I use MWF as a stick and works very well for me, but again ymmv.
Mitchell’s Wool Fat – A Recap
- Thread starter cmbcne
- Start date
Any attempt at cooking False Albacore meets the same fate!
Any extra time spent getting a good lather is time well spent. It gives that much more time for the hot water to soak into your whiskers. Assuming you have a sharp blade, is there a single factor more important to a good shave than having your beard well soaked?
I'm so tempted to buy this soap solely for the purpose of determining what the big deal is.
There is no question it is finicky, but I have to say, a month+ later, I'm pretty much ready to sell all my soaps and just use MWF all the time. OK, not completely
, but we've had stupid cold and dry weather lately and it's working great and feels great. I feel like the shave is closer, it's slicker, and the post-shave is fantastic. OTOH, my lather isn't nearly as good as other soaps (to look at). It's thinner and runnier and takes longer, but seems to work just fine. I really like the clean, light scent. It's the only soap I've had where I'm five weeks in, using it nearly every day, and quite happy to continue. Once I use up a few other soaps, I'm going to order more and, at least, use MWF all winter. That's prob'ly a better reason than mine. I just want to get the ceramic bowl. 
It is a superb soap. I’ve never had any trouble lathering it. Just buy a refill puck and don’t spend on the jar. You will probably love it.
Funny thing is, Haslinger copied it with their sheep milk soap that everyone rants about and no one says is hard to lather. MWF is not hard to lather, especially if you use a synthetic brush. I sold mine to a buddy, but have fond memories.
Haslinger has been making shaving soaps since 1890. Mitchell’s was formulated in 1893, then produced in the 1930’s. Not sure how long Haslinger has been making the sheep’s milk version though.
When I started wet shaving I had a hard time making good lather.
The only reason I have yet to purchase it is because I have oily skin and the 2 other soaps I've used containing lanolin (Stirling and Mike's) have left me very greasy and with zits! Oh yeah and this whole money thing. I used to be a test engineer and testing is sort of well, ingrained, into my daily life. I see everything as factors and levels. Just a random thought.
Still, I want to see what this lathering is all about. I have hard water and once I learned how to lather properly (Marco method), I can lather anything I've tried, without issue. I've noticed some soaps are more thirsty (Soap Commander) and others can drown easily (Proraso), but minor adjustments to water/soap loading are all that's required for optimal results. I don't aim for lather porn either, I aim for slippery and dense or what many call yogurty. I use a boar brush that has been soaked and dripped (not squeezed) and a common issue I read about is the necessity to use a dry synthetic. This tells me the soap is very sensitive to being drowned out. I've also seen many photos where this soap has lots of bubbles and looks thin