When buying electric products, a compromise is likely unavoidable. I feel this way with electronics more than with most other products. This is partly because you never really know what’s inside the shell, and often the shell doesn’t look or feel good to begin with. It usually doesn’t help that they are made out of one of my least favorite materials – plastic.
Braun Micron (5410), 1976
My first electric shaver was an old one my father didn’t use anymore – a Braun Micron from the ’70s. It’s made out of plastic and aluminum. In some old products, plastic has the ability to look good. Having come to a full understanding of plastic’s negative environmental impact and the widespread use of low quality plastics today, products made of this ubiquitous material are usually a visual and psychological turn-off for me.
Max Braun introduced his first model of electric shavers, the S50, in 1951. He founded Braun in 1921, but true success arrived when the S50 came out. Previously, the company had thrived by manufacturing radios and record players, until the factory was destroyed during WWII. Production resumed again in 1947 after the war had ended and the factory had been rebuilt.
Braun Standard S50 (L80), 1951 / photos by marratime @ Picasa
The company’s excellent reputation for design and quality is mainly due to Dieter Rams. He joined the company in 1956 as one of 16 designers and started overseeing product design in 1961. He kept this position for an incredible 34 years. Rams, who also began designing furniture 1957 – is still an active designer and design consultant today.
Under Rams guidance, the classic Braun shavers appeared on the market. The Sixtant was a thick and solid little piece of machinery whose operating sound would make you believe that inside, a small locomotive was powering the thing. There is an air of myth around the model, as most of them still function perfectly today. And the two parts that require repeated exchange are still widely available – the block of blades and the thin metal foil that wraps around it.
Braun Sixtant Special SM2 (5220), 1963
Braun Sixtant SM3 (5310), 1962
Rams’s credo is “less, but better”. In an interview with Design Boom he is asked to describe his style: “In Japanese they say ‘wabi sabi’. Together these two concepts mean ‘tranquility, simplicity, balance’, but also ‘liveliness’. This is a point of reference for me… I have always been interested in mixing materials, in my earliest furniture designs. I mixed wood with plastic or aluminum”.
Braun Sixtant S (5330), 1968
About whether form follows function, Rams says “yes, form has to come after function, I can’t conceive of it in any other way. There are certainly psychological functions as well, it is a matter of balancing the aesthetic content with regard to use.” As other designers of influence, he names Jasper Morisson and George Nelson.
After Rams left Braun, the design of their products went downhill. Their current product line is a disaster in my mind. It probably didn’t help much in terms of design and quality when the company was swallowed by Procter and Gamble.
Unless you still have an old Braun, a wet shave seems the only solution.
Braun Cosmetic Shaver (5650), 1971 / photos by midcenturydesign @ flickr
Lady Braun Elegance (5660), 1979
Braun Cosmetic Shaver (5650), 1971
19 Comments
Greetinngs!
I enjoyed (and agreed with) your comments about the Braun shavers.
I was wondering if you know anything about the the #211 type 5511 Brauns. Are they quality, their worth etc.
Thanks, MichaelK
Michael – Don’t know the #211 type 5511, and couldn’t really find anything about them online. Thanks for reading, Sebastian
Michael – I did a bit more research on the 5511. The 5511 is also called Braun Sixtant BN. It was released in 1967 and designed by Richard Fischer and Dieter Rams. It looks very similar to the 5330 (pictured above), which was released a year later.
Does anyone still sell the old Braun Micron. I have a Braun 5556U that I have refurbished several times and would like to find another one similar for a spare. Any ideas?
Hi MCL,
The 5556, also called Micron S Universal, is a very nice shaver. But since it’s from 1986, when Braun was already putting out new products very fast, I don’t think there are a lot of them around. eBay maybe. I’ve also heard good things about a guy named Richard: http://electricshaverservicebyrichard.com/
Best, Sebastian
Great insight of the product. Indeed, Braun Electric Shavers gives real good performance with less burns and pinching Braun is very famous for its pulsonic vibration technology. Before buying, you can always evaluate how Braun shavers perform as compared to manual razors or blades, with their unique foil hair removing system.
http://www.bestbuyereviews.com/best-electric-shaver.html
hi, can i ask, what engineering materials r braun shavers shaving foil made from?
I’ve been using my Micron 5422 since I was 16 years old. I still use it everyday – some 25 years later! (hard to believe a quarter century!) A replacement cutter and foil every year or so makes it good as new! Great Product quality, looks great and gives me a great shave!! Very happy with my Micron 5422. Hopefully I’ll get another 25 out of it!!
I have had a Braun 5556 for ages but I now I need a new foil, cutter and plastic guard. I tried TotalVac but they do not ship to Canada. Cannot find anywhere esle that has all three – Can you help?
Thanks for the pics and the history notes on the Braun shavers! I just bought my 3rd one this one.
Mám rád solidní věci. Jednou z nich je i Braun Sixtant SM3, který jsem koupil v roce 1967. Od té doby mi věrně sloužil do letošního roku.
Občas jsem vyměnil planžetu, vyčistil mechaniku a strojek perfektně fungoval. Bohužel teď nemůžu sehnat planžetu, Můžete mi prosím poradit kde lze ještě koupit planžety ? Děkuji.
Alex. Dluhoš
I have the one you show as the “Braun Sixtant Special SM2 (5220), 1963″ but the box has only the words “Braun” and “standard” plus a photo of the upper half of the enclosed razor. I wonder if it was also called the “standard” like some of their previous models…
BTW, it still works great!
I would like to buy a 5422 or 5556 Micron 2000 shaver
can you help??
Hi Great Article ! I have the Braun 5561 and was wondering if anyone knows how to get this refurbished as the chargers gone ! a brilliant design may i say !
hola quisiera saver de la ultima que salio
cual es el modelo
I just found on a flee market four braun razors,
1 Sixtan BN 5511
1 Sixtan S 5330
1 Synchrone
and one Orange one (I don’t know what model)
My friend is a designer and loves Dieter Rams and I wanted to give him one of those for christmas and I have no idea of the value of these items.
I would like the razor to have been designed by Dieter Rams and as far as I understand he designed the 5511
Could you give me more information ?
thanks
Hi! I searching grid for Braun Sixtant S Shaver
))) Help me!
I have grid Braun micron/L 410. I want exchange!
I have grid Braun micron/L 410. I want exchange! I want Braun sixtant S grid! Email me temotsava@yahoo.com