The Wilkinson Sword - Sticky

Wilkinson Sword Razor

AKA "Sticky"

After reading the thread "A "sticky" situation" I thought about posting some curiosities about this wonderful razor.

The first time I saw a sticky I thought to myself ... " it looks like a plastic SuperSpeed made by Wilkinson ... don't like plastic that much ... curious but nothing that special".

Those thoughts lasted about a milisecond after I got to hold it. Have you ever picked up an object and found yourself fondling it unconsciously? That's what happened when I first had a sticky in my hand. It is smooth and feels more solid than what it may appear to the eye.

"A designer's razor"

Keneth Grange

The man behind the sticky is the British designer Keneth Grange. I have never heard of the name before coming to this razor but some of his designs are familiar to most anybody ...

Kodak Instamatic 1975

Parker 25 (1979)

Bristish Rail 125 Innercity)


The redesigned London Cab

and the famous Bowers & Wilkins speakers

... add to that kitchen blenders, sunglasses, a women's schick razor, lamps, furniture, and a long etcetera are kind of cousins of this razor born in 1968.

Regarding the design of the sticky, it has received an award by the London Center for Design, and it has been in exhibition in the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Another characteristic of this razor is its box and its curious system for blade storage

Foto rustyblade SMF

Foto rustyblade SMF

"It is not plastic ... a resin? ... whatever it is, feels right

Even though the official name of the razor is a plain and generic "Wilkinson Sword Razor" it is generally known as the Sticky thanks to its handle. I don't know the exact material it is made off, but it is smooth to the touch and it lacks the coldness of plastics. The handle kind of transforms itself as soon as it encounters wet fingers. What it may seem a poor grip when dry becomes, surprisingly, sticky when wet. Very ingenious !

By the way, not being metal does not mean that this razor is flimsy. On the contrary, the Sticky is quite sturdy.

As to comparisons, it can be placed in the area of the SuperSpeeds. It is smooth and benign, although I tend to believe the sticky to be better balanced.

Very little blade exposure and a mild cutting angle makes the sticky a mild and smooth razor

When talking vintage razors we don't know what the razor has gone through, so our unit may not be representative of the ones in mint conditions. Fortunately the tolerances of my unit are tight and the overall sensation is solid, and TTO operation is smoother than any of the SuperSpeed I've had.



Kenneth Grange has said that his attitude when designing a product is that it should be a pleasure to use it.

With this razor he has certainly has achieved his aim !

A wonderful writeup of the Sticky. Having recently gained posession of one, I must agree that it is beautifully designed and very well manufactured. Nothing flimsy about this razor at all.

Great article Tony! Thanks for sharing.

Excellent article and research!

Excellent review..I have one as well plus perhaps the only Wilkinson FLIP open probably also designed by this man ( I got it from Phil...very mild but VERY unusual design)

(07-12-2012, 05:25 PM)Harvey Wrote: Excellent review..I have one as well plus perhaps the only Wilkinson FLIP open probably also designed by this man ( I got it from Phil...very mild but VERY unusual design)

The Flip Top was a very interesting design. I think it immediately followed the sticky. Funny...Harvey got it from me but I actually bought it on a tip from Harvey. The circle of life.

(07-12-2012, 07:46 PM)bullgoose Wrote:

(07-12-2012, 05:25 PM)Harvey Wrote: Excellent review..I have one as well plus perhaps the only Wilkinson FLIP open probably also designed by this man ( I got it from Phil...very mild but VERY unusual design)

The Flip Top was a very interesting design. I think it immediately followed the sticky. Funny...Harvey got it from me but I actually bought it on a tip from Harvey. The circle of life.

No the circle of R.A.D...better we should all " enable" each other !!!!!

Great info on the Sticky.

This is great information. Thanks for sharing it Tony. I remember when I got mine I thought it had a fair amount of heft to it as well. And yet, I have not used it. Your review is compelling me to dig it out of a deep box and give it a go.

Brilliant review, a most enjoyable and interesting article. Thank-you!

I've been able to acquire an excellent example of the British Sticky and I finally shaved with it last night.

I have to say that I really love the design and feel of the razor and paired with a Feather blade, the initial shave was superb.

It is a fairly mild shaver yet very effective for me. I was expecting something similar to a Schick Krona, which I also have and love yet it was slightly more aggressive when using the correct angle.

I'd say it has definitely shot into my top 5 razor list based on the initial shave and the fact that I cannot stop staring at it.

This razor seems to have polarizing opinions. Some get great shaves, seemingly even those that like aggressive razors and others call it unusable due to it's mild nature.

A true razor objet d'art IMO.

I never get tired of reading Tony SC articles.This should be a featured article!
Thanks a lot,Tony!

Thank you for the great information. I had no idea this guy was a great inventor. This has become one of my all time favorite razors in the short period of time of owned one. I also love the Parker pen.

Cool article, I've yet to give one of these gems a go as one has never passed through my hands.

Just purchased one on e-bay for $44.50. Not too aggressive, and gives a close comfortable shave everytime. I've used Gillette Fat and Slim Boy's, Merkurs. The Sticky outperforms them all. Curious to see how a Feather blade works in the Sticky.

I would love to get my hands on one of these, but they carry a high price with them. Someday though. Its right up my alley as far as aggressiveness.

(05-07-2013, 12:53 PM)tropey Wrote: Curious to see how a Feather blade works in the Sticky.

I'll be interested to hear. I have found that high-quality vintage blades (Wilkinson, Schick Plus Platinum, and Gillette Platinum Plus) work extremely well for me in the Sticky.

Great write up and nice photos there. The Sticky is indeed a great razor. The two different razors you show are a US version (horizontal closure of the case and a blue razor end cap) and a UK version (vertical closure of the case and a grey or silver end cap). Both razors are fantastic shavers but are a bit different. The US flavor is a bit more aggressive while the UK flavor gives a more mild shave. This might be one of the reasons that folks have varying opinions on the aggressiveness of the razor.

Tony, a great write-up enjoyed reading very much. Thanks for sharing.

I really like reading TonySC's articles. Great write-up, as always, and extremely informative.