Large Copper Shaving Bowl Gets An A+

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I should examine the bowl's interior metal, said to be stainless steel, and compare it to the interior metal of the smaller Turkish mug, said to be, I believe, tin. Am I too lazy to get up and look?

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Apparently not. I looked at the large bowl made in India. I looked at the smaller mug from Turkey.

My wife looked at both, too. She's got the eye of an artist.

Neither of us know anything much about metals except for having a bunch of pots and pans and kitchen stuff, and living life surrounded by metal implements, tools, devices, and all sorts of hard objects. In other words, if you think we know what we're talking about here, that's your problem.

If you know some super simple way to distinguish tin from stainless steel please let me know. Maybe I'll recover briefly from laziness, and try it.

Oh, the verdict.

First, this bowl and this mug do not appear to be lined on their interiors with the same metal. That's going by our visual inspection, tapping on the metal, feeling the metal with our fingers, and comparing it with our vast experience and storehouse of metallurgy.

In addition, I did some Google searching on how to distinguish tin and copper when the metals are lining kitchen pots. That helped very little.

I think the Indian made bowl is lined with stainless steel. I think the Turkish made mug is lined with tin.

My wife agrees.

Does it matter? Not to me. Not a whit.

For lathering, the mug is too small for me, but the bowl is just right. That matters a lot. YMMV.

The mug is just right for holding my little supply of on deck razor blades, with lots of and it looks both pretty and very cool. That matters more than an iota.

There are photos of both items in this thread, but the picture of the bowl makes it look far less attractive than it is. It is a beautiful, shiny, glimmering copper bowl, well finished inside and out.

The Turkish mug looks good, too, on the outside, and its inside is okay. However, the inside of the Turkish mug is not finished terribly well. I'm not saying it is a piece of junk. It looks handmade, and it looks third worldy, but in a good way.

The Indian bowl looks more upscale, but not in a bad way. It looks kind of expensive, but not overbearingly so.

Both are fine for what they are, and you'd be happy with either if you like their size.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Capisco Capisce]

I have one of those mugs from Turkey. Ordered it from an ebay seller for a very attractive price.

It is a very attractive mug. If you like the size, it's a great shaving mug. I like using mine, but not to build lather, and it looks great with my shaving stuff.

Good thing these items come in lots of sizes.

My monster bowl suits me just fine for building lather, thank you.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Yep, only 8 bucks including shipping from Turkey - a steal! No idea how long it will take to arrive, though

I'm hoping the hammered texture will be conducive to lather making, and that I don't mind the lack of heat retention. My stoneware Captain's Choice bowl, and stoneware Geraldine Reardon apothecary mug, both retain heat pretty well. I know the thin copper Turkish bowl won't.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Yep, only 8 bucks including shipping from Turkey - a steal! No idea how long it will take to arrive, though

I'm hoping the hammered texture will be conducive to lather making, and that I don't mind the lack of heat retention. My stoneware Captain's Choice bowl, and stoneware Geraldine Reardon apothecary mug, both retain heat pretty well. I know the thin copper Turkish bowl won't.

Mine was in transit from Turkey for about two weeks or so. YMMV.

You'll love it, if it is the size you want.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Capisco Capisce]

Mine was in transit from Turkey for about two weeks or so. YMMV.

You'll love it, if it is the size you want.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Thanks!

 

[Capisco Capisce]

Mine was in transit from Turkey for about two weeks or so. YMMV.

You'll love it, if it is the size you want.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Update:

Yes, mine took a little over two weeks.

Can't wait to try it!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Nice, isn't it.

 

[Capisco Capisce]

Nice, isn't it.

Nice now that I can lather with abandon, without fearing I'll break the bowl, the counter, or the ceramic tile!

Plus it's got higher sides than my Captain's Choice, therefore more abandon!

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Uh oh, you'll soon be into lather porn and need the large bowl. It's very satisfying to add little sips of water and make the lather grow and grow and grow. Takes a big bowl though.

Not saying it makes the best lather, just that it is fun.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I just looked at the price of this bowl, and it blew my mind. I'd forgotten how inexpensive it was. Every time I see it, which is several times a day, it screams expensive.

Seriously, I thought it cost at least $36, and would be a steel at that price.

I'm sorta looking for another one. I want a bowl similar to the small copper cup with the handle in this tread, but I don't want that exact item as I have it already. A little smaller would be fine, but not too much smaller.

I'm in no rush, and I'll keep an eye out.

 

[SGWB]

...
If you know some super simple way to distinguish tin from stainless steel please let me know. Maybe I'll recover briefly from laziness, and try it.
...

Yeah, here are a couple things you can try.

First up...magnets. Tin is only very weakly attracted to magnets. Steel is strongly magnetic.

Or, find somthing made of aluminum to do a scratch test. A soda can tab should do. Aluminum is softer than steel and harder than tin. You should be able to use it to make visible scratches on tin but not on steel.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Yeah, here are a couple things you can try.

First up...magnets. Tin is only very weakly attracted to magnets. Steel is strongly magnetic.

Or, find something made of aluminum to do a scratch test. A soda can tab should do. Aluminum is softer than steel and harder than tin. You should be able to use it to make visible scratches on tin but not on steel.

Thanks.

 

[hush]

I use a Hammered Mule copper shaving mug. Nice mug. The dimples are subtle, but it whips up a nice lather.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I use a Hammered Mule copper shaving mug. Nice mug. The dimples are subtle, but it whips up a nice lather.

Nice, but relatively expensive compared with the handled mug and copper bowl discussed above. Unless you have a much better price than the $29 I found.