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First go with Arko

Whenever I need a fast shave, I grab the Arko stick, wet the end, rub it briskly over my dampened face, then facelather for about 30 seconds with a damp brush. Voila! A face that looks like Dagwood lathering up in the old cartoons -- gobs of lather everywhere! Arko is the only soap I can do that with.
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
To me Arko tastes just like cilantro.
Thank you. I'm forced to report you for breaking the internet my friend!

I'm not sure, but I THINK that @haggis , myself, and @Owen Bawn came to the conclusion that Arko smells like the pink powdered soaps that were in gasoline station restrooms and elementary skool restrooms when we were all lads.... Quite often accompanied by a linen roller system towel hand drying system.

That were invariably at the end of the roll in the gas station, and black from the grease of the mechanic's hands, forcing my ladylike self to wipe my hands on my pants....


THAT is what Arko smells like. And THAT is how I was selected as king of Arkoland in my mind my friends: I have a vivid sniffer!
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
Whenever I need a fast shave, I grab the Arko stick, wet the end, rub it briskly over my dampened face, then facelather for about 30 seconds with a damp brush. Voila! A face that looks like Dagwood lathering up in the old cartoons -- gobs of lather everywhere! Arko is the only soap I can do that with.
You keep up with THESE kinds of posts and YOU will find yourself at the "Knights of the Arkoland Table" my friend! (It doesn't hurt that your username reminds me of a certain author that used a "Wardrobe!")
 
You keep up with THESE kinds of posts and YOU will find yourself at the "Knights of the Arkoland Table" my friend! (It doesn't hurt that your username reminds me of a certain author that used a "Wardrobe!")
In over 20 years of using some variant of that username on many varied forums, I think you are the fourth person to make that connection.

As for Arko, several years ago, a large-scale vendor on Amazon accidentally sold cartons of Arko for the price of a stick... After numerous PIFs and gifts over the years, I think I have about half a carton left...
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
What about Jason and the Arkonauts? (Not sure where that was going)
Well it was a heroic endeavor my friend!

Just think of the wunnerful tales of Arkoland I could tell if my mother had named me Jason instead of David?!
 
I agree completely. It smells like soap!!
What other soaps does it smell like? It has a very distinct artificial lemon scent, very similar to the urinal cakes used here in the U.S. While it performs well, it is very hard to get past that smell (and my nose isn't the most discerning :302:)
 
Hey guys, I ordered 2 arko pucks a few days ago. Have not shaved with them yet, but did a few test lathers. INCREDIBLE INCREDIBLE INCREDIBLE LATHER from arko. May be one of the easiest shave soaps to lather. i was very impressed by how easily arko lathered. I might even say it's my easiest lathering soap. I tried loading the the little red container it comes in. BIG MISTAKE. I had to take it out of the container and lather the arko puck holding it in one hand. MUCH MUCH BETTER LOADING AND LATHERING. For those that use or have used the arko puck, have you tried loading it in the red container it comes with? my experience is the container is too small to adequately load your brush. I am very impressed by how much arko lather and I may be in the minority, but I actually quite like the "citrus" scent of arko.
 
I’ve a story for you @FarmerTan that I’m certain will make you proud.

This winter I slipped on the ice. My feet came out from under me and as my tailbone made contact with the frozen concrete sidewalk I yelped “ARRR…..KKK……OOO”. Once I got my wind back and was able to stand and ascertain nothing was broken SWMBO asked me “What’s Arko?” I paused for a moment and said “Arko is Turkish for slick”. She bought it. Never even asked where I learned to speak Turkish.
 
Hey guys, I ordered 2 arko pucks a few days ago. Have not shaved with them yet, but did a few test lathers. INCREDIBLE INCREDIBLE INCREDIBLE LATHER from arko. May be one of the easiest shave soaps to lather. i was very impressed by how easily arko lathered. I might even say it's my easiest lathering soap. I tried loading the the little red container it comes in. BIG MISTAKE. I had to take it out of the container and lather the arko puck holding it in one hand. MUCH MUCH BETTER LOADING AND LATHERING. For those that use or have used the arko puck, have you tried loading it in the red container it comes with? my experience is the container is too small to adequately load your brush. I am very impressed by how much arko lather and I may be in the minority, but I actually quite like the "citrus" scent of arko.


We look forward to hearing about your first shave with it. 😃

It's one of the easiest soaps to lather in my den as well. On a work day when I'm pressed for time. I like to grab the Arko stick and get to shaving with it.
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
I’ve a story for you @FarmerTan that I’m certain will make you proud.

This winter I slipped on the ice. My feet came out from under me and as my tailbone made contact with the frozen concrete sidewalk I yelped “ARRR…..KKK……OOO”. Once I got my wind back and was able to stand and ascertain nothing was broken SWMBO asked me “What’s Arko?” I paused for a moment and said “Arko is Turkish for slick”. She bought it. Never even asked where I learned to speak Turkish.
I'm sorry it cost you an injury to your tailbone to learn Turkish my friend!

I have done THAT EXACT SAME THING, but I didn't learn Turkish....

I had to tell my wife, "excuse my French" but lucky for me she majored in English, and had no idea what I was saying! True story doggone...
 
I tried arko for the first time this morning and I must say its reputation is well deserved. So easy to create lots of high quality lather, yet the smell is really something else too. Very strong and does indeed remind me of industrial cleaner/urinal cakes. I can why it can be polarising!
 
I'm probably not the right person to ask, as my sense of smell is rather poor (I have perpetual allergies and some sinus issues). Perhaps this is a blessing in some ways. But Arko doesn't smell bad to me.

Also: Based on your experience @Big_T I was on a walk last night and there is a TJ Maxx store not too far from where I live. I stopped in and they had a jar of Proraso white pre-shave cream for $4. I used it for the first time this morning and I found that it provides a very nice slickness for my neck underneath the soap lather. Thanks for the recommendation!
I also have smell issues due to allergies and sinus problems. I usually rely on my wife's sense of smell and she likes Arko just fine. I prefer bowl lathering so what I do is mash 3 sticks of Arko into an old shave soap container and then scrape a little soap off of the top and press it into my Captain's Choice lather bowl. I build the lather there like I do with all of my soaps. I find that Arko lathers very quickly and easily, perhaps the easiest of all of my soaps to make a lather with. Now that the weather is warming up here in the upper Midwest, I find myself wanting to use citrus scents more. I will finish up with a citrus aftershave like Pinaud Lime Sec or Seaforth Sea Spice Lime. Some report an issue with the soap drying their skin but I haven't noticed that issue on my skin which tends to get oily anyway. I enjoy Arko and find it to be a real bargain at it's price point.
 
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