Want cheap and performs well.....Arko is the one!!!
Good, cheap soap or cream
- Thread starter eleuther0s
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C. O. Bigelow (Proraso) cream at Bath and Body works. Wait for the buy two get one free special. They offer this quite often. Thats 3 tubes for $20. Great stuff and it will last you a very long time. Proraso performs as well as cream/soaps 3x the price. And as a side note, more $$$ does not always mean better product. Just because you don't want to spend a lot doesn't mean you cant enjoy a great shave. Arko is good too. At first I wasn't a fan of the scent, but I have to admit the scent is growing on me.
For me, Van der Hagen Deluxe is good, and their Luxury is better; however, lately I've gone completely off the rails and started using Clearly Natural bar soap. High glycerin content, melts easily into a mug, and comes in several scents (which don't linger long after shaving). And, I can pick them up locally for a dollar for a four ounce bar. (I still have a few VDH pucks in case I decide to revert.)
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Arko is the best of the dirt cheap soaps. It's an excellent performer with a cheap synthetic scent.
Cella is very inexpensive if you buy it by the kilo and another excellent soap.
Stirling is one nobody has mentioned but is was very economical last time I bought it.
On a side note even the costly soap aren't really that expensive when you consider how long they last. For example take a puck of Mitchell's Wool Fat for around $14. You can use that soap everyday for about five or six months before finishing it, maybe longer. Is it really that expensive if it ends up lasting you for six months. Most Triple milled hard soaps do last quite a while.
Cella is very inexpensive if you buy it by the kilo and another excellent soap.
Stirling is one nobody has mentioned but is was very economical last time I bought it.
On a side note even the costly soap aren't really that expensive when you consider how long they last. For example take a puck of Mitchell's Wool Fat for around $14. You can use that soap everyday for about five or six months before finishing it, maybe longer. Is it really that expensive if it ends up lasting you for six months. Most Triple milled hard soaps do last quite a while.
When I was in the military a very popular shaving soap was Cashmere Bouquet bar soap. It was inexpensive and worked wonderfully. A while back, I saw some in the grocery store and decided just for fun to buy a bar and see if memory served correctly. I was astounded, as not only did it produce a rich thick lather with a pleasant clean soap fragrance, but rivaled and in some cases worked better than some of my most expensive six dollar a puck prestige labeled shaving soaps. I picked up a few more bars, use them in my soap rotation and gave a few away to my traditional wet shaving friends who were shocked at how well it worked.
Next time you are in the store, pick up a bar or two, use it as you would any other shaving soap, although you'll need a slightly larger bowl to accommodate the size of the bar, and prepare to be amazed that this little inexpensive bar soap will rival some of your finest big label shaving soaps. By the way, it's made in the US by the same company for almost a century, and you can buy it for as little as $.79 a bar.
Next time you are in the store, pick up a bar or two, use it as you would any other shaving soap, although you'll need a slightly larger bowl to accommodate the size of the bar, and prepare to be amazed that this little inexpensive bar soap will rival some of your finest big label shaving soaps. By the way, it's made in the US by the same company for almost a century, and you can buy it for as little as $.79 a bar.
Folks have made good suggestions in here already. But I wanted to point out "cost per shave" as a factor. For example, I have to load more Stirling soap than Barrister&Mann soap, so their costs for me are a lot closer than the price tags indicate.
I think that cost-per-shave, and getting a good lather, nothing can beat the Arko. I prefer the Palmolive stick if you order from overseas where they are cheaper. The CO Bigelow deal (3x150g for $20) is great, too.
I think that cost-per-shave, and getting a good lather, nothing can beat the Arko. I prefer the Palmolive stick if you order from overseas where they are cheaper. The CO Bigelow deal (3x150g for $20) is great, too.
I presume you tried wal mart?
Thanks for the reply. Not yet as I don't shop Walmart often, but will stop there the next time I pass one. Have you or anyone reading found the Nivea Sensitive Cream there?
If you're just starting I'd recommend trying creams as they just start working right off the bat and you can work on your technique. Once you get that down then I'd suggest trying soaps out.
Even though it's a bit more expensive, a tub of TOBS could last you a while. Probably long enough to get your technique down. If you want cheaper you can go with almost any of the other cheaper creams and be just fine(proraso, nivea, palmolive,etc)
My recommendation is to get some TOBS and really enjoy the experience, once you think of it as a hobby then you can easily justify the price.
Even though it's a bit more expensive, a tub of TOBS could last you a while. Probably long enough to get your technique down. If you want cheaper you can go with almost any of the other cheaper creams and be just fine(proraso, nivea, palmolive,etc)
My recommendation is to get some TOBS and really enjoy the experience, once you think of it as a hobby then you can easily justify the price.
I'd say ... dive right in! Many soaps aren't much harder than creams, and one has much more variability in the lather consistency.
As a Noob and having gone thru the gamot of cremes and soaps, i can say in my opinion, you can pick good or you can pick cheap, but to have both is really not a option. There are inexpensive soaps which are pretty good but not cheap like a B&M Latha, but it seems to me the more you spend the BETTER the ingredients. IMHO and not looking to start a riot.
I do not think you will find the creme there, the sensitive in the can yes. When I wanted my creme, I ordered from Walgreen's online. I think the stuff in the can is the same as the cream. Love Nivea
I think in the 3017 thread they established that hard triple milled soaps last much longer than soft soaps like Razorrock. They were able to calculate the per-shave cost and the more "expensive" soaps were often less expensive than they seemed.
How does one determine a triple milled? VDH Luxury lasts me a long time, I still have my initial puck and it seems barely used.
Arko, hands down. Palmolive stick. La Toja stick. Bigelow cream.
Van Der hagen luxury. Best I've used 3.99$ at wally world. Love the scent! Great peformer. I despise arko and Williams scents. They smell like soap from a school. And super drying. I will say arko has a pretty good lather. But YMMV. ..
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+1. I keep it in stock. The easiest soap to find locally. Well, Williams too. But it fell from my rotation. Nothing against it.
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although i am yet to get my hands on a brick, i use the red tub and is lasting me a long time...amazing performer. Every time i write about i feel like going to grab it for a shave!!Arko is good also. But i personally do prefer Cella.
Williams mug soap for me $1.69 a puck and it last for 2 or 3 months.
