How to use an antique shave scuttle

[Canada]

This is a fascinating thread!! So there is no literature from that time period on how they were used? It’s so odd that such a common thing could be (kind of) shrouded in mystery. Undoubtedly one of the theories here is correct but it would be cool to know definitively.

No not much literature at all. I think at the time (early 1900s) perhaps as much as 40% (I'm guessing) of the population was living on farms and making soap at home was still quite common. Sure if you lived in a big city you would have had access to stores selling soap. So basically using the hot ashes from the living room fireplace and pouring cold water over them to extract the lye. Then bring a big pot of animal fat (tallow) to a boil and add the lye mix and pour it into a mould and cool it. Cut into chunks and that's your shave soap/bath soap/cloth cleaning soap…I'm sure there was more to the process but something like that.

 

[shave/brush]

I have not read this whole thread yet but I will. I wanted to post this first. I have an antique scuttle that I have not really used yet because I don't know how. Can't wait to read this thread. I hope I learn something.

 

[John Rose]

Or they are what is known as an "Occupational" shaving scuttle.

I had never heard of this before.
Google is my friend : Shaving Mugs And Scuttles — What You Need To Know – mantic59 – Medium
It's a nice survey of the different mug-like items.[/QUOTE]

[edit]
After a bit of thought, it occurs to me that someone into Civil War (or "War of Northern Aggression", if you wish) reenactment should have a an idea of how the tin scuttles were actually used.

 

[Clay S]

I had never heard of this before.
Google is my friend : Shaving Mugs And Scuttles — What You Need To Know – mantic59 – Medium
It's a nice survey of the different mug-like items.

[edit]
After a bit of thought, it occurs to me that someone into Civil War (or "War of Northern Aggression", if you wish) reenactment should have a an idea of how the tin scuttles were actually used.[/QUOTE]
Hmm, if there is historical writings about it probably so. If not, they would use the same, "Well, it would make sense if the . . ." method that we use

I thought it was "The War Between the States"

 

[Big Jim]

John Rose may be a Southerner.

 

[rockviper]

I used to have a vintage one. Went really nice with my old injector and vintage boar.

 

[MilkCrate]

Scored this one but haven’t used it yet.

 

[John Rose]

I thought it was "The War Between the States"

John Rose may be a Southerner.

Um... Not my circus, not my monkeys.
Although, as it happens, my great-grandfather on my dad's mother's side (who was Canadian, born in Nova Scotia) saw fit to go and join the 3rd New Hampshire Volunteers. See Dartmouth Medicine Magazine :: Years of Change & Suffering - Samuel James Hingley was my great-grandfather. Part of his memoirs were called "A Close Shave In the Civil War of the U.S.", but sadly there was no mention of literal shaving. He later came back to NS and became a schoolteacher and then a commercial sea captain. I have his Union Army pension papers and two of his licences to be a captain of a sailing ship.
But I digress.

Scored this one but haven’t used it yet.

View attachment 944094

That is grotesque, yet cool.

 

[emwolf]

I love the whimsical designs of many of these old scuttles. I generally only sink shave on vacation, so I'll be packing my vintage scuttle for my next trip.

 

[DrStrange]

[edit]
After a bit of thought, it occurs to me that someone into Civil War (or "War of Northern Aggression", if you wish) reenactment should have a an idea of how the tin scuttles were actually used.

Hmm, if there is historical writings about it probably so. If not, they would use the same, "Well, it would make sense if the . . ." method that we use

I thought it was "The War Between the States"[/QUOTE]

I always refer to it as "The War of Extreme Facial Hair" .

 

[DrStrange]

No not much literature at all. I think at the time (early 1900s) perhaps as much as 40% (I'm guessing) of the population was living on farms and making soap at home was still quite common. Sure if you lived in a big city you would have had access to stores selling soap. So basically using the hot ashes from the living room fireplace and pouring cold water over them to extract the lye. Then bring a big pot of animal fat (tallow) to a boil and add the lye mix and pour it into a mould and cool it. Cut into chunks and that's your shave soap/bath soap/cloth cleaning soap…I'm sure there was more to the process but something like that.

Here are some pictures of my 1870 style Union porcelain shaving mug:

I was reading The Art Of Shaving, which was written in 1905
and I noticed two things which got me thinking about the use
of antique scuttles.
The first was that they recommended against their use
because the upper mug was too small for making lather.
That suggests to me that it was intended for making lather
even if was inadequately designed.

The second thing I read that got me thinking about scuttle use
was the recommendation to hang the shaving mirror between two windows.
This suggests to me that in 1905, they're not thinking of anybody
shaving near a sink with running water.

The scuttle is four inches tall and three inches wide.
It is branded as a Shaving Mug.
I think it is just supposed to be a shaving mug that
drains into an attached basin which fits on a window sill.

If I just press a small piece of soap into the mug
on the side opposite the drain holes, it's really not that
hard to lather up and shave. But I have a modern bathroom
so I don't do that.

 

[DrStrange]

Here are some pictures of my 1870 style Union porcelain shaving mug:
View attachment 982171 View attachment 982173 View attachment 982174

I was reading The Art Of Shaving, which was written in 1905
and I noticed two things which got me thinking about the use
of antique scuttles.
The first was that they recommended against their use
because the upper mug was too small for making lather.
That suggests to me that it was intended for making lather
even if was inadequately designed.

