Merkur Progress Squared || Two Progress - which one should I keep?

Today two old friends are back on screen. The Merkur Progress is definitely right up there with the best of them for a gentle daily shave.
Here is the stuff I used as amazon affiliate links, thanks for your support
Progress short: amzn.to/3rz6OeV
Progress long: amzn.to/3ruJVcD
Mitchell's Wool Fat shaving soap: amzn.to/3PK7WnM
Pinaud Clubman: amzn.to/3PZsZnV
Nivea Men Aftershave Balm: amzn.to/45hm2TD
‪@merkurshave1274‬ ‪@MarkSzorady‬ ‪@SinatraLennon‬ ‪@Glatt-Rasiert‬ ‪@kevyshaves4109‬ ‪@kensurfs‬ ‪@geofatboy‬ ‪@RazorEmporium‬ ‪@GregTardif‬

[@SenorRossi70]

The Merkur Progress 500 is the favorite in my collection ! 😍

[@saguarosmart4100]

Great shave ! I definitely am interested to see a video about your top 5 razors and hear your thoughts.

[@ChristiansWetShavingWorld]

Nice shave Heiko, but I have to correct you, the Merkur Blades used to be made in Germany, but they are now made in the Czech Republic.... people say it is made by Czech Blades who made the tiger blades and used to produce the Astra Blades. Greetings from Germany Christian

[@Heiko-shaves]

Thanks for the info!

[@ChristiansWetShavingWorld]

@@Heiko-shaves you are welcome. That's why I save my one and only German Merkur blade, which I got together with my razor - pricewise they are far too expensive with around 70€ for 100! By the way is the German blade also a bit tucky? I ask, because the Czech one is so for me.

[@NickzAndMikz]

@@ChristiansWetShavingWorldThanks for the info!

[@ChristiansWetShavingWorld]

@@NickzAndMikz you are welcome 🤗 greetings from Germany!

[@philcappa4044]

Classic Pinaud Clubman is one of my favorites. The scent reminds me of my grandfather’s barbershop. The same company makes Osage Rub…but that’s not for the faint of heart :)

[@williammurphy1756]

Nice shave. Your Pinaud Clubman aftershave reminds me of walking into a barber shop. Love that scent. 👍👍👍

[@clemmc37]

Clubman citrus musk is my absolute favorite aftershave.

[@Heiko-shaves]

I'll check it out.

[@ivermec-tin666]

MWF is so fatty that no pre or post shave is necessary. It has a remarkable post shave feel which makes it a wonderful choice in Winter.

[@normchristopherson5799]

My Merkur Progress is my main razor. I like the shorter handle however the one negative about this razor for me is the handle is too slippery when wet. I really wish the handle was deeply knurled instead of the groves running vertically. The vertical groves make it easy to slip between my fingers. Otherwise, this a great razor.

[@Heiko-shaves]

The cheap fix is wrapping a rubber band around the handle. It isn't pretty but definitely works. I wish the progress handle would be removable.

[@flitch77]

Very nice shave. I've never really thought much about handle length, but it's interesting to see you talk about it. You should definitely do a Top 5! I own two 6C and one 2C, because i realized I am to lazy to switch base plates during a shave 🤣 I do hope you start exploring different razor blades in the near future, especially with some of the razors you thought were to aggressive or didn't feel smooth. I never wore a lot of colognes either, for the same reason, but I have also always loved how after shaves are subtle and people have always said how nice I smell. Cheers and have a great week!

[@Heiko-shaves]

Good point. I will look into razor blades. I am regularly switching brands I just haven't incorporated that into my review process. Greetings , Heiko

[@MisterRz]

the mixture of a progress and a feather blade would be a very interesting mix 😅

[@Heiko-shaves]

I have used a feather in it. It is still a very manageable razor.

