Gillette Wilkinson Sword (india)

[Biglo13]

any info please?

confused with all the different blades under same wilkinson sword name...US made, German made???

on a whim i ordered these DE blades from auction site, they cost $6.38 US/ 100 blades shipped approx 2 weeks

did gillette sell out/ liscence its name for these blades
i've read where these are made in china for india market, is this true?

@ 6 cents a blade (5.8 cents) these would be the least expensive blades I've ever tried

anyone else use these specific blades?
shave review?
anymore info?

 

[pdieten]

Gillette had an ownership stake in Wilkinson Sword for a very short time in the early '90s as the company was going through ownership changes. Gillette was forced to divest WS in Western Europe, which eventually led it to being paired with Schick and owned by Edgewell. I'll see if I can find a link to the whole sordid tale. (edit: here it is: Wilkinson Sword - Wikipedia )

Anyway, in India, Gillette still owns the Wilkinson Sword trademark and uses it on these blades. They are made in Gillette-owned facilities. Some people get blades made in China, apparently others get them still made in India assuming they aren't counterfeit blades.

The price on your 50-pack box is INR 123, which is less than US $2. So they don't cost much. The rest of what you paid is postage and profit for the seller.

 

[DEPenguin]

I have used both the German and Indian made blades. I really like the German blades, but I got an equally nice result from the Indian/Gillettes for less than half the cost. So I ordered the same you did.

 

[Biglo13]

Gillette had an ownership stake in Wilkinson Sword for a very short time in the early '90s as the company was going through ownership changes. Gillette was forced to divest WS in Western Europe, which eventually led it to being paired with Schick and owned by Edgewell. I'll see if I can find a link to the whole sordid tale. (edit: here it is: Wilkinson Sword - Wikipedia )

Anyway, in India, Gillette still owns the Wilkinson Sword trademark and uses it on these blades. They are made in Gillette-owned facilities. Some people get blades made in China, apparently others get them still made in India assuming they aren't counterfeit blades.

The price on your 50-pack box is INR 123, which is less than US $2. So they don't cost much. The rest of what you paid is postage and profit for the seller.

how do i know if these are counterfeit or Chinese made?
these cost $3.56 US /110 blades in India, super inexpensive!!!


thanks for your replies!

 

[pdieten]

how do i know if these are counterfeit or Chinese made?
these cost $3.56 US /110 blades in India, super inexpensive!!!


thanks for your replies!

Open one and take a look at the blade printing. Someone in the UK just showed off an eBay listing (not available on US eBay) whose blade printing did not match what the buyers of these blades normally get. They didn't look legit to my eyes.

 

[Starsky]

From the box it looks like those are made in India as the Chinese ones clearly state that they are made in China. I like the ones made in China. They are made for the India market. Mine came from RBC.

 

[fast shaver]

From the box it looks like those are made in India as the Chinese ones clearly state that they are made in China. I like the ones made in China. They are made for the India market. Mine came from RBC.

I have the China made Wilkies also & they are a top blade for me as in X7 to X10 DFS. The India Wilkies are OK as in X4 to X5 DFS.

 

[Biglo13]

I have the China made Wilkies also & they are a top blade for me as in X7 to X10 DFS. The India Wilkies are OK as in X4 to X5 DFS.

can you post image of each blade please

 

[fast shaver]

can you post image of each blade please

Sorry, I can't do that.

 

[Biglo13]

Sorry, I can't do that.

can you send images a message?

 

[fast shaver]

can you send images a message?

I can describe both blades for you: Indian has one side marked M & the other side marked 1. The China one has one side marked 1 & the other side marked N both have Wilkinson Sword on them both have the same wrapper. One box says made in India & the other made in China.

 

[BigJ]

Gillette had an ownership stake in Wilkinson Sword for a very short time in the early '90s as the company was going through ownership changes. Gillette was forced to divest WS in Western Europe, which eventually led it to being paired with Schick and owned by Edgewell. I'll see if I can find a link to the whole sordid tale. (edit: here it is: Wilkinson Sword - Wikipedia )

Anyway, in India, Gillette still owns the Wilkinson Sword trademark and uses it on these blades. They are made in Gillette-owned facilities. Some people get blades made in China, apparently others get them still made in India assuming they aren't counterfeit blades.

The price on your 50-pack box is INR 123, which is less than US $2. So they don't cost much. The rest of what you paid is postage and profit for the seller.

+1! Great summary!!

 

[cryhavoc]

I have used the Indian Wilkinson Sword and really like them but they only lasted about 3 shave for me. That isn't too bad and they are dirt cheap so overall they are a very good purchase.

The pic you posted looks like the Saloon Pack I purchased so they don't look to be counterfeit if that is what you are worried about.

IMHO the German Wilkinson Sword's are a better blade and I get more shaves from them, but blades are very YMMV.

 

[TomCan]

I've used a lot of the German (black tuck) blades and picked up a few Indian Wilks from a web site that sells singles of many brands for you to "try". I found the Indian version to be just as good and sharp as the German ones. Of course, they weren't in a nice plastic holder....

 

[Bogeyman]

I have the China made Wilkies also & they are a top blade for me as in X7 to X10 DFS. The India Wilkies are OK as in X4 to X5 DFS.

Yes, the Shanghai made Chinese Gillette WS are the best of the lot. I rank the German ones 2nd and the Indian made ones 3rd.

 

[zoidberg]

I can describe both blades for you: Indian has one side marked M & the other side marked 1. The China one has one side marked 1 & the other side marked N both have Wilkinson Sword on them both have the same wrapper. One box says made in India & the other made in China.

To muddy the waters here are my pictures of the GWS blades both MIC & MII versions

Made in India to the left, MIC on the Right. Both bought in India around a month ago.

Here is another blade I have, one I ordered from RBC, front and back pictures

 

[fast shaver]

Thanks for posting the pics! I am not sure what @Biglo13 wanted to see pics for but, now you showed him. Maybe he thought they were counterfeit blades??

 

[zoidberg]

Thanks for posting the pics! I am not sure what @Biglo13 wanted to see pics for but, now you showed him. Maybe he thought they were counterfeit blades??

I'd be surprised if there were counterfeits as they are very cheap in India and I imagine it'd not make much sense to counterfeit such a cheap item; Feather blades I can understand but not these blades.

Something I did notice though is MIC GWS do have a number of different packaging, only in very subtle ways though. I bought 5 or 6 tucks from different retailers and there were a few different designs though.

I was in India for a few weeks, and I got the impression the Indian GWS is largely aimed at the professional market, favoured by barbers for shaving. I didn't really see the Indian GWS for sale in many shops when I asked around. The Indian GWS was around 20/22 INR for a tuck of 10/11 blades.

The MIC GWS seemed to stocked by every shop I went to, they seem to be the blade for the consumer market. A little more expensive than the Indian one, at 14/15 INR for a tuck of 5 blades.

Like yourself I much prefer the MIC one. The Indian one isn't a bad blade but the MIC is a delight to use, one of the best kept secrets in DE shaving IMO.

 

[HereticHermit]

FWIW I could never find the india made (baddi plant) unless they were old stock. I got 3 ok shaves from them but China made are everywhere and I just get 2 tuggy shaves from them.
That said the baddi plant only make the production runs of Wilkinsons very erratically, am told by a senior sales guy from P&G India.
My go to blades are Polsilver and black ninjas.

 

[fast shaver]

Thanks for the Info.! I get great shaves from the Chinese version.