The second thing I read that got me thinking about scuttle use
was the recommendation to hang the shaving mirror between two windows.
This suggests to me that in 1905, they're not thinking of anybody
shaving near a sink with running water.

The scuttle is four inches tall and three inches wide.
It is branded as a Shaving Mug.
I think it is just supposed to be a shaving mug that
drains into an attached basin which fits on a window sill.

If I just press a small piece of soap into the mug
on the side opposite the drain holes, it's really not that
hard to lather up and shave. But I have a modern bathroom
so I don't do that.

I looked up the 1870 patent, which referenced an 1867 patent
and this is mostly what I got out of that.
The 1867 patent claims the combination of the soap and water
vessel for the convenience of the combination,
the small size, and the thermal insulation of the water.
The 1870 patent claims to be an improvement
by adding an inclined spout and drain holes
so that the water can be poured out without dumping the soap.
It also claims that the water soap vessel combination
was about 20 years old in 1870.

 

[DrStrange]

I looked up the 1870 patent, which referenced an 1867 patent
and this is mostly what I got out of that.
The 1867 patent claims the combination of the soap and water
vessel for the convenience of the combination,
the small size, and the thermal insulation of the water.
The 1870 patent claims to be an improvement
by adding an inclined spout and drain holes
so that the water can be poured out without dumping the soap.
It also claims that the water soap vessel combination
was about 20 years old in 1870.

The pdf files didn't attach the way I thought they would.

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/d0/9b/31/4c0a196d8b0278/US107450.pdf
https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/36/8f/7f/1c34f83aa59c19/US66788.pdf

 

[JohnPS]

Excellent thread!

The medium article is fantastic and got me on a journey of discovery about scuttles! A very important and underrated topic of shaving.

It got me thinking and I deduced far more since...

Original scuttles were used before plumbing was widely in use and running hot water wasn't available. Also shaving was done exclusively with a straight razor and with a soap puck, it wasn't until much later that creams were invented. And the brushes were exclusively animal hair.

People back then were far more resourceful and had a utilitarian mindset.

Also upon a deep dive, the scuttles we see are pretty much all reproductions and varied since the introduction of modern conveniences. I doubt we ever see genuine old scuttles about and I doubt the authenticity of claims about age, I think they are much much older than we think with fewer surviving examples.

The scuttle evolved over time. Think about it, what do you need for a shave and how can you make do it proficiently with the equipment at that time. Firstly you need to water, equipment, mirror... and chances are you took your water from a source and moved to a place where you shaved aka "shaving station"... today for most people it's the bathroom sink, but back then it wasn't like that at all.

So the scuttle put what were seperate parts together, to become easier to transport to your shaving station and to make things more compact. These scuttles were also for people of affluence who could afford this item. In the cities barbers were far more common where one could enjoy a hot towel shave.

I find it less functional to add hot water to a base whilst a puck is in the top of the scuttle. Certainly doesn't take advantage of the "warming lather" theory. And this to me, happened later.

Water filled the base and if there was hot water available it was used the majority of time. Importantly this water was likely kept clean and used to rinse at the end of the shave. Another bowl of water used to rinse off the razor. The spout was widen to soak the brush and then the brush was loaded with soap and I think many used a face lather adding water by pouring out of the spout onto the brush over the rinse bowl. The soap was kept in a seperate lidded bowl, the way MWF is sold. The top of the scuttle was a resting place to keep the brush with lather warm. If you needed more soap you could simply load a little more and continue your face lather.

That final rinse using clean water which would have cooled from hot down to warm during the course of the shave. Remembering that shaving with a straight razor takes more time than with a DE or cartridge shaver.

Lots of variants developed especially with the advent of running hot water and over time we have seen a devolution to more comical designs. The 1880's puck in top patent I would see as coming later and making far less sense, it was one of the explosions of variants.

Later with hot water the common man used left using a mug to shave stick with no mug required other than to soak and rest your brush if you still used one. Now we have propane in a can applied with fingers and shaves with plastic disposables.

 

[JohnPS]

So I began to look for the earliest scuttles which do very much seem to confirm my thinking of the scuttle being utilitarian and altered later to resemble what they became. This is the earliest one I could find.

Basically compact water and lather receptacles for ease of use to transport to where your shaving station was. I believe the water in the base was used to rinse.

Source:
Carole's Country Antiques Collectibles_FS2074 ca. Rare Late 18th Century Redware Shaving Mug with Brushes

 

[gLet]

Not sure if I can post a video. But here is a cool museum of scuttles by Captain fawcett

 

[Lefonque]

I would had no clue. This thread has been enlightening.

 

[emwolf]

Not sure if I can post a video. But here is a cool museum of scuttles by Captain fawcett

upper lip sweater?

 

[Ad Astra]

Read everything and still mystified ...

A final rinse with the mug full of dirty water, perhaps.


AA

 

[linty1]

Read everything and still mystified ...

A final rinse with the mug full of dirty water, perhaps.


AA

Same, still mystified. So.. you pour hot water in the bottom to soak your brush.. but I thought you shouldn't soak your brush in hot water? Or just soak the bristles? How do you balance the handle heavy brush so that it stays bristle in?