Henson v1, v2, and Winning Razor

[Dtownvino]

Has anyone here tried the ‘Merica, Winning and compared them to the 921 M and H?

I have all 3, never tried my new winning yet, only an old one I had on loan. Don’t remember it being so memorable. ‘Merica is good but it’s just not as good as the M 921. H is fantastic if you need to “mow it down”.

 

[Skin_Flint]

I know! Can someone suggest a dullish blade that will only shave close enough to last one day? Then I could have that Winning feeling every day again!

 

[Dtownvino]

I know! Can someone suggest a dullish blade that will only shave close enough to last one day? Then I could have that Winning feeling every day again!

Shark Chrome

 

[The Hexagon]

I know! Can someone suggest a dullish blade that will only shave close enough to last one day? Then I could have that Winning feeling every day again!

I really like Voskhod. It is not as efficient and many blades but very smooth. I try others that are sharper but come back to this one. I have to do some more buffing and extra passes in trouble areas but no burn. Second and third shaves are better than first.

 

[Skin_Flint]

I really like Voskhod. It is not as efficient and many blades but very smooth. I try others that are sharper but come back to this one. I have to do some more buffing and extra passes in trouble areas but no burn. Second and third shaves are better than first.

I have a Vaskhod. Tomorrow I will have my 4th shave with the Dorco. When it’s wore out I’m going to try the Gillette Wilkinson Sword (India) followed by the Voskhod.

How many shaves do you get from each Voaskhod?

 

[The Hexagon]

I have a Vaskhod. Tomorrow I will have my 4th shave with the Dorco. When it’s wore out I’m going to try the Gillette Wilkinson Sword (India) followed by the Voskhod.

How many shaves do you get from each Voaskhod?

I have not tried more than 4 shaves with the Voskhod's. They are a dime a piece, so I have not felt the need to see how many shaves I can get. These are Teflon coated, and many people report the second shave is better than the first due to the wearing of the Teflon exposing a better blade.

 

[spacemonkey42]

I find the Voskhod way too dull for my whiskers, regardless of razor. I really wanted to like them, oh well, they work well for some folks.

 

[Skin_Flint]

I have not tried more than 4 shaves with the Voskhod's. They are a dime a piece, so I have not felt the need to see how many shaves I can get. These are Teflon coated, and many people report the second shave is better than the first due to the wearing of the Teflon exposing a better blade.

Interesting about the Teflon. I’ll be looking forward to the trial.

 

[StewB]

I got a Henson v2 mild for my daughter. Before trying the Henson she had never used a DE razor. She said it didn't work for her. I gave her a Merkur 34C and a Baili TTO to try and she said they both work better for her than the Henson.

I was a little surprised, so I had to try the Henson for myself. It's..interesting. I definitely have to use some pressure to get it to work. It feels a lot like shaving with a cartridge razor. For me, the cartridge razor feel is not a positive attribute (though this might be what they were going for). The mild is not very efficient for me and I end up doing a lot of buffing in a number of spots.

To give Henson razors a fair shake, I got a Henson medium from a fellow B&B member so I can compare it with the mild. Maybe it will be better.

For me, at least, the Winning is easier to use and more efficient than the Henson mild.

 

[kaufdrop27]

I got a Henson v2 mild for my daughter. Before trying the Henson she had never used a DE razor. She said it didn't work for her. I gave her a Merkur 34C and a Baili TTO to try and she said they both work better for her than the Henson.

I was a little surprised, so I had to try the Henson for myself. It's..interesting. I definitely have to use some pressure to get it to work. It feels a lot like shaving with a cartridge razor. For me, the cartridge razor feel is not a positive attribute (though this might be what they were going for). The mild is not very efficient for me and I end up doing a lot of buffing in a number of spots.

To give Henson razors a fair shake, I got a Henson medium from a fellow B&B member so I can compare it with the mild. Maybe it will be better.

For me, at least, the Winning is easier to use and more efficient than the Henson mild.

I made an offer on a Henson medium and the buyer accepted. I am looking forward to comparing it to the winning razor and seeing what the hype is about.

 

[Dtownvino]

I just finished my second shave with the Winning, and the shave was just about perfect. I got the Winning during the WSC blow out sale for $37 delivered! That makes it, by far, the best value of any razor in my collection. It's an amazing razor, built like a tank and should last nearly forever.
WSC has made a mistake by discontinuing it! I was delighted to hear that Yates will release it in other materials, with some refinements, before the end of the year.

I am not sure WSC chose to discontinue it. My theory is that Yates decided to quit making it to focus on their business. Did you ever see where they ship from? PA, not TX right next to where Yates is located.

 

[StewB]

I am not sure WSC chose to discontinue it. My theory is that Yates decided to quit making it to focus on their business. Did you ever see where they ship from? PA, not TX right next to where Yates is located.

My recollection was that Jake Yates said it was WSC's decision because the 'Merica was a better seller.

I tried the mild Henson v2 again this morning. I paired it with a long WCS (West Coast Shaving, not Wet Shaving Club) stainless handle, and this did improve the shave feel and performance a bit by adding some weight. Without the stainless handle the mild Henson feels like shaving with a cartridge razor. I still had to use pressure and a fair amount of buffing, and even after buffing I still had some "prickly" areas. I started to feel a bit of irritation and had to stop.

The mild Henson v2 is not a very efficient razor IMO. I got to a socially acceptable shave but it took some effort. At its price point and with all the hype about manufacturing tolerances I guess I expected better performance. I would say it's a fairly expensive razor that can provide socially acceptable shaves if you have some patience.

I'm going to ask my daughter to try it again and see if she still thinks the other DE razors I gave her are better.

 

[shave/brush]

It is my understanding that Henson razors are designated between models as +, ++, or +++. The first two are considered mild razors and the +++ is called aggressive. Anyone that wants a little more blade feel should try the +++ aggressive model.

 

[Dtownvino]

The ++ (medium) is a pretty efficient shave for me without pressure. The +++ is even better. I do not buy razors that have negative blade exposure (I also try to avoid neutral) as I get irritated when I buff or apply pressure to get as smooth as I want.

You probably know more than I do about the winning razor, I assumed as a whole it wasn’t a huge profit center.

 

[StewB]

Correct: They have mild (+), medium (++), and aggressive (+++). My testing has been with the mild (+).

My understanding is that the medium (++) isn't much more aggressive than the mild. I'll give it a shot but based on my experience with the mild I don't have super high expectations.