I did a side by side comparison of the Wilkinson Sword from England and Wilkinson Sword from Germany , both blades in identical 1950’s Gillette super speeds. My wife loaded the blades so I couldn’t see which was which. To my surprise the German blade out lasted the vintage blade from England, I really believe that the Wilkinson light brigade was more hype than legend states. They are very good blades but not any better than the German ones. As always just my opinion from using both, sorry for the wind tunnel
Wilkinson Sword blades made in Germany: what do you think?
- Thread starter lak611
- Start date
I've never had any gripes with the German Wilkies, they're great blades. I haven't done a side-by-side as I only use the older UK ones for special occasions with my more uncommon vintage razors. I'll bust one out soon and see how it lasts in daily use.
Glad to see this thread back on the tracks after a near derailment.
I have only ever shaved with one German Wilkinson Sword (so far) ... I haven't tossed it out yet and as nearly as I can remember I have shaved 12 times with it. It didn't "wow" me at all on the first couple of shaves (I'm guessing I was polishing off the coating on those first shaves?) but 12 shaves in and I cannot see any reason to toss it. The darn thing keeps on giving good shaves ... so every once in a while I pop it in the razor again to see if it's still sharp. (I'm one of those crazy guys who carefully cleans my razor and blade after every shave - and put the blade back in the wrapper)
I've got one more new German Wilkie from the great blade exchange -- if I ever wear out this first one I'll see if the second blade is just as good.
I've got one more new German Wilkie from the great blade exchange -- if I ever wear out this first one I'll see if the second blade is just as good.
12 shaves and still going! Kudos!! I tried a few times on my favorite blades but never could seem to get much past 7, I think 10 was about it and I just couldn't go on. I don't even remember which blade that was, think it was the Gillette Permasharp(India), I normally get 5-6 shaves on average. I will point out I am not a daily shaver and usually 2-3 days between shaves so not sure if my whiskers get tougher the longer they get. A blade I do remember that hit 10 or 11 was a Mekur blade believe it or not. When I first began DE shaving beginning of 2016 I ordered a Merkur 34c, it came with one blade, I couldn't believe how well that shaved so of course I bought a few tucks, maybe 50, and I couldn't shave with them, they were horrible. I have no clue why that one blade that came with the razor was so good and I couldn't even use the others. Funny thing is I can't even shave with the 34c now, I don't get very good shave no matter what blade I put in it.
My purchase of 100 German Wilkies I have only used one blade since I am trying to use up some of my not so good latest batch of Gillette Permasharp blades with a one and done shave. One thing I did notice the first shave on that was not quite as smooth, something I never noticed in the ones that I have that are a few years old, but the next 4 shaves were smooth and number 6 started tugging and got tossed. Just not willing to push it though.
I normally don't try to get a lot of shaves out of a blade. Some of my favorite blades only last 2-3 shaves (like Feather). And the German Wilkinson Sword isn't a blade I am likely to buy. It isn't one of favorites - I prefer a blade that starts out at its best rather than a blade I have to shave a couple times to wear the coating off.
Two other blades that just seemed to keep going and going for me are the Russian KCG and the Indian 7 O'Clock black. Both of those blades just kept on shaving for 12+ shaves. Note: The Chinese KCG don't keep going and going like the Russian ones did
I normally don't try to get a lot of shaves out of a blade. Some of my favorite blades only last 2-3 shaves (like Feather). And the German Wilkinson Sword isn't a blade I am likely to buy. It isn't one of favorites - I prefer a blade that starts out at its best rather than a blade I have to shave a couple times to wear the coating off.
Two other blades that just seemed to keep going and going for me are the Russian KCG and the Indian 7 O'Clock black. Both of those blades just kept on shaving for 12+ shaves. Note: The Chinese KCG don't keep going and going like the Russian ones did
Even I only get 2-3 shaves from a Feather. I did try the Blacks but wasn't a that great to me.
I had been using the the German Wilkinson blade for years and never noticed that I needed to wear the coating off before. I think that first shave on the new batch of Wilkinson blades I think I was just so happy I got good blades again after the bad batch of Gillette Permasharp blades I think I got carried away with going for BBS. I will find out when I try on again if I notice that again.
+1 on the 7 o’clock blacks
Andy I also like to remove the blade and wipe it dry to get rid of moisture and get rid of the soap scum on the blade. I’m always careful not to harm the edge of the blade. I then use a microfiber towel to quickly dry my razors even if they are mostly SS.
I’ve heard from people I trusted that they seem to get more shaves when cleaning the blade after every shave so I’ve always done it except with my injector blades and after 10 shaves on an injector it’s clear how much soap scum is built up on the blade. I can’t say if it helps or not but it only takes a few seconds. I then put the blade back in the wrapper and sharpie a I and it lets me know how many shaves are on each blade easily.
On the Wilkies I’ve shaved with a couple older 80-90s English ones so far but wasn’t really impressed. The first one felt rough but the 2nd one was a pretty good blade.
The older German Wilkies from 2010-2015 era are among my all time favorite blades. Mine are really sharp right out of the pack. But the newer ones from 2022ish aren’t near as sharp to my face but it’s possible they get sharper after a couple shaves. I’ve never kept using one after the first shave was so mediocre.
I’ve heard from people I trusted that they seem to get more shaves when cleaning the blade after every shave so I’ve always done it except with my injector blades and after 10 shaves on an injector it’s clear how much soap scum is built up on the blade. I can’t say if it helps or not but it only takes a few seconds. I then put the blade back in the wrapper and sharpie a I and it lets me know how many shaves are on each blade easily.
On the Wilkies I’ve shaved with a couple older 80-90s English ones so far but wasn’t really impressed. The first one felt rough but the 2nd one was a pretty good blade.
The older German Wilkies from 2010-2015 era are among my all time favorite blades. Mine are really sharp right out of the pack. But the newer ones from 2022ish aren’t near as sharp to my face but it’s possible they get sharper after a couple shaves. I’ve never kept using one after the first shave was so mediocre.
Similar threads
