Milling triple milled hard soaps

[LuckyR]

Is it a mistake to hand mill a hard soap (in order to get a puck to fit into a bowl) in the sense that the factory probably used a mechanical press to get all of the air out of the soap during the manufacturing process, (so it would unlikely to retain the level of "hardness" if I hand mill it)?

 

[sas71]

i milled a couple of my soaps using a vegetable peeler (go to walmart and get the $13 hand crank grater) and to me it seems that the soaps lather easier now than they did when they were hard pressed into the puck. as far as getting the water out when it was made at the plant, most guys soak the puck in water while they are shaving anyway to soften it up. after i milled my soap its softer now that its not so hard pressed. seems to make loading the brush easier.

 

[Jim]

At the end of the day it does not really matter, if you can use a veggie peeler to shave the edges (if you need it smaller) than that's a good way to go. No need to shave or grate the whole puck, just do enough to make it work. Of course, dump the shavings in the bottom of the bowl before you squish the puck in.

 

[fccexpert]

You can do it. If you want the finished product to be hard and dense, you will need to soften the soap somewhat before pressing into your mug or bowl. You can do this by putting the shavings in a ziplock bag and heating them in a pot of simmering water. The soap want melt in the sense of turning into a thin liquid, but it will soften considerabley. Pour/scrape the softened soap into your container and then press it into place with something having about the same diameter as you mug or bowl. Let the new cake cool over night and you are good to go.

One caution, heating the soap may volatize some of the essential or fragrance oils so there may be a change/loss in fragrance.

 

[Crixus]

Is it a mistake to hand mill a hard soap (in order to get a puck to fit into a bowl) in the sense that the factory probably used a mechanical press to get all of the air out of the soap during the manufacturing process, (so it would unlikely to retain the level of "hardness" if I hand mill it)?

Don't overthink it. I mill all my triple-milleds into a grated cheese consistency and use a pill bottle bottom to apply tamping pressure when loading it into my bowls. It's almost like an original puck as far as hardness. Loads much easier, too.

Don't worry about the air thing. Think bars of Ivory soap. Very airy. Doesn't go bad.