Lurker just joined need help

[GNR]

Good morning, I’ve been lurking and reading your posts for a few months and have learned a lot, wish I found you guys and gals way earlier in my journey. I have been traditional shaving for about 8 or 9 years. I used an EJ89 until it broke and now use a Merkur 34 HD, Merkur 1904, and My new Birthday gift Timeless Bronze SB38 (wow). Okay so I really just use my TBR38SB unless traveling. I need help with MWF. I love the smell, slickness, and face feel but my lather is horrid. It dissipates on my face so I have to keep re-lathering. Face latherer with Yaki synthetic. I don’t have issues with WK, Haslinger, Mike’s, or M&M. What the heck am I doing wrong? I love MWF but am frustrated and ready to give up. No to the TABAC before you mention it ( I know, I feel the shame!)
By the way I’m glad I found you and look forward to participating.
Tim

 

[BigJ]

Welcome aboard!

 

[Atlantic59]

...What the heck am I doing wrong? I love MWF but am frustrated and ready to give up...

Tell us more about what you are doing now. Do you know if you have hard water or soft water? Do you soak the MWF puck before loading? How long are you loading the brush for? Are you attempting to lather directly on the face, or are you building your lather in a bowl? How much water are you adding to the lather while building it? Do you have enough lather in your brush for three passes (or however long you need it to finish the shave)?

 

[Rustyshackelford]

Welcome aboard.

I will share with you my experience in keeping aNd using MWF. I hope you have the ceramic dish made for the soap, as that is what mine lives in. This is the only soap of about 40 that lives on my counter beside the sink. I take the ceramic lid, put some water in it, and pour said water onto the puck, at first twice a week, and once it swells to completely fill the dish, maybe once every 10days... I treat it like a house plant. Next comes to the appropriate tool. It can be done with a synthetic or badger brush, but a dense boar brush is ideal. Think along the lines of a Zenith scrubby or Semogue Owners Club, I have an Omega Jade that lacks the density and backbone to work well consistently for me, YMMV. Load it like you hate it using a presoaked brush that has had nearly all the water squeezed out. Once loaded and painted on your face then work it in adding water gradually. Lastly, don’t be surprised if you need to go back to the puck for more soap to do each pass at first with a newer boar brush.

 

[ackvil]

Welcome to B&B, Tim.

Some folks have a difficult time getting MWF to work. Here are some threads that may help you.

Lathering mwf tips

Hi all , After 2 years i have finally cracked lathering mwf and thought i should share some of the things i learnt to hopefully help others that are having difficulty lathering this soap, ymmv 1. Breaking the soap in makes a big difference, those that are lucky enough to have good water may...

www.badgerandblade.com

MWF Wool Fat lather disappearing

I rather up with warm water and after face lather for few minutes lather is thick & slick but lather will just disappear after a while! Anyone know whats wrong?!

www.badgerandblade.com

MWF my 5 rules

Hi, When I first started using Mitchell's Wool Fat I got thin, dry and not very slick lather leaving me with rough shaves and patches of irritation and fuzz. It wasn't a great experience overall. I persevered and worked on it and looked at various videos and tips, as I knew it could be a great...

www.badgerandblade.com

MWF can be a fickle soap for some. A few years ago I had some PMs with a member who followed all of the traditional advice. The only thing that worked for him was to add a tiny bit of cream to the lather. He would rub a tiny bit of cream on his face and then apply the MWF with his brush (making a superlather). I must confess, however, that although it worked for him, he did not order another puck of MWF when he finished it!

 

[GNR]

Man, you guys are fast. I’ll try to answer the questions. I face lather and my MWF lives in its ceramic home. I added water slowly a few times until my soap has expanded to fill its bowl. I have tried loading with a wet brush (almost the Marco method but not quite), pretty dry brush, upside down, with a damp brush, etc. it looks like I get a pretty good coat of soap on my face and then slowly add water (drip on brush with fingers) and work the lather. It is really slick but it never gets too billowy and it disappears as I shave. I’ll read through all of those other chains and see if it helps Jim. Chandler is nice my wife is an ASU alumni.

