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Gillette Wilkinson Swords - India or China?

Having spent the past few years using Rusisan blades (Voskhod, Rapira) exclusively, I recently purchased 30 of these after reading of them here. After three excellent shaves, I am really impressed, sharp and incredibly smooth, and I'm now ready to buy 100.

There are a number of ebay sellers, all very cheap, but I notice those from China seem to be somewhat (10-15%) cheaper than those from India. This made me recall reading somewhere of quite significant differences between the Chinese and Indian blades. So, before I commit, is there any sense of one being better than the other or are both a safe bet? It is the Indian blades I have just tried and I do think they're excellent.
 
Buy the Indian blades if that's what you have tried, I'd not get the Chinese ones until you have tested them. Different factory, different blade, different QC.

I've heard the Indian ones are better, but have no personal experience.

And the German Wilkinsons are NOT made by Gillette....

Peter
 
How about another option? My choice would be the GERMAN Wilkies! Terrific blades IMO. (Whoever makes them, they are still top-notch!)
 
Yes, India know how to make great (Gillette permasharp greens, Gillette blacks) and good blades (some Super-Max).
China? Not so much...
 
I tried both and didn't notice a difference between China and India make Wilks. They are so cheap I wouldn't worry about 10% difference, go with the India made since you've used them already. Can get them $8 per all day long with free shipping.
 
The German Wilkinson Swords are wonderfully smooth, plenty sharp, and long lasting. As long as I can buy them for a reasonable price here in the U.S., I don't have a desire to buy the Asian-made Gillette Wilkies.
 
I personally wouldn't touch Chinese blades with a bargepole, I know they're good at making razors that look virtually the same as a Merkur Futur, but IMHO just because the Chinese blades may look the same as the Indian ones, I doubt if they actually feel the same as the Indian ones
I found the Indian made Gillette Wilkinson Sword blades to be mediocre on a good day, so I dread to think what the Chinese ones are like

The only Wilkinson Sword blades I'll let anywhere near my face are the German Wilkinson Sword blades-

And don't get me started on the Italian made Wilkinson Sword Economie - I couldn't decide whether they were a slightly better quality version of the Indian Gillette Wilkinson Sword or a low budget inferior sub-contract made version of the German Wilkinson Sword
 
most People here can shave 4 shaves bbs without any problems , so how can one do 17 shaves on one mediocre blade ? i think that most shavers need to work on their technic ,
 
most People here can shave 4 shaves bbs without any problems , so how can one do 17 shaves on one mediocre blade ? i think that most shavers need to work on their technic ,

It may be that most shavers need to work on their technique. It is also true that shavers such as Rabidus are few and far between. The Excalibur club is _not_ the majority of those on B&B. I believe that it's also true that those like Rabidus won't tend to touch what are considered the lower quality blades. Astra, Feather, Kai, the Russian blades, and so forth are what they work with.

Just because you CAN shave with a cheap blade doesn't mean you must. I would rather pass on most of this 100 pack of Derbys than work for weeks trying to find the perfect way to shave with them - when I can get better shaves from the Sharks, and even the box of Clouds I have.
 
a experienced shaver can work With any blade , the number of shaves pr blade is just a measure of good technique you have , you can also adjust Your shaver to be more agressive , i used my 38c merkur With a really cheap blade like topas (India) and i had to make it more agressive by shimming it With 2 blads ,
 
If you _have_ to shim your razor, you need to use a different razor; it means that you need a different angle of attack. Shimming is a great way to find the angle you -want-, but it shouldn't be a permanent solution.

Yes - I can work with any of the DE blades I've picked up, bought, or been PIFed, but that doesn't mean I'm going to put forth the energy to make them daily go-to blades. They're too cheap, and life is too short for that.
 
German Wilkinson Swords, fantastic blades! I went three months on one blade, most will go 30 to 45 shaves easy, good stuff!!! :thumbsup:
 
I also thought more than 5 shaves was impossible with a blade until I got 7 with a Gillette Silver Blue and 20 with a German Wilkinson! I pushed the last 2 with the Wilkinson to get to 20 but all were 3 pass + touch up BBS shaves and very few nicks or weepers. Some blades just get smoother with each use and don't tug. My current Wilkinson is on its 11th or 12th use. I usually have 3 or 4 blades in rotation. I also get about 7 with a Polsilver SI (my favorite blade).
 
In my limited experience I've learned that a tuck of 7 O'clock blacks (my favourites) potentially last three months for me (6-7 shaves per blade, I shave every other day).
I can't see the reason to settle with such sub-par blades. Yes I know, variety is the spice of shaving but there's plenty of superb blades to chose from.

A carton of German Wilkies easily last more than 3 years. 100 Indian/chinese wilkinsons $ 9.00, 100 germans $ 16.00. Is saving $ 7.00 in three years really worth?
 
if you are going to get more shaves pr blade . change out Your razor to a more effective razor like a slant , or learn a better teknikk, you can get as much as 100 shaves pr blade , if you improve Your shaving , but if you insist on scraping Your face (using steep angel) you need Sharp blades like feather and gillette yellow . and you get 3-4 shaves
 
I went ahead and bought 100 of the Indian GWS and am very pleased. Get 3/4 very good shaves from them and usually toss any blade at that point anyway. Thee are sharp, smooth and efficient and I would highly recommend. For €6.90 delivered for 100, they represent great value, giving a year's shaving.
 
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