[@frankmintenig]

Hi Heiko, die Mitchell's Woolfat Soap ist auch eine meiner Lieblingsrasierseifen. Das enthaltene Lanolin tut wirklich seine Wirkung, meine Haut fühlt sich damit nach der Rasur sehr weich und mit Feuchtigkeit versorgt an. Deine Erfahrung, dass die Haut nach einer Zeit die Hobelrasur besser toleriert, kann ich nur bestätigen. Ich glaube, das habe ich sogar früher schonmal unter eines Deiner Videos geschrieben. Ich rasiere mich mittlerweile seit ca. 2 Jahren mit Rasierhobeln und nachdem ich sehr mild begonnen habe (King C. Gillette u.ä.) mag ich mittlerweile Rasierhobel mit offenem Kamm sogar lieber. Das hätte ich mich am Anfang sicher nicht getraut, noch hätte meine Haut das am Anfang toleriert. Ein Video mit Deinen 5 Lieblingshobeln würde mich interessieren. Bin ich gespannt drauf. Mach weiter so, ich mag die Machart Deiner Videos sehr!

[@Heiko-shaves]

Vielen Dank. Ich bleib dran und vielleicht eines Tages ist sogar ein Mühle R41 in meiner täglichen Rotation .

[@Shaverboy516]

Great shave Heiko, I have both and love them both, considering you have large hands the long handle seems better for you, but it’s a personal preference as to which one you like.

[@brianerskine3046]

Nice combo shave today ,I do like the shorter razor handle it's good for me to used, 🪒have a great day eh 💈🐦

[@Heiko-shaves]

Thanks, you too!

[@tompope6522]

Short handle all the way for me x

[@clemmc37]

If you're ever ready to try a new pre shave give Cella pre shave ge in the red tubel a try. It's super super slick with little to no scent, and it's cheap.

[@Heiko-shaves]

I will put that on the list. Thank you.

[@melteds3008]

Great shave Heiko, and it would be good to hear your thoughts on your top five razors. 👍

[@boostedbliss07MK5]

Lol! Clubman pinaud “aftershave lotion” is my favorite! Takes me back to my 1st barber Visits as a young man. My wife LOVES the smell on me more then any others. I liked the citrus musk but she said it smelled like bug spray & I can’t un smell it! 😂😂 The lime sec is also good! In regards to “aftershave lotion” my father in law was a pharmacist & said if you look up pharmaceutical definition of lotion it states “Pharmacology. a liquid, usually aqueous or sometimes alcoholic preparation containing insoluble material in the form of a suspension or emulsion, intended for external application” Since it’s alky based it’s a “lotion” 😮 he said this labeling was more prominent on older products like this.

[@jmw3938]

“Aftershave lotion”is what Brits and Australians call aftershave splash. I’d never heard of “splash” until I started watching YT shaving videos.

[@Heiko-shaves]

Thanks for sharing.

[@channelsixtyseven067]

The Merkur 38C was my first razor, I liked the result so much, I stuck with the Merkur brand. I prefer the long handled versions so, I have the 38C, 39C and the Progress 510. I like placing the pinky finger under the end of the handle, the long handle is more suited for that.

[@Heiko-shaves]

Merkur is good value and I like the fact that they are still made in Germany. They just haven't done anything innovative in a long while. There are no stainless or Titanium razors. I think they are missing out on some opportunities.

[@channelsixtyseven067]

@@Heiko-shaves Muhle make an all-stainless model, but it is expensive in Australian play money.

[@LawrenceWhitaker]

I love my Rockwell T2. My rotation is a different razor every day, and goes roughly thus: Rockwell T2, Rockwell 6C, Rex Ambassador or Pearl Flexi, Gillette Super Adjustable (Black Beauty), Gillette Fatboy, Gillette Slim. All adjustables, all comfortable shavers. I occasionally swap out one of the razors for my Aristocrat, Long Comb Tech, or Gillette Rocket. As you can see, there's more Gillette in there than anything else, and that's because they're all superb shavers, and I like shaving with a vintage razor. But of the modern adjustables, I think the Rockwell T2 is best. The Progress just doesn't hold much of an attraction for me. I'm not keen on the design, so it's one I'll pass on - but always good to see you do these comparisons!

