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132 Blades - Gillette Winner is a loser

Not a lot to say here, the daily entries speak well enough for themselves. The blade is not a bottom dweller but it isn't far off. No additional charts as the bottom or top items have not been changed by this blade. In looking at the rankings for only the first 4 shaves, the blade moves up a little but still, it is no reason to spend any more time on this review. In the daily review, the last shave was ATG, not ETG.
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FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
Thank you for posting this. I was wondering if the "Winner" was a sham or not.
 
The Gillette Winner Platinum is made for Gillette by a third party if the Indian (subcontinent) friends I speak to in another forum are correct. It may be Vertice.

**** Correction - the Gillette Winner Stainless are made by Vertice. The Plats are made by Gillette.
 
Not a lot to say here, the daily entries speak well enough for themselves. The blade is not a bottom dweller but it isn't far off. No additional charts as the bottom or top items have not been changed by this blade. In looking at the rankings for only the first 4 shaves, the blade moves up a little but still, it is no reason to spend any more time on this review. In the daily review, the last shave was ATG, not ETG.
View attachment 1759032


Was it stainless or platinum?


The Gillette Winner Platinum is made for Gillette by a third party if the Indian (subcontinent) friends I speak to in another forum are correct. It may be Vertice.

**** Correction - the Gillette Winner Stainless are made by Vertice. The Plats are made by Gillette.


I have both but I would have to look at the tucks again. I thought they were both outsourced. As I recall, neither blade was all that great for me.
 

Jay21

Collecting wife bonus parts
I've been reading your blade reviews for quite some time with great interest. I'm impressed with your enthusiasm and commitment to test blades and communicate your findings with the community.

I do feel compelled to say one thing, however (the dreaded "but"). I'm not a very skilled DE wet shaver, but I virtually never get any weepers, cuts, or nicks. Shaving with DE blades is essentially a blood-free affair for me. This is very much a YMMV lifestyle, and blades that work for one person may not work for another. I don't know how long you've been using DE razors, and I hope I don't offend you, but the amount of blood you report during your tests is quite shocking to me. I think it may skew your opinions of blades. Is it possible there are issues outside of the blades themselves? Technique? An underlying skin condition?
 
I've been reading your blade reviews for quite some time with great interest. I'm impressed with your enthusiasm and commitment to test blades and communicate your findings with the community.

I do feel compelled to say one thing, however (the dreaded "but"). I'm not a very skilled DE wet shaver, but I virtually never get any weepers, cuts, or nicks. Shaving with DE blades is essentially a blood-free affair for me. This is very much a YMMV lifestyle, and blades that work for one person may not work for another. I don't know how long you've been using DE razors, and I hope I don't offend you, but the amount of blood you report during your tests is quite shocking to me. I think it may skew your opinions of blades. Is it possible there are issues outside of the blades themselves? Technique? An underlying skin condition?
seconded
ive been shaving with DE razors for less than half the time ive shaved with carts, and i dare say that ive cut myself using carts more than ive cut myself shaving with DEs
 
I've been reading your blade reviews for quite some time with great interest. I'm impressed with your enthusiasm and commitment to test blades and communicate your findings with the community.

I do feel compelled to say one thing, however (the dreaded "but"). I'm not a very skilled DE wet shaver, but I virtually never get any weepers, cuts, or nicks. Shaving with DE blades is essentially a blood-free affair for me. This is very much a YMMV lifestyle, and blades that work for one person may not work for another. I don't know how long you've been using DE razors, and I hope I don't offend you, but the amount of blood you report during your tests is quite shocking to me. I think it may skew your opinions of blades. Is it possible there are issues outside of the blades themselves? Technique? An underlying skin condition?
The question makes sense. Before I started this journey, my go-to blade was a Viking Sword. That was a blade that I was very satisfied with and one that I used almost exclusively with the occasional Wilkinson Sword thrown in. Weepers had become a rarity, 1-2 a month maybe and a bleeder hadn't been seen in years, literally. This test has largely changed that but there have been a few blades that were bloodless, or nearly so, over 6-7 shaves. I have been wet shaving for over 10 years now and given my past performance, am not concerned about my technique. What I have not been doing is treating these different blades with "kid gloves". I shave each time like I have been for so long. Sometimes it pays off and sometimes it does not. To be honest, before this test, I judged blood events by what I could see in the mirror after a final rinse. For this test, after the rinse, I blot my face with white TP and count each red dot as a weeper/bleeder depending. Weepers I can blot once and they're done with. Bleeders keep giving a bit. That means ANY size red dot adds one to the count. Is this an issue? Maybe. The GSB brought this into specific relief or me. Previously, I could see 1 or 2 weepers and the test would give me a count of 5. With the GSB, generally I would see NONE visibly and get 6-7 very tiny ones. My question is evolving into whether or not wet shaving results in these micro-nicks that are more common than thought but not often seen. I'm kind of thinking this is the case because from the beginning of my wet shaving practice aftershave was touted as a wise part of the process, likely for the very reason that these little nicks are present but unnoticed.

Thanks for the concern though, it is food for thought. Best wishes for the holiday.
 
Having gone back and reviewed the topic of shaving hygiene, something I have not done in 9.5 years, it appears that, yes, micro-cuts or micro-tears are indeed a thing that needs to be watched out for and that is what drives the recommendation for a good aftershave. In reading though, it also appears that the lather achieved has a significantly mitigating effect. I started with Arko shaving soap when I began this journey and that was a brand new soap for me. I like the soap but SWMBO loves the after shave scent it leaves (darn near sets off a scent bomb in your nose then you're shaving though). Prior to this test, it was C.O. Bigelow or Prorazo creams for me. Can't go back now, I have committed to one soap, 1 razor and 1 brush for the entire length of the test.
 
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