Customer Rating: 
Summary: This is not a "safety" Razor
Comment: I first started shaving with one of these things many years ago. For nostalgic reasons, if for no other, I ordered this razor. After receiving and loading it with a blade, I became painfully aware of why these things are no longer commonly available on the market, and why I was so glad to see the banded razors come into play. The Merkur blades are indeed sharp. However, it still felt as though my beard was being pulled out one hair at a time. Guys, there is a reason the single and double edged "safety" razors fell out of favor and style. The term safety razor is an oxymoron. The primary reasons relate more to comfort than to blood loss, although both are valid concerns. One thing about ownership of this thing; your wife won't be borrowing it. If she does, it will only be once. Still, it does give a reasonably close shave, or as close as you dare. With my banded razor, I could bear down on an area of my face that came out less than smooth after the first try. If I try that with this straight edged thing, I'll be going to the emergency room. A few years ago, I got into straight edged razors. Those things are also fine and will give you a reasonably close shave, providing you have the time to devote to shaving; God help you if you oversleep and look in the mirror with thoughts of doing this "quickly." The moral of all of this is, get the double edged razor if the rising cost of banded razors is your primary concern. However, don't throw away your banded razor and ensure you take your time with the double edged razor. If you get in a hurry, or are otherwise heavy-handed, you will need plenty of towels, styptic sticks, and band-aids.
Customer Rating: Summary: Not as difficult to use as one might think!
Comment: Just finished my first shave with this razor and no cuts, no razor burn, and the closest smoothest shave I've ever had.
Granted, you have to pay a little bit more attention to what you are doing with this razor - also, you have to do it right with a badger brush and shaving soap (I used the $13 badger brush form Amazon and Col. conk's shaving soap).
It's all about patience - short, careful strokes with almost no pressure (let the weight of the razor do the work) and after the first pass, re-lather and make a second pass.
It took me a little bit longer to shave, but this is easily the best shave I've ever had - it beats my Norelco Reflex to shreds, and is also better than the venerable Gilette Mach 3.
I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone wanting a better shaving experience. But you just have to remember to be careful and go slowly. If you want to rush through shaving and just get it over with then stick with an electric that can't take your face off like this thing can :-)
Customer Rating: Summary: Smooth as a baby's bottom!
Comment: Being 25 years old and far from financially wealthy, I became sick of paying so much for cartridge blades and looked into my grandpa's way of shaving. After reading lots of reviews, I went with the Merkur Classic as my first safety razor and couldn't be happier.
First off, there's definitely a learning curve. I was hasty and impatient and the first couple weeks of shaving (I'm not that hairy of a guy, I only need to shave every other day) were a bit dreadful. If you buy this razor, I really encourage you to take a few minutes to study the direction that your hairs grow. I now make about two passes following the grain, then go back for one or two more passes against it. I'm also using a badger hair brush ($25) and some shaving cream that I found at Bath & Body Works (It's in a green tube, cost about $10 for enough to last seemingly forever, and it works great!)
Be warned that these will take more time to shave with. Whereas I could shave with my old Mach 3 in about 5 minutes, I now set aside about 20. However, the closeness of the shave, the reduced irritation, and the warm badger hair brush definitely make it worth the extra time.
Happy shaving!
Customer Rating: Summary: Great to learn with
Comment: If I had all the information on how to get a good shave with a single edge that is now available on the Internet, I would probably still be using my old Schick injector instead of abandoning it many years ago. Since that item is missing, I tried the Merkur 178 to apply this new (to me) knowledge. The heavy weight and handle length make it easy to get the right angle and pressure to learn the wet shaving method. So far I have been able to learn with this one with only very minimal damage to my face.
Customer Rating: Summary: Amazing difference
Comment: I bought this razor from another place, but I had been scoping it out here for awhile and felt I had to write a review. I'm 20 years old so I'm not an old timer with nostalgia, I just was looking for a better shave. It just happens to be a better shave that is much much cheaper.
When I first got this I was afraid of cutting my face off. I'm happy to say I've been using it a week with not a single cut. It is absolutely amazing how much better this is than my old Gillette fusion. It is much closer, and absolutely zero irritation. Even where I used to get irritated on my neck is absolutely irritation free. I seriously recommend taking the plunge and getting one of these. You won't regret it, and it will quickly pay for itself.