[@Heiko-shaves]

That is a pretty nice line up.

[@10floz30minutes]

video display of the Pinaud ingredients was/were blurry. Link for Amazon does include list of ingredients. Very few ingredients.

[@cammac9957]

I would go for the long handle razor.but I think if you can't decide between the two razors then maybe it is because you enjoy using the two of them.

[@Heiko-shaves]

Decisions, decisions. I have so many other razors that I barely use. Some of them are getting close to the chopping block.

[@cammac9957]

I have quite few razors but my biggest problem is soaps and creams I'm afraid to count them.

[@GilaMonster971]

I prefer the long handle, much easier to use while shaving my head. I have the Opgress and Mergress knobs…of the two I like the Opgress knob better. But if you don’t like the ugly white knob you can soak it in fabric dye and dye it any color you want. I dyed my original knob black.

[@Heiko-shaves]

That is interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[@Glatt-Rasiert]

Hallo Heiko, prima Rasur, mit zwei sehr coolen deutschen Rasierern. Ich bevorzuge den Long-Handle. Beide Progresse im Bestand zu behalten mach echt keinen Sinn. Ich bin gespannt, wie du dich entscheidest. Das Pinaud Clubman soll nach meiner Info das bevorzugte After Shave von Donald Trump sein. Insoweit ein vielleicht bald ein noch populärerer Duft, der aber auch mir etwas ‚too much‘ ist. Eine mega heftige Lavendel-Keule. Schöne Grüße in die States Jörg

[@Heiko-shaves]

Du kennst dich mit Düften aus. Ich wünschte, ich hätte auch all das Fachjargon drauf, dass du in deinen video benutzt. Früher ist man immer zu Douglas gegangen und hat 27 Düfte ausprobiert und dann einfach eine Flasche gekauft. Kennst du den Duft Kiton? Das war mal mein lieblings Duft, damals als ich noch jung und hübsch war.

[@Glatt-Rasiert]

@@Heiko-shaves Das Kiton muss Mitte der 90er auf den Markt gekommen sein. Ich kann mich noch ein Wenig an den Duft erinnern. Der war echt gut. Mittlerweile ist die Produktion allerdings eingestellt. Aktuell gibt es noch das ‚Kiton Red‘ was dem Original sehr ähnlich sein soll. Bei meinem nächsten Besuch in der Parfümerie werde ich den mal testen. Das Zeugs ist ziemlich teuer. 270 US-$ für 100 ml :-(

[@boostedbliss07MK5]

I won’t try mitchels. It has EDTA in it. Not my favorite ingredient. I do enjoy stirling’s scots pine wool fat shave soap. Smells like a pine tree & lather is definitely creamier and denser then their other soaps which I love.

[@Heiko-shaves]

I did not know. Thanks for sharing.

[@ivermec-tin666]

I don't want to ingest anything with edta in it, but I am unaware of any negative impact from it's use in cosmetics. Are you?

[@MisterRz]

They say wool fat is hard to lather up. is it true?

[@Heiko-shaves]

No, I would have to disagree. At least the Mitchell's soap is fine.

[@alfursan291]

keep the long handle Heiko

[@jackkeller737]

Sorry for offending.

[@kurtmuller1861]

Behalte den langen Merkur Progress.

[@Heiko-shaves]

Ich habe den kurzen behalten und den langen verkauft.

[@kurtmuller1861]

@@Heiko-shaves 😲

[@jmw3938]

Another top video, Heiko, although you should probably just nail your colours to the mast and say whether you prefer the long or the short handled version. As I’ve mentioned before, I have had no luck with either of my Merkur razors (a short handled Progress and a 34C). They are poorly made, unfortunately. I know you suggested I contact Merkur, but, to be quite honest, I can’t be bothered: I just don’t use them. I have plenty of alternatives. Cheers. 👍🪒