Expensive shave soaps, do they work any better?

[dabrock]

I have spent a bunch on razors, have thousands of blades, and a lot of soaps. I am willing to try an expensive one *if* they are all that. I wouldn't have 12 razors and counting, each one perfect for me, if i was utilitarian. I would, however, hate to spend $20-50 on a soap and not be impressed...

I hear you, I hate spending $5 and being unimpressed.

 

[Bbb34]

For me a $20 bottle of wine is three times better than a $10 bottle. A $50 bottle is considerably better, but by a much smaller percentage. After that we've reached a level where my ability to perceive the added quality is almost totally missing.

Agree, and not just on wine.

Almost every product I have tried so far has that magic point of "diminishing returns".
I find this to be true for shaving soaps as well, that magic point being $20-40 (for 150-200 grams of soap), where soaps in general tend to be a lot better than those that are below $10. Of course there are some that will punch above their weight in that low price range (and those that aren't deserving of high price), but in general, spending a bit more gives you significant improvement.

Going further up in price and that line in the cost/improvement chart tends not to be quite as straight, and (I'm assuming) it flattens eventually.

 

[Scumpy]

Agree, and not just on wine.

Almost every product I have tried so far has that magic point of "diminishing returns".
I find this to be true for shaving soaps as well, that magic point being $20-40 (for 150-200 grams of soap), where soaps in general tend to be a lot better than those that are below $10. Of course there are some that will punch above their weight in that low price range (and those that aren't deserving of high price), but in general, spending a bit more gives you significant improvement.

Going further up in price and that line in the cost/improvement chart tends not to be quite as straight, and (I'm assuming) it flattens eventually.

+1

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[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Sure, I get the argument and that's one that sales and advertising always brings up, the cost/day in comparison to a cup of coffee. Of course, the cost of a cup of coffee at McDonald's is around 5 times the cost of a cup of coffee at home so there's that way of looking at it.

As you already pointed out, the cost of soap is all relative so I would say $1/shave is very expensive since most soaps are in the order of 1/20 to 1/10 of that (and some even much lower), which means the difference between your soap and most other soaps is far more than the difference between home brewed coffee and a cup of McDonald's coffee, just to keep things in perspective and compare apples to apples rather than coffee to shaving soap...which is kind of funny in an odd sort of way.

However, there is more than cost to the value equation so for you $1 a shave may make perfect sense, but I shave twice a day so spending over $700 a year just to shave isn't really something I would want, and to me I can get a great shave from a tub of Proraso for about 2 cents a shave and a couple tubs will last me a year for about 1/50 the cost of ABC. BUT, I also like a lot of variety and I have some very expensive creams and soaps that are around $1 per shave as well. To me they also have value and are worth that price.

All this to say is that the value of the soap will take in to account far more than just price or cost per shave but also what you are looking for in it. So to answer the OPs question, it all depends (i.e. YMMV!) because you might find a tub of Proraso, a puck of Williams or a stick of Arko to be a perfect soap for you (and many do), or you might really like a luxury artisan or traditional soap or cream. If you are in the former category than you are probably a utility oriented person and anything in the mid price range or higher will likely not be of interest, but if you are a person who is more into the full shaving experience and like more than just a good lubricant to fend off razor burn then you will be more than willing to pay top dollar for something you really enjoy and chalk it up to being part of your hobby.

With something for everyone it's such a great time to be involved in wet shaving!

Nicely stated.

I like Arko, Proraso, Wickham's 1912, Wholly Kaw, MdC, SV, Formula T, and several others. There are bad soaps out there, but, oh, my gosh, there are a lot of good soaps.

Agree, and not just on wine.

Almost every product I have tried so far has that magic point of "diminishing returns".
I find this to be true for shaving soaps as well, that magic point being $20-40 (for 150-200 grams of soap), where soaps in general tend to be a lot better than those that are below $10. Of course there are some that will punch above their weight in that low price range (and those that aren't deserving of high price), but in general, spending a bit more gives you significant improvement.

Going further up in price and that line in the cost/improvement chart tends not to be quite as straight, and (I'm assuming) it flattens eventually.

I agree in general, but I've not tried all the soaps with very high entry fees, and I've not acquired a great understanding of the important cost per shave tables (as yet to be compiled).

