Blade Wars: Wilkinson Sword Classic (Germany) vs Wilkinson Stainless Sword-Edge (England)

[cw62803]

Blade Wars: Wilkinson Sword Classic (Germany) vs Wilkinson Stainless Sword-Edge (England)

This blade war features one of the iconic brands in double-edge shaving history. In 1965, Wilkinson Sword revolutionized the razor blade industry when it began producing safety razor blades made with stainless steel. The “Wilkie” was manufactured in the U.K. until 2000, when its production moved to Germany. I’ve never tried a British “Wilkie,” and I am excited to do so. Many thanks to @Highspeedlane for sharing these vintage blades with me. I’ve tried the German “Wilkie” once and was impressed. As I remember, it was very smooth and plenty sharp.

I’ll use two identical RazoRock Protégé razors for the competition, with the handle of one marked with a blue Sharpie. I’ll shave half of my face with one razor and half with the other, switching sides of my face with subsequent shaves.

Please share your thoughts as we go. Old vs new, England vs. Germany… who do you think will win the Blade War?

 

[Cal]

This should be an interesting one CW. I'm looking forward to it (as ever).


And I do miss the "popcorn" smiley.

 

[BigJ]

Love the German Wilkies! But I have never tried one from England.

 

[CigarSmoka]

I've wondered which of these two was the better blade and as usual will be watching this one. I had great results with the German Wilkie I used but have never tried the Brit. This should be good.

 

[homh]

A revisit of the 1966 World Cup, England vs Germany! One of the great all-time matches.

I havent used either one and have no favorite but based off of reputation I think the English Wilkies will pull out a win, perhaps in extra time like WC 1966.

 

[frstplce]

Please share your thoughts as we go. Old vs new, England vs. Germany… who do you think will win the Blade War?

England blade wins, mostly on being consistent and staying in the game longer. Then find some old Wilkinson Chromium blades like the Light Brigade and it will blow both of these out of the water.

 

[Highspeedlane]

I'll have some different Brit WS's out to you today CW.

 

[cw62803]

I'll have some different Brit WS's out to you today CW.

You are the man, Lane. Thanks.

 

[cw62803]

Shave 1
Face lathered with my old reliable, Arko.
Silver razor=right side of my face, blue razor=left

Pass 1 - Silver: an O.K. pass. It had some even drag throughout.
Blue: a pretty good pass. The blade felt a little crisper than the silver.

Pass 2 - Silver: very good pass. It felt a tiny bit scratchy.
Blue: razor glided nicely across my face. Good pass.

Followed with some Aqua Velva with just a touch of added menthol crystals. I bought a small packet of menthol crystals on eBay once. I probably added about 1/4 teaspoon to my bottle of aftershave, and boy, it's nice. Just a little added kick. I finished with some Man Lotion - a really good moisturizer for a winter day, despite its stupid name.

Slight advantage: Blue

 

[Highspeedlane]

You are the man, Lane. Thanks.

Three more just departed and comin' at ya!

 

[cw62803]

Shave 2
Face lathered with Soap Commander Respect (lime and patchouli)
Blue=right side, silver=left

Pass 1
Blue: Very smooth, comfortable pass. This is what wet shaving is all about.
Silver: A fair amount of drag. Not awful, but not close to as comfortable as blue.

Pass 2
Blue: Another beautiful pass. Very smooth.
Silver: Some drag, not nearly as smooth as blue.

Followed with Pinaud Citrus Musk (which goes great w/ Soap Commander Respect)

advantage: blue

 

[CigarSmoka]

Unlike the most recent war, it's looking like blue didn't train properly. I see a KO in the very near future.

 

[bosseb]

After doing 128 shaves on the blade in the pic above I do have a notion of how this will end...

Check out my thread here: 128 shaves on a NOS Wilkinson blade

 

[cw62803]

After doing 128 shaves on the blade in the pic above I do have a notion of how this will end...

Check out my thread here: 128 shaves on a NOS Wilkinson blade

I love your thread. Thank you for sharing it.
Those are the exact same blades that I am using. I particularly applaud your choice of post-shave beverage!

 

[cw62803]

Shave 3
Face lathered with Proraso Red
silver=right, blue=left

The Switcheroo

This morning's shave surprised me. On both passes, the silver razor was smoother. It glided very easily while the blue had some drag. I'm wondering if Highspeedlane drove down to Connecticut and switched the blades around as a prank.

Followed with some Bulldog balm and Old Spice cologne.

Advantage: silver

 

[Highspeedlane]

I thought I which one was which figured out until just now!

 

[BigJ]

Great thread!

 

[fast shaver]

This is interesting.!

 

[CigarSmoka]

After doing 128 shaves on the blade in the pic above I do have a notion of how this will end...

Check out my thread here: 128 shaves on a NOS Wilkinson blade

yeah yeah 128 shaves, nice statue, blah blah... How about sharing some love here? My glass is empty...

I thought I which one was which figured out until just now!

Same here. This may prove to be another close battle that's lasts until the late rounds.

 

[cw62803]

Shave 4
Face lathered with Tabac
blue=right, silver=left

On my day off today, I decided to give myself a leisurely three-pass shave instead of going to the hardware store to pick up the parts to repair my toilet. If you were impressed by that, I will be happy to put you in touch with my wife.

Pass 1
Blue was smooth throughout. Really nice.
Silver was smooth everywhere except on the wiry hairs on my chin, where it pulled.

Pass 2
Both razors glided smoothly and comfortably.

Pass 3
Blue was wonderful. It felt almost like there was no blade in the razor. Crisp and clean.
Silver was good, but there was some resistance.

Followed with Captain's Choice Lime AS and some unscented Lubriderm moisturizer.

Advantage: blue (by a small margin)

Wow, I have a great shave. My face is in better shape than my toilet. (That was a weird sentence.)