Tim

 

[ackvil]

Man, you guys are fast. I’ll try to answer the questions. I face lather and my MWF lives in its ceramic home. I added water slowly a few times until my soap has expanded to fill its bowl. I have tried loading with a wet brush (almost the Marco method but not quite), pretty dry brush, upside down, with a damp brush, etc. it looks like I get a pretty good coat of soap on my face and then slowly add water (drip on brush with fingers) and work the lather. It is really slick but it never gets too billowy and it disappears as I shave. I’ll read through all of those other chains and see if it helps Jim. Chandler is nice my wife is an ASU alumni.

Tim

Hope it works for you. For some reason, MWF worked better for me when I lived in Florida. Most likely it is the water.

 

[steveclarkus]

I used it this morning with no trouble but my preference is a thin wet lather.

 

[Rustyshackelford]

You can splurge on a gallon of distilled water at the store and see if that makes a difference. That will help to eliminate your local water as a possible culprit.

 

[NickCutlip]

Welcome to the forum !!

 

[Invicta]

Welcome to B&B.
MWF does respond differently between soft water and hard water. I have hard water and load for longer to get a good lather. It is a hard soap so responds to blooming before loading.
The lathering Wiki may help you; Lathering | Badger & Blade
The Merkur 34C is a great razor especially when partnered with a Gillette Silver Blue blade; even an Astra SP is a very close second.

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

Welcome Tim! Regarding MWF, you just have to load it longer, that's all! All the other soaps you mentioned take 1/4th the time to load, in my experience. The airy/dissipating lather phenomena is usually not enough soap with MWF. As you're loading it, it will start to go everywhere. Most soaps require basically nothing visually and then explode once you face-lather them, like Tabac and MdC. The FAT is not so. Keep loading until it looks like enough lather for two passes THEN move it to your face and work it to perfection!

Another option is to rub the puck on your face like a shave stick and then face-lather that. That's the easiest method if you ask me!

 

[ajkel64]

Welcome to the forum Tim. Thanks for checking in with us and sharing your experience.

 

[cryhavoc]

Welcome to B&B! I hope you can get MWF to work for you, it is one of my favorite soaps.

 

[GNR]

It’s Friday so MWF (The Fat on every Mon, Weds, Fri). You have all been so helpful. It looks like I wasn’t loading enough MWF. There apparently isn’t really any ritual, secret, or obscure incantation. I loaded; then kept on loading, then kept on loading and viola! I am glad because so far MWF, Haslinger, and Murphy & McNeil are my favorites. But I have some MDC samples coming from Maggards to see if my SAD needs to flare up. Oh by the way, my ceramic dish of MWF now lives on the counter next to my sink. Now I can see it every day and realize that if I had quit or not asked for help, I would never have discovered the great experience from one of my top two soaps.

 

[noodles hovar]

Just curious - did your EJ89 break at the zamak threads? Mine did

 

[dmshaver]

Welcome to B & B, glad you’re now enjoying MWF!

 

[GNR]

“Noodles” my EJ broke when I dropped it. I dented the handle and chipped the corner of the head. I’ll be honest though, I used it for years (maybe 6 or 7) and it was a great tool for me to learn traditional shaving. It was forgiving of my ham fisted, too much pressure, blade experiments, etc. it had a good run and didn’t owe me anything.

 

[Jer78]

MWF is so slick that people have a tendency to think it is "ready" when it still can take a tonne more water. My breakthrough came when I loaded about twice as long with about three times more water then when it was dissipating.

Let us know how you do, JM

 

[jedaro]

MWF is so slick that people have a tendency to think it is "ready" when it still can take a tonne more water. My breakthrough came when I loaded about twice as long with about three times more water then when it was dissipating.

Let us know how you do, JM

I have recently had that same experience with Tabac.