I wonder if it is even possible to determine the answer to this question?

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Scumpy]

Nicely stated.

I like Arko, Proraso, Wickham's 1912, Wholly Kaw, MdC, SV, Formula T, and several others. There are bad soaps out there, but, oh, my gosh, there are a lot of good soaps.

Happy shaves,

Jim

You are right there are SO many good soaps on the market these days.

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[Neffarious]

I used arko this morning, because, well really because it was there and it's been forever.

 

[Doc4]

Shave soaps vary considerably in both price and quality ... but those two variables are not always on the same sliding scale. (Penhaligon's used to be at the top of both price and performance, but when they reforumulated to non-tallow, performance dropped off a lot, and price stayed high.)

Some "good performing" soaps perform well in different ways. Maybe one is great at ease of lathering, another not so but really moisturising. One gives great cushion, another great slickness and glide. And sometimes you pay for a top-notch scent, or the rarest of essential oils.

In general, the more expensive soaps tend to have the better performance, and as usual with so many other types of items, the degree of improvement of performance/quality tends to drop off as the price gets higher and higher ... smaller gradations of improvement in those stratospheric prices.

Higher priced soaps may seem pointless when the mid-range soaps provide excellent shaves, and it's just shaving after all. When a puck of Tabac is $17.95 and DR Harris is $19.50, how can I justify $33.95 for C&Z? But when RazoRock is $9.99, Col. Conk is $5.98, and an Arko stick is $1.49, how can I justify the Tabac or DR Harris? I find my personal price/perfoprmance comfort zone, and stay there. And if I can find one that performs above it's price level, so much the better.



... and one more thing: most of us cannot possibly afford to upgrade our current vehicle to a luxury one three times as expensive. Nor can we upgrade to a triple-the-cost mansion, or fly first class everywhere we go. Big-scale luxury is out of our range. But we CAN afford to splurge on that expensive luxury soap "just because", and enjoy the added luxury every morning for a year or so, at the total added cost of around a case of beer.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

... and one more thing: most of us cannot possibly afford to upgrade our current vehicle to a luxury one three times as expensive. Nor can we upgrade to a triple-the-cost mansion, or fly first class everywhere we go. Big-scale luxury is out of our range. But we CAN afford to splurge on that expensive luxury soap "just because", and enjoy the added luxury every morning for a year or so, at the total added cost of around a case of beer.

Good post, particularly the last part.

More and more I appreciate the luxury of my shaves. It's not that I'm starving to death or anything approaching that, but there are not too very many super luxurious experiences or items in my daily life.

Shaving soaps and luxurious feeling brushes are the exception and I'm very much more pleased with life because of it.

I once flew round trip on a private jet. It wasn't mine, but I can shave with the best soap in the world every day if I want just like the guy who owns that jet. For the record, a private jet makes first class seem like steerage.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Hannah's Dad]

Shave soaps vary considerably in both price and quality ... but those two variables are not always on the same sliding scale. (Penhaligon's used to be at the top of both price and performance, but when they reforumulated to non-tallow, performance dropped off a lot, and price stayed high.)

Some "good performing" soaps perform well in different ways. Maybe one is great at ease of lathering, another not so but really moisturising. One gives great cushion, another great slickness and glide. And sometimes you pay for a top-notch scent, or the rarest of essential oils.

In general, the more expensive soaps tend to have the better performance, and as usual with so many other types of items, the degree of improvement of performance/quality tends to drop off as the price gets higher and higher ... smaller gradations of improvement in those stratospheric prices.

Higher priced soaps may seem pointless when the mid-range soaps provide excellent shaves, and it's just shaving after all. When a puck of Tabac is $17.95 and DR Harris is $19.50, how can I justify $33.95 for C&Z? But when RazoRock is $9.99, Col. Conk is $5.98, and an Arko stick is $1.49, how can I justify the Tabac or DR Harris? I find my personal price/perfoprmance comfort zone, and stay there. And if I can find one that performs above it's price level, so much the better.



... and one more thing: most of us cannot possibly afford to upgrade our current vehicle to a luxury one three times as expensive. Nor can we upgrade to a triple-the-cost mansion, or fly first class everywhere we go. Big-scale luxury is out of our range. But we CAN afford to splurge on that expensive luxury soap "just because", and enjoy the added luxury every morning for a year or so, at the total added cost of around a case of beer.

