the quest for just-right, parker 92r razor

I bought another safety razor. This is getting ridiculous.

But as ridiculous as this is, I had to do it and I'll explain why.

Okay, Parker 92R safety razor. Let's talk about this.

Actually, before I do that, the four razors above from left-to-right is the Parker 78R, Parker 60R, Parker 92R, and King C Gillette.

The 78R, a 3-piece style razor, is 2.9oz. The 60R, a TTO (twist-to-open) style razor, is 2.75oz. The 92R, a TTO, is 3.2oz. The King C Gillette, a 3-piece, is 3.5oz.

Opening the head on both the 60R and 92R is the same. Grab the upper portion of the handle, twist the lower portion, head opens. Easy enough.

I wanted the 92R for two reasons. Grip and weight. It is easier to grip the 92R when compared to the 60R. And from what I can tell so far (I've only had it a short time), the 92R's aggressiveness is the same as the 60R, which is mild. I'll talk about the weight more in a moment.

Of the 4 razors I have now, the King C is the mildest of the lot, while the 78R is the most aggressive. This is not to say the 78R is an aggressive razor since it's not open comb, but of this set it is. If you don't know what open comb is, see Parker 68S and 24C. Those are (or at least should be) truly aggressive razors.

The 78R also has the best grip by far of the 4. No question. Second best is the 92R, then the 60R, then the King C. While the King C looks like it has decent grip on the upper portion of the handle, it doesn't.

What I wanted in addition to a TTO with better grip was also slightly more overall weight but not too much. The 92R satisfies that requirement.

As I've said before, with DE shaving, you're supposed to "let the blade do the work". In order for that to happen, you need two things. A decent blade, and a razor with an aggressiveness and weight that agrees with your face.

What I mean by "decent blade" is something sharp that doesn't wreck your face. That may be a Shark Super Chrome, or maybe Astra Superior Platinum, Feather, Kai, BiC Chrome Platinum, Personna, whatever.

The 92R has the grip I was looking for and is roughly a half-ounce heavier than the 60R. Its weight is as physically heavy as I'd want from a safety razor. Any heavier than that would bother me, which is one reason I don't use my King C anymore.

However, I wish it had grip as good as the 78R. If the 92R had a handle like the 78R, wow that would be near-perfection. But that doesn't exist.

What does exist however is the 82R. Same weight and length as the 92R, different handle with straight-line style machining...

...but I'm not getting that unless I feel I need to. I just got the 92R and need to use it for a while before deciding to get anything else. The 92R might be the one I stay with for the long haul. Or not. Time will tell.

Published 2025 Jun 3