify this situation?

[@shave-a-thon3415]

The razor he's using was updated in 2016. The old mold for the top cap and base plate was worn out so they were redesigned. If you have the newer model, you'll notice that the triangle (arrow) on the base plate isn't as close to the notch on the top cap. See my photos in this thread: www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/suggestions-for-calibrating-new-merkur-progress-long-handle.484279/ By now you've probably figured out the problem with the ring. If I saw your post last month, I would have mentioned that you have to squeeze the ring to get the shaft to fit back in. Join a shaving forum and post your questions. This razor is discussed at length on Badger and Blade and several other forums.

[@dvd1966]

Just got mine won’t squeeze back together

[@manjunatha9707]

But do we really need a razor so expensive? Adjustable, comb edged,etc... I have got all the 4 types of razors with me.philps electric,merkur plain razor, Gillette twin blades razor and cut throat or barber razor. But i love barbers razor.

[@azbikerider49]

I just got one and I will say, The finish could be better. The flutes have like micro dings. You can see them and if you run your fingernail it will catch them. Not a deal breaker for me but I spotted them right away. It also has some weight to it, I have the long handle version. That surprised me a little. I started on 4 and wow, I needed to back it down to like 2.5 I'm a bit new to this stuff but have been using a Gillette Slim for a long time. Are there people making metal knobs for this? and if so, who and where?

[@chirhomin]

There are folks who make metal knobs for them. Mergress is the most famous, but also the most expensive.

[@NaturallyAspirated250]

Fantastic video, do you know when Merkur started to make this razor? It's obviously an older design than the Gillette adjustable but how long ago since inception?

[@chirhomin]

+Dan Hecht Great question! TBH, I don't know. I have a Progress (the gold short handle one) that's from the late 50's/early 60's. I know that they were making "Progress style" heads in the early 50's, and I've even seen some three piece razors with the same head. IDK if it's actually an "older" design than Gillette (although, some people claim that the Progress was around in the 40's), I think that they were contemporaries, which puts the initial start date of the Progress probably in the mid 50's, as a contemporary of the first Gillette adjustables.

[@chirhomin]

I’ve been on the lookout for an Apollo Mikron! If I ever find one, I’ll do a video!

[@paulholbach3716]

Since at least 1956. I have a photo of a Merkur catalog showing the 500 from that year.

[@GilaMonster971]

Soak the knob in fabric dye if you don’t like the color. It permanently dyes it.

[@chrisjee18]

When will you upload a Goatee update?

[@chirhomin]

+chrisjee18 My Goatee isn't long enough to do anything with. It just sort of sits on my face right now. :) But it's in a couple of my newer videos.

[@dukamrgud1934]

I like progress Razor but Futur is much better .and precious

[@Illuminati089]

Parker variant is better build quality and grip plus looks alot nicer.

[@vassiliostsokis9854]

Hi, I disagree. I had both razors (today I have the merkur progress long version only). The merkur has much better build quality regarding allignment of the blade. I returned my Parker as all replacements I got had the same blade allignment issues. One side was more agressive than the other one which is a serious issue while shaving. In addition Parker is made in India and Merkur in Germany which should be a strong argument for the Merkur per se :-)

[@GilaMonster971]

@@vassiliostsokis9854 yeah I have had my Merker Mergress (custom stainless steal knob) fot about 15 years. It’s a perfect razor and I shave my head and face with it for $0.10/week (Astra blades).

[@mikerose51]

The Parker Varient is better

[@vassiliostsokis9854]

Hi, I disagree. I had both razors (today I have the merkur progress long version only). The merkur has much better build quality regarding allignment of the blade. I returned my Parker as all replacements I got had the same blade allignment issues. One side was more agressive than the other one which is a serious issue while shaving. In addition Parker is made in India and Merkur in Germany which should be a strong argument for the Merkur per se :-)