Questions for you 3017 guys (and gals)

[Rusty Blade]

I would have posted this in the 3017 thread, but individual posts tend to get lost among the running posts.

My questions are simple:
1. What is your motivation for using a soap from start to finish?
2. What do you see as the benefits of using one soap?
3. When you use just one soap do you also use just one AS or ASB?
4. On average, how many soaps/creams do you use ion a year (ballpark number will suffice)

 

[Earcutter]

I don’t 3017 myself. But if I did, I bet I’d know how to lather that one puck like a champ! That would be a serious benefit if you ask me.

 

[GearNoir]

I would have posted this in the 3017 thread, but individual posts tend to get lost among the running posts.

My questions are simple:
1. What is your motivation for using a soap from start to finish?
2. What do you see as the benefits of using one soap?
3. When you use just one soap do you also use just one AS or ASB?
4. On average, how many soaps/creams do you use ion a year (ballpark number will suffice)

Disclaimer - I’ve only 3017ed a tub of TOBS Sandalwood once, though I suspect it will occur for some other of my soaps as well.

1) To move it out of the den, not because I didn’t enjoy it (or else I’d have tossed it or PIFed it), but because it had been around so long (3 years), I was ready for something new, and performance wise it was just average-ish compared to what I have now. It was a soap I bought toward the beginning of my journey.

2) The greatest benefit of using one soap for a long period is really being able to master its lathering and also truly judge its capabilities and qualities. For instance, there are some people who will not use an open blade razor with a product like TOBS because they claim the lather is not good enough, I found that it is not the best, but it is quite adequate, as are most classic soaps.

3) It would really depend on the SOS and characteristics of the soap. If it were a heavily scented soap with lingering notes post shave, such as Tallow & Steel West Indies, that would limit follow up products to similar profiles. With a soap like the TOBS or say La Toja, it would not make so much of a difference (to me) because they allow for a much wider range of follow up scent profiles and the soap scent generally does not linger, washing away cleanly.

4) I’ve used many in the last year, I’ve only used up the one tub of TOBS. My other soaps are not nearly as old and I do prefer picking what to use on a daily whim.

 

[andromeda673]

my motivation to use up a product is because I see no value in spending hundreds of dollars in products just to have them sit and not get used. I also like using an entire product because I can get a really good feel for if I truly like it or not.

I like to spend very little money on this, as the point of getting into it is to save money over the carts and other stuff, so going out and spending $150 on soaps to have them sit there, doesn't really seem like I'm saving money.

 

[rockviper]

What is this "3017" thing you speak of, and where can I find out more information?

 

[Rusty Blade]

What is this "3017" thing you speak of, and where can I find out more information?

Hmmmmm....that's a tough one...let me try and explain. Some time ago...a long time ago...a census was conducted of all wet-shavers on B&B to see how many soaps and creams they had in their collection (hoard)...and this information was run through a serious complicated algorithm invented by some mathematicians and engineers (I've posted a pic below) who were formerly in the space program and they determined that -- on average -- it would take until the year 3017 (or in some cases even longer) for the average wet-shaver to use up all their shaving soaps -- if (and its a big IF) -- a) they lived long enough to use all their soaps and b) if by that time we had not relocated to another planet, c) and some other reasons some of the more experienced B&B'ers can explain...e.g. @rockviper . I think that about covers it...

 

[davent]

1.To get rid of a product i won't purchase again, then, i can get to the good stuff. Habit ingrained at childhood meals where the things i hated would be wolfed and washed down first and then maybe i could find some joy in the rest of the meal.
2. Products i've thought were poor performers have improved greatly in their ability to perform as they're used continuously. Your brain learns/decides to ignore the awful scents, they cease to register with the exception of Arko.
3.Never never use aftershave, have one balm i use.
4.No idea but i'm down to a quarter of a tube of La Toja and even less of a tube of Musgo Real, saved the best for last, when they're gone the cupboard is bare.
dave

 

[Rusty Blade]

1.To get rid of a product i won't purchase again, then, i can get to the good stuff. Habit ingrained at childhood meals where the things i hated would be wolfed and washed down first and then maybe i could find some joy in the rest of the meal.
2. Products i've thought were poor performers have improved greatly in their ability to perform as they're used continuously. Your brain learns/decides to ignore the awful scents, they cease to register with the exception of Arko.
3.Never never use aftershave, have one balm i use.
4.No idea but i'm down to a quarter of a tube of La Toja and even less of a tube of Musgo Real, saved the best for last, when they're gone the cupboard is bare.
dave

Interesting...what is your one balm?

 

[Raissermesser]

With almost daily use, I go through a can of shaving cream in about half a year. Shaving soap is about the same. At that rate, I can go through my existing stock by 2022.

 

[davent]

Interesting...what is your one balm?

Hi Rusty,

The one balm i use and originally bought when i purchased my initial safety razor is '3P', an Italian, multi use product. At first i wasn't sure whether i would be able to live with the scent but that's not been an issue in the four years i've been using it, dissipates for me in a flash. Buy it from Italian Barber.
dave

 

[RumpleBearskin]

So I'm not sure if I qualify for the 3017 club or not. I typically have 3 or 4 soaps, 1 or 2 creams, and 1 or 2 sticks "in use". Yes, that'st up to 8 lathering products. I rotate through them all as the mood strikes each day. There may be another couple of unopened soaps in the cupboard, but they won't come out to play until one that is currently in use is gone. (And by "gone" I mean completely used up, not almost used up.)

I do this to enjoy the variety of scents and consistencies. But I use them up because to not do so is throwing money out the door. Do I like some more than others? Sure. Do I hate any of them? No. And some that I initially was less than fond of have grown on me over the weeks and months of repeated use.