 

[Pedict]

well played

 

[OldSaw]

You can't go wrong with SV. Its the best performing soap I own by a long shot. The price is actually reasonable as its triple milled and will last a really long time.

I got the SV puck today along with a refill of MWF and was surprised at the size of it. It was too large for the dish I had set aside for it. It lathered well and the shave was just as good as Tabac.

 

[adductum]

Difficult question!

Your Scotch analogy is helpful but only to a point. With Scotch you get (roughly) the same number of drinks/similarly sized bottle. This is not the case with soaps. An inexpensive ‘melt-and-pour’ soap will not last nearly as long as a triple-milled hard soap that may be much more expensive per ounce. An ‘expensive’ package of MdC lasts a long time, so that cost/shave is not all that different from some less expensive soaps.

Couldnt take MdC horrible smell .

 

[adductum]

Difficult question!

Your Scotch analogy is helpful but only to a point. With Scotch you get (roughly) the same number of drinks/similarly sized bottle. This is not the case with soaps. An inexpensive ‘melt-and-pour’ soap will not last nearly as long as a triple-milled hard soap that may be much more expensive per ounce. An ‘expensive’ package of MdC lasts a long time, so that cost/shave is not all that different from some less expensive soaps.

MdC shaving soap smells horrible to me.

 

[adductum]

As far as shave soaps go paying more doesn't necessarily insure you get a better product. It's like buying a bottle of wine. You can find a $20 that's better than a $100 bottle and in turn just because you paid $100 for something doesn't make it good. You'd hope that you're getting a better product for your money but often times it's just not the case.

For me the very best soaps at any price are:

Grooming Dept - the new Mallard formulas ($24) and the beef tallow ones ($21) are in my opinion the very best soaps made. The price includes free shipping as well.

Tallow & Steel - These are another excellent performing soap at around the $26 mark. The scents are bold so do keep that in mind. These are my second highest rated soap.

The Grooming Dept and the Tallow & Steel offerings are the clear top two for me. The rest are in no particular order but all are outstanding.

Sudsy Soapery - Another tier 1 soap for $10 to $16 for a good sized tub.

Wholly Kaw (donkey milk version) - These are around the $25 mark.

Declaration Grooming - Around $18 or so for a tub.

PannaCrema - they do have the $65 Nuavia line but a tub of their Pure2O version can be had for around $15.

Barrister & Mann Reserve - $18 for this one and it's another outstanding tier 1 soap.

I've tried somewhere over 600 soaps before I stopped counting so I've tried just about everything out there that's worth trying. I don't consider cost at all when rating a soaps performance as it makes no difference if it's a $6 or a $60 soap in terms of how it performs. After the fact price is definitely a consideration whether or not to purchase something, but it has no baring on how it performs in comparison to something else. Same deal with the scent as we're not all going to like the same scents. It's too subjective to put into the rating.

So the majority of these are right around the $20 mark and in my opinion these are the best soaps being made at the moment at any price point.

As far as shave soaps go paying more doesn't necessarily insure you get a better product. It's like buying a bottle of wine. You can find a $20 that's better than a $100 bottle and in turn just because you paid $100 for something doesn't make it good. You'd hope that you're getting a better product for your money but often times it's just not the case.

For me the very best soaps at any price are:

Grooming Dept - the new Mallard formulas ($24) and the beef tallow ones ($21) are in my opinion the very best soaps made. The price includes free shipping as well.

Tallow & Steel - These are another excellent performing soap at around the $26 mark. The scents are bold so do keep that in mind. These are my second highest rated soap.

The Grooming Dept and the Tallow & Steel offerings are the clear top two for me. The rest are in no particular order but all are outstanding.

Sudsy Soapery - Another tier 1 soap for $10 to $16 for a good sized tub.

Wholly Kaw (donkey milk version) - These are around the $25 mark.

Declaration Grooming - Around $18 or so for a tub.

PannaCrema - they do have the $65 Nuavia line but a tub of their Pure2O version can be had for around $15.

Barrister & Mann Reserve - $18 for this one and it's another outstanding tier 1 soap.

