When to upgrade

Just to complicate what I said earlier, I would say that the best razor I own (in terms of overall performance) is a Henson AL13 Mild, but my favourite razor to use is the EJ DE87 (which cost nearly half as much).

I just find it more enjoyable to use than the Henson. It has more soul, or mojo, or some such nonsense.

GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) is very common with any hobby. I gave myself 3 months before trying a new shaving head. I still use the first shaving handle I bought, a Maggard MR8 since I knew I wanted a heavy stainless one. I'd start with head replacements as they're cheaper and you are used to the handle still.

As for blades, it should be love or hate after three shaves as a new user. Change blades after and see if you like or dislike the change. If the latter ditch those blades into a sharps container and keep changing samples.

Let me give you a little advice:

If you shave with a Mercure 34 and everything suits you, then find out the GAP of this razor and select new razors with the same GAP. (The most popular and sought-after razors: Rockwel6S, Karve, Mercur Progress....Edwin Jagger, Muhle 89 ) And if you are not satisfied with the feel of the merkur, then if you want to be more aggressive, look gap up the next razor. (I recommend that you take some kind of razor with replaceable plates - Rockwel6S, Karve - this way you can choose the aggressiveness that you need and are comfortable with - without suffering on the price if you bought a bunch of razors)

Let me give you a little advice:

If you shave with a Mercure 34 and everything suits you, then find out the GAP of this razor and select new razors with the same GAP. (The most popular and sought-after razors: Rockwel6S, Karve, Mercur Progress....Edwin Jagger, Muhle 89 ) And if you are not satisfied with the feel of the merkur, then if you want to be more aggressive, look gap up the next razor. (I recommend that you take some kind of razor with replaceable plates - Rockwel6S, Karve - this way you can choose the aggressiveness that you need and are comfortable with - without suffering on the price if you bought a bunch of razors)

What he said. 
Here's a useful chart for comparing blade gap in many popular razors, including adjustable razors at different settings: https://ca.abovethetie.com/pages/blade-gap-comparison-1
I used a chart like it to select the Edwin Jagger DE87 (same head as the Muhle R89 / Edwin Jagger DE89 in the chart), comparing it to the Gillette Slim Adjustable, Gillette LC New, and Tech that I already had.

A Feather blade is not necessarily an upgrade. It depends upon your beard and your skin. I have a very tough, coarse beard and a Derby Extra blade is not sharp enough to cut through the stubble. It tries to rip out the hairs, a most painful experience.

With my coarse beard, you might think the super sharp Feather blades might be ideal. That is the case for the first couple of shaves, but the edge of the Feather blades is so thin/sharp that it rapidly deteriorates. I cannot even make it through the third shave before the blade feels harsh on my sensitive skin. Thus, for me, Feather blades are NOT an upgrade.

I do like very sharp blades, but my top choices are BIC Chrome Platinum, Gillette Nacet, 7 O'Clock Super Platinum black, Gillette PermaSharp Super, Personna Platinum (formerly known as Israeli Reds, but now made in Germany, and Wilkinson Sword Classic blades made in Germany. Some less well-known blades that I love are Dorco Prime Platinum STP301, Durablade Sharp Titanium, Vidyut Super Max Blue Diamond, and Lord/Shark Platinum, and Astra Superior Stainless (but not Astra Superior Platinum, which I find to be too dull for my beard).

Many guys with average beards love blades such as Gillette Platinum, and Gillette Silver Blue, and Wizamet Super Iridium. While they do not work for me, the Astra Superior Platinum blades are the best selling blades on Amazon and most shaving vendors. If you can use Derby Extra blades, then the Astra SP blades might work well for you.

I recommend that you purchase a sampler pack with about a dozen tucks of various blades ranging from mild Derby Extra blades to the super-sharp Feather blades. Once you determine whether you like sharp blades, medium blades or mild blades, you can then start finding the perfect blade for you. However, blade selection is very much razor dependent. I like using super sharp blades in milder razors, but would not use a super sharp blade in a very aggressive razor like the Muhle R41. For that razor, I use mild-medium blades such as the 7 O'Clock Sharpedge yellow blades. The impact of your beard, skin, and razor on blade selection is the reason that blades tend to be one of the most controversial topics in wet shaving. You need to determine which blades work best with your beard, your skin, and your razors.

Some thoughts from a Newbie, that might help with your development;
I found that as soon as I had good technique - I preferred a sharp blade and a razor that gave a blade feel,

I tried Astra Green, Personna and Feather.
To my surprise - using the sharpest of them all got me a nick free, irritation free shave. 
I am guessing that using the Feather forced me to be very gentle with razor pressure, very careful, The blade got me a BBS on 3 passes. 
The Merkur is very forgiving, go ahead and try, you will be positively surprised if you go gentle. 

Work, Play, Shave Every Day 
Jackie

Some thoughts from a Newbie, that might help with your development;
I found that as soon as I had good technique - I preferred a sharp blade and a razor that gave a blade feel,

I tried Astra Green, Personna and Feather.
To my surprise - using the sharpest of them all got me a nick free, irritation free shave. 
I am guessing that using the Feather forced me to be very gentle with razor pressure, very careful, The blade got me a BBS on 3 passes. 
The Merkur is very forgiving, go ahead and try, you will be positively surprised if you go gentle. 

Work, Play, Shave Every Day 
Jackie

Jackie 

After some time shaving I completely agree. I've, learned that short strokes slows me down to enjoy the process.
I've also found that for me I get the best shave using a Sword blade in my Rockwell 6s.
Right now I'm trying the Nacet blade and after the last 3 shaves it's pretty close to the Sword.
I've tried the Feather ( I gave it 8 shaves, 3 different blades) in the 34c and 6s but found I just don't get the same results even after 3 passes.
Tony

Some thoughts from a Newbie, that might help with your development;
I found that as soon as I had good technique - I preferred a sharp blade and a razor that gave a blade feel,

I tried Astra Green, Personna and Feather.
To my surprise - using the sharpest of them all got me a nick free, irritation free shave. 
I am guessing that using the Feather forced me to be very gentle with razor pressure, very careful, The blade got me a BBS on 3 passes. 
The Merkur is very forgiving, go ahead and try, you will be positively surprised if you go gentle. 

Work, Play, Shave Every Day 
Jackie

Jackie 

After some time shaving I completely agree. I've, learned that short strokes slows me down to enjoy the process.
I've also found that for me I get the best shave using a Sword blade in my Rockwell 6s.
Right now I'm trying the Nacet blade and after the last 3 shaves it's pretty close to the Sword.
I've tried the Feather ( I gave it 8 shaves, 3 different blades) in the 34c and 6s but found I just don't get the same results even after 3 passes.
Tony

Tony - the 6S with plate 4 is my daily driver and I've found the Astra SPs work tremendously well with that razor.  Have you tried the SPs in the 6S?

Rockwell is a great razor but it is as heavy as a club.  Massamune would be a great second step, too.

Gillette Tech in my opinion is a very nice second step.

Rockwell is a great razor but it is as heavy as a club.  Massamune would be a great second step, too.

Gillette Tech in my opinion is a very nice second step.

The 6C is a good lighter weight option.

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