Blade Wars: Voskhod vs. Wilkinson Sword Classic

[cw62803]

Who put the blades in the razors, ?

I predict the winner will be ws, used the voskhod, terrible pulling , tugging, call it what u want, for my beard type this was terrible, ws has performed better on me

Jm2cents

You may be right, but I'm rooting for the Voskhod. I have four more Wilkinson Swords and about 200 more Voskhods!

I put the blades in the razors. (The Razorock Mentor and Protege heads I use for these blind tests are difficult to align.) The stainless handles have a knob at the bottom. After I color one with a Sharpie, I ask my wife to switch the razors around and screw the knobs into the handles so I won't know which is which.

 

[genuinestyle]

this is genius, curious to hear the final results

 

[cw62803]

Shave 4
silver razor=right side, blue razor=left side
bowl lather, Soap Commander Courage

Pass 1 - silver: Very nice pass, much smoother than shave 3's first pass. Blade cut nicely.
blue: Felt very similar to the silver razor, a tiny bit smoother, but not much.

Pass 2 - Silver: very nice pass - a small amount of resistance.
Blue: very smooth, less drag than blue.

Pass 3: Silver: Very nice pass, smooth with very slight resistance. I felt less resistance than on the second pass.
Blue: There was a tiny bit less resistance than with the silver razor. The difference in resistance was smaller than it was during the second pass.

Both sides are close and irritation free. A very good shave. I finished with Nivea Sensitive balm.

Blue outperformed silver by a very small margin. The difference between the two razors is smaller than it was during the third shave. It seems like silver is actually getting better and blue may be slipping. I thought that if blue outperformed silver again today, I should call the match. But now I'm not so sure. The gap has narrowed.

On the first shave, blue won by a hair. Blue won the second shave by a little, and the third shave by a lot. On the fourth shave, it won by a hair again.

What do you think? Should I give silver another shot?

 

[Blaidth]

i would do one or two more shave and see unless irritation is too much, but remember you only did1/2 your face with each so really less shaves than doing your whole face. Each blade really only shaved twice as an average 4/2=2

 

[BigJ]

i would do one or two more shave and see unless irritation is too much, but remember you only did1/2 your face with each so really less shaves than doing your whole face. Each blade really only shaved twice as an average 4/2=2

+1. Agree. You are only doing half of the usual shave with each blade.

 

[cw62803]

i would do one or two more shave and see unless irritation is too much, but remember you only did1/2 your face with each so really less shaves than doing your whole face. Each blade really only shaved twice as an average 4/2=2

Good point. I'm going to follow your advice.

 

[kluber]

I think you need one more round.

 

[cw62803]

Shave 5 - It's over.
blue razor=right side, silver razor=left side
Face lather with RR Acquatico

Pass 1: Blue - very smooth, wonderful pass
Silver: tuggy, pully, unpleasant pass. It feels like the blade has had it.

Pass 2 - Blue: smooth, excellent pass
Sliver: Lots of drag and pull. I did not finish the second pass on my neck as the drag was excessive. Completed pass two with the blue, and then did a third pass with the blue, which is still plugging along.

This one is a knockout. The clear winner, using Mentor razors on my face, is the blade in the BLUE ​razor.

 

[cw62803]

THE REVEAL


The winner of the Voskhod vs. German Wilkinson Sword Classic razor blades...

In a fifth-round knockout...

Is the blade in the blue razor...

Leading on the judges' cards in each of five shaves...

Then knocking out its competitor who could not keep up...

And then finishing the job that silver could not do...

Is none other than...





​The Wilkinson Sword Classic

 

[Blaidth]

I'm surprised it was a knockout so soon.. I like Voskhods myself, they are in my lineup with Feathers and Israeli Reds, as well as my vintage blades.

 

[kluber]

I like voskhods as well. They give me a nice, comfortable shave but unlike others I can only get two shaves out a Voskhod before it begins to tug a bit.

Thanks for posting the comparison! Look forward to your next one.

 

[cw62803]

I'm surprised it was a knockout so soon.. I like Voskhods myself, they are in my lineup with Feathers and Israeli Reds, as well as my vintage blades.

I was surprised, too. Voskhods have given me some of the best shaves I've ever had. Some blades perform better in different razors. The Mentors I used are fairly aggressive, and evidently not the perfect pairing with Voskhods.

 

[cw62803]

I like voskhods as well. They give me a nice, comfortable shave but unlike others I can only get two shaves out a Voskhod before it begins to tug a bit.

Thanks for posting the comparison! Look forward to your next one.

That's exactly what I've experienced, too. Two, maybe three good shaves, then I toss them. I find the same thing in the other brands that come out of the Moscow factory like Rapira and Ladas.

I enjoy reading your comments. Any requests for a future comparison?

 

[CigarSmoka]

I'm a bit surprised the Voskhod gave up the ghost so soon. Voskhod are one of my faves, I just got 15 good shaves from one. Definitely a YMMV thing when it comes to blades.

 

[genuinestyle]

so the wilkinson got better with more shaves?? correct?? i'll have to re read your results. i just shaved today with the 3 layer coating( see pic) , i felt it tugged more than usual , i dont know whats going on with me and blades, my pre shave is the same routine, used stirling soap great protection, i might have to revisit the GSB and perma sharp, i got 75 blades of the wilkies, i had such good results....

 

[Floyd Eye]

I used a Voshkod the other day and it was good. I have a 5 pack of Wilkinsons that I was going to give away or trash because I have read in multiple places that they are not good. I guess I'll try one and find out for myself.

 

[cw62803]

View attachment 665365

so the wilkinson got better with more shaves?? correct?? i'll have to re read your results. i just shaved today with the 3 layer coating( see pic) , i felt it tugged more than usual , i dont know whats going on with me and blades, my pre shave is the same routine, used stirling soap great protection, i might have to revisit the GSB and perma sharp, i got 75 blades of the wilkies, i had such good results....

The only pass that wasn't very smooth with the Wilkie was the first. The rest of the first shave was absolutely fantastic. I wouldn't say it got better in subsequent shaves, but it degraded very slowly. After 5 half-face shaves, it was still smooth and comfortable. GSB and Perma-sharps are two of my favorite blades. I pity the blade that goes up against them in a blade war

 

[cw62803]

I used a Voshkod the other day and it was good. I have a 5 pack of Wilkinsons that I was going to give away or trash because I have read in multiple places that they are not good. I guess I'll try one and find out for myself.

I had heard the same thing, and it certainly wasn't true for me.

 

[Floyd Eye]

I used a Wilkinson Sword Classic last night in an EJ DE861. It wasn't as horrible as I assumed based on what I have read, but it wasn't that great either. Certainly not as sharp or as smooth as the Voshkod.

 

[kluber]

That's exactly what I've experienced, too. Two, maybe three good shaves, then I toss them. I find the same thing in the other brands that come out of the Moscow factory like Rapira and Ladas.

I enjoy reading your comments. Any requests for a future comparison?

These comparisons are fun, so whatever you chose to go with will be a good read.

For my own personal interest, I haven't used polsilvers SI yet but they seem popular as a top tier blade. Would be interested in a comparison with them sometime in future.