I've tried somewhere over 600 soaps before I stopped counting so I've tried just about everything out there that's worth trying. I don't consider cost at all when rating a soaps performance as it makes no difference if it's a $6 or a $60 soap in terms of how it performs. After the fact price is definitely a consideration whether or not to purchase something, but it has no baring on how it performs in comparison to something else. Same deal with the scent as we're not all going to like the same scents. It's too subjective to put into the rating.

So the majority of these are right around the $20 mark and in my opinion these are the best soaps being made at the moment at any price point.

Awfull to say but price is like the kiss of death for me ,i only get on with the cheapest Cella,etc anything over that price and i either get skin irritation or the scent is intolerable.I cannot take any generic smelling perfumes such as you would buy in a perfumery,that is probably why,i had to throw MdC in the bin and a lot of other more expensive soaps,
the smell of Arko is ok as is Palmolive,Cella.Maybe i have bad taste but expensive soap is a total waste of money probably the scent in these soaps come from the petrochemical industry

 

[adductum]

Awfull to say but price is like the kiss of death for me ,i only get on with the cheapest Cella,etc anything over that price and i either get skin irritation or the scent is intolerable.I cannot take any generic smelling perfumes such as you would buy in a perfumery,that is probably why,i had to throw MdC in the bin and a lot of other more expensive soaps,
the smell of Arko is ok as is Palmolive,Cella.Maybe i have bad taste but expensive soap is a total waste of money probably the scent in these soaps come from the petrochemical

 

[spokeydokey00]

For me, I've gone the artisan route purely for the ingredients. I don't want a bunch of junk in my soap so I have to pay extra for it. I actually prefer unscented or very light scents. I'm very interested in Tallow and Steel but can't quite pull the trigger on $25 for 4oz. The most I've paid so far it's $13 for Mike's natural soap.

 

[GearNoir]

For me, I've gone the artisan route purely for the ingredients. I don't want a bunch of junk in my soap so I have to pay extra for it. I actually prefer unscented or very light scents. I'm very interested in Tallow and Steel but can't quite pull the trigger on $25 for 4oz. The most I've paid so far it's $13 for Mike's natural soap.

If you like light scents, T&S has a decent soap base, but their scents are super powerful to me. You may want to sample them first if you haven’t already.

 

[spokeydokey00]

If you like light scents, T&S has a decent soap base, but their scents are super powerful to me. You may want to sample them first if you haven’t already.

Good to know! Thanks

 

[viking4976]

What I find, after two years of DE shaving, is that I can make a soap last a while. I still have some Stirling Sharp Dressed Man in the 5.8 oz jar that I bought two years ago. It's top quality soap, and I find that I don't need to swirl all that much onto my humble boar brush to get a good lather. I just swirl some on and face lather, works best for me as I'm a long haul trucker and constantly moving, my shave equipment is stowed in a backpack. And I have found that good artisan soaps like Stirling are a great value compared to many other soaps I've seen. like Taylor of Old Bond Street. Even Arko soap is cheap as heck and a lot of wetshavers love it. As a practical matter, you don't need to spend a ton of money to get a functional good quality shave soap or cream.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

What I find, after two years of DE shaving, is that I can make a soap last a while. I still have some Stirling Sharp Dressed Man in the 5.8 oz jar that I bought two years ago. It's top quality soap, and I find that I don't need to swirl all that much onto my humble boar brush to get a good lather. I just swirl some on and face lather, works best for me as I'm a long haul trucker and constantly moving, my shave equipment is stowed in a backpack. And I have found that good artisan soaps like Stirling are a great value compared to many other soaps I've seen. like Taylor of Old Bond Street. Even Arko soap is cheap as heck and a lot of wetshavers love it. As a practical matter, you don't need to spend a ton of money to get a functional good quality shave soap or cream.

I agree. That doesn't mean I don't like and use SV and MdC and WK.

You might like Wickham 1912. It is not cheap but it lasts a long time and is a great soap. Others I like - inexpensive others I mean - include the Fine soaps, the Omega soaps, and one of my favorites the WSP soaps. Nothing wrong with Arko for that matter unless you hate the scent; I like the scent okay.

As a trucker what do you carry in your shave kit?

Happy shaves,

Jim