Thanks! Crazy how rhe same blade is great for one and bad for another! YMMV certainly seems to be the law of blades- I found Voskods extremely smooth, but very mild. I treated the Wilkinson’s with the same respect as a feather. BTW, I don’t love feathers as I can pick up a small weeper or two (nothing alum doesn’t immediately vanish) but I don’t like feeling nervous during a shave. I also wonder if good, better and best leave the factories with machine adjustments to be made, QC being better or worse on a particular run of blades- who knows if I just got a couple of bad tucks. I also didnt do well with the Astras- another pretty much universally loved blade that seemed to tug and skip a lot for me. I may try a different tuck of each in a year just to make sure I didn’t buy into a bad run or something. The Astras definatly deserve another chance as I tried them early on without much DE experience, so that really may be chalked up to newb technique. A buddy of mine won’t shave with anything but Astras. I can only speculate about consistent manufacturing and go off my own experience for what I’ve tried. Just tried my first whisamet and liked it- but went real easy as I’m still too raw from the Wilkinson to really go after BBS, so I need another few shaves with the Wizamets. So far seems like another excellent blade. After giving three different Wilks multiple tries after DE shaving for 7 months I feel pretty qualified to say they just aren’t for me- or maybe I got a bad batch. I’ve now identified and extensively tested 5 blades I really like that seem to cover all the bases for me- Platinums, GSB, Nacet, and more recently the German made Personna coated Blues and Wizamets. Once I order the Personna and Wizamts in bulk I’ll have 500 blades stashed that work for me and I can donate blood at the hospital instead of the sink, and not worry about any extended geopolitical events preventing me from getting the blades I like that give me smooth, close shaves instead of cuts. (NOT political- simply a supply concern comment) I am sure there are dozens and dozens of great blades out there, but once you narrow down what you like, why continue the pain of experimenting? PS- my standard for trying blades is testing in a Slim on 7 and Gamechanger 84.
Wilkinson Sword Classic vs German vs Chinese vs Indian
- Thread starter Tostig
- Start date
I am pretty much old school when it comes to most of the stuff we use today. Like the washers, I buy the simplest, with the least electronics, machine I can find. Less things to break, and I get a good service life out of them. High end machines just don't last. My cars the same way. So, as far as DE shaving, I tried my hand at it a couple of times in the last 30 years, before settling in on DE shaving everyday, probably about 10-12 years ago. Bought a VDH at WalMart, and used their blades for quite a few years, before becoming dissatisfied with the quality of their blades, with a lot of inconsistency from one tuck to another, or even within a certain tuck. Come across this B&B while looking for DE blades, and it has been an education in the world of DE shaving, and all the available products, if you know where to look. Found a store in the city devoted to shaving, and all it's products. Got some schooling there from the knowledgable staff, but their pricing was higher than one would find elsewhere, and I started looking for other places for supplies, namely blades, as I am not a hobbiest, nor collector in the world of DE shaving. I only have 2 razors, my old VDH, which I pull out once in a while, and my trusty friend, my Parker 91R, which I got as a gift on my 65th birthday. Over a year later, at this date, I am still using the Parker, with great results everyday. I had found my everyday blade pretty quick in this process, the Wilkinson Sword from Germany, and have sourced them from a local grocery chain, for $1.20 a tuck. Every so often on trips there, I will buy 2-3 tucks, at this point not choosing to buy 100 lot. I get about 7-8 DFS, with not many clean ups. Never any irritation, or cuts, close and smooth is how I start my day. I do WTG shave, being that I shave everyday, and a WTG, and XTG for special occasions..I don't collect soaps, or creams, and at this time just using the bar soap on the sink. I have a brush, but mainly use it on weekends. The Wilkies give me a DFS pretty much everyday, and with being said, they are not for everyone. YMMV being the mantra for all things shaving...
I have a ton of Indian ones.. I paid around .6 cents each last year.
They suck in my mild shavers, but work amazingly well in my Gamechanger .84. I don't go over 4 shaves with the Indian model.
They suck in my mild shavers, but work amazingly well in my Gamechanger .84. I don't go over 4 shaves with the Indian model.
- Smooth as butter first shave.
- Sharper/Sharpest 2nd shave.
- 3rd shave goes back to around first shave sharpness, but less smooth since coating comes off.
- 4th shave starts to feel a bit dull.
I have recently purchased a couple of tucks of German Wilkies from my local source, still a $1.20 a tuck. I was having a few issues with my older purchase of blades being a little off on their sharpness, but usable for a decent daily shave. But, now, I tapped into a new tuck of blades, and what a surprise. Sharp, and smooth, the reasons I choose German Wilkies as my everyday blade. Currently have 6 DFS's on a blade, and it is as sharp now as it was on day 1. Hopefully they are on the right track again with their quality...
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