Chicago and Seaforth Shaving Soaps

[FLTiger]

I just "won" a couple of old shaving soaps on 'da bay, and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with these.

1. On the front of the box of one of the soaps it says, "Chicago Professional Shaving Products Shaving Soap, NET WT 3.5 oz, 85 g." The copyright on the side says, "1978 Minnetonka Inc., Minnetonka, MN 55343 USA."

2. The other is Seaforth! for Men Shaving mug with soap by Alfred McKelvey, NY, NY.

I've seen a post or two about the Seaforth, but not one about the Chicago. Please share your experiences with either of these soaps so that I can have an idea of what I've gotten into.

 

[FLTiger]

Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?

 

[FLTiger]

My wife tells me that the Seaforth is in. Once I make it back home, I'll have to see what I can do with it and post my findings here.

 

[Austin]

Never head of it. Let us know what you think.

 

[FLTiger]

A quick update on both soaps.

The Chicago soap puck is pristine, NIB, and still has a scent, even though the puck itself is not wrapped. I've set it aside for the moment, and I plan to get back to it soon.

The Seaforth! soap is another story entirely. The puck arrived as a dessicated, cracked, nearly scentless round. I was a little disappointed, but I decided to look upon it as a challenge.

Thus, I began re-hydrating the Seaforth! puck, a few drops in the morning, a few at night, for several days. Bit by bit, it swelled until the gap between the soap and the mug had shrunk to less than 1/8" (it was more than 1/4" when I received it).

This morning, I took it for a test shave. I flipped the puck in the mug, put some water on it, and took my shower. I took my BK4 to it, and with some effort, managed to coax enough lather out of it for a three pass shave.

The lather was mostly scent-free, and it wasn't as thick as I would have liked. I over-hydrated the lather, but got a good shave in spite of that. I'll work with it some more to see if it improves.

Unfortunately, I don't have ingredient lists for either soap, so I cannot tell if they are tallow soaps or not.

 

[Hoos]

Huh. Never saw this thread.

I have a mug and puck of Seaforth and love it. It's not a thick latherer and doesn't require a lot of water. It doesn't have a heavy scent. I think there were two scents: their signature "heather" and another one that I can't recall.

But it gives me very close, comfortable shaves. Personally, I like it better than MWF.

No need to "rehydrate" it. Just toss it in a mug, let it soften a little with warm water prior to your shave, dump out that water, and load your brush. Just like any other soap puck.

Congrats on what I think is a great find.

 

[FLTiger]

Huh. Never saw this thread.

I have a mug and puck of Seaforth and love it. It's not a thick latherer and doesn't require a lot of water. It doesn't have a heavy scent. I think there were two scents: their signature "heather" and another one that I can't recall.

But it gives me very close, comfortable shaves. Personally, I like it better than MWF.

Good to know, thanks for sharing!

No need to "rehydrate" it. Just toss it in a mug, let it soften a little with warm water prior to your shave, dump out that water, and load your brush. Just like any other soap puck.

I had no idea--I've never dealt with a soap puck that was this old.

Congrats on what I think is a great find.

Thanks! I just wish it had some scent to it.

 

[FLTiger]

I shaved with the Chicago Professional Shaving Products shaving soap this morning, and I was impressed. The soap lathered well in the mug, gave me plenty of thick, rich shaving lather, and I got a good shave out of it.

The scent of the soap is so different from my other shaving products that I cannot really give a description of it, unfortunately. The scent is unoffensive and not particularly strong (not surprising, since the soap is circa 1978 or so).

Not bad for a whopping $6 on da bay.