To me it makes no sense to have more than you can use. But it also makes no sense to only have one tool in the bag. Balance in everything...

 

[Rusty Blade]

invented by some mathematicians and engineers (I've posted a pic below) who were formerly in the space program...

Sorry...I thought they were formerly from the space program, but it was actually NASA...National Aeronautics and Shaving Administration. Got that wrong...

 

[MaineYooper]

I have used up several products now. I started last Fall and have emptied 4 tubs. That Soap Commander Integrity took from Dec 2015 to Sep 2017!! His tubs are six ounces, I believe. But I digress. I started to make it a goal to finish a product as a deal I made with myself. I had 6 different soaps, and wanted to try some others, so I said to myself, You have gotten to finish your meat if want your pudding. No, sorry, I said finish one first, then consider purchasing more. In the end, I joined the 2018 Restraint (and lasted 3 mos!) and made it a point to finish soaps in order of earliest purchase date. I liked them all, replaced three (Mystic Water, Mike's, and Shannon's) and added two. So if you're following along, I now have 5 soaps! But I like them all and could and have shaved for a month with each and enjoyed the shaves!

 

[Rusty Blade]

I have used up several products now. I started last Fall and have emptied 4 tubs. That Soap Commander Integrity took from Dec 2015 to Sep 2017!! His tubs are six ounces, I believe. But I digress. I started to make it a goal to finish a product as a deal I made with myself. I had 6 different soaps, and wanted to try some others, so I said to myself, You have gotten to finish your meat if want your pudding. No, sorry, I said finish one first, then consider purchasing more. In the end, I joined the 2018 Restraint (and last 3 mos!) and made it a point to finish soaps in order of earliest purchase date. I liked them all, replaced three (Mystic Water, Mike's, and Shannon's) and added two. So if you're following along, I now have 5 soaps! But I like them all and could and have shaved for a month with each and enjoyed the shaves!

Sounds like an interesting journey. I have resolved to use up my few remaining soaps first, but I did just purchase some Soap Commander Integrity. I am determined to end up with just a couple of unscented products...The rest will be used up or PIF'd!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

 

[RumpleBearskin]

Oh no! Now it's 3018? Thought it was 3017...

 

[Rusty Blade]

View attachment 915236

Dang...now I have to order a couple more soaps.

 

[ackvil]

These are my answers to your questions:

• Motivation. I have over 30 brushes and 35 razors. Using one soap has enabled me to see how they relate to each other. Prior to doing the 3017 thing, I had numerous soaps that were used just a few times and then put away only to find they have dried or cracked. Currently, I don't do a strict 3017 but take two soaps that I use. A few weeks ago it was Tabac and Klar Seifen. Now it is Klar Seifen and Cella.
• Benefit. You get to know a soap and learn its intricacies when you use it for an extended period of time. For example, I could never get a good lather with the modern Williams. When I started to use it every day the soap softened and my technique changed so that the lather was very good.
• AS. I rotate AS and ASB. The only constant for me is Thayers WH which I use every day.
• Number of Soaps Used. This figure varies depending on the hardness of the soap and its size. Plus, I have a large number of soaps that have been used in the past and now I plan to 3017 them. Last year I used a complete puck of MB the Club (got 115 shaves with it) and Haslinger Schafmilch (two pucks ground into a container) that I got 179 shaves with it. I also used up two pucks of Williams.

 

[Rusty Blade]

These are my answers to your questions:

• Motivation. I have over 30 brushes and 35 razors. Using one soap has enabled me to see how they relate to each other. Prior to doing the 3017 thing, I had numerous soaps that were used just a few times and then put away only to find they have dried or cracked. Currently, I don't do a strict 3017 but take two soaps that I use. A few weeks ago it was Tabac and Klar Seifen. Now it is Klar Seifen and Cella.
• Benefit. You get to know a soap and learn its intricacies when you use it for an extended period of time. For example, I could never get a good lather with the modern Williams. When I started to use it every day the soap softened and my technique changed so that the lather was very good.
• AS. I rotate AS and ASB. The only constant for me is Thayers WH which I use every day.
• Number of Soaps Used. This figure varies depending on the hardness of the soap and its size. Plus, I have a large number of soaps that have been used in the past and now I plan to 3017 them. Last year I used a complete puck of MB the Club (got 115 shaves with it) and Haslinger Schafmilch (two pucks ground into a container) that I got 179 shaves with it. I also used up two pucks of Williams.

Jim, your approach makes a lot of sense. You almost have me convinced. I have found that when I use one soap consistently that I get great lathers from it. I was a 40 year user of Williams and when I joined the forums I couldn't understand why guys were unable to get a solid lather from Williams. Use a puck consistently and it lathers up like a charm.

 

[Trent in WA]

For me, as much as anything else it's that I don't really care for variety in some areas of my life. With shaving, I like consistency and reliability. I almost always use Tabac because I like the scent (which doesn't persist, at least not with the soap), it lathers easily, it's easy on my skin, and it's cheap - a $9 stick lasts me 9 months without too much effort. I've tried other soaps, and they either are aromatically exhausting (some of the artisanals), don't last long / cost too much (ditto), or leave my face feeling dried out (Arko and Palmolive Stick, which are otherwise pretty nice). Ditto with razors and, to a lesser extent, blades: I can get a great shave with my Rockwell 6S and almost any blade I throw in there, though I've settled on Personna Red and Polsilver because they're good for 7 shaves without fuss or bother. I have a brush that works great - why get a different one?

A/S, though, is a different matter. I have four I rotate between, depending on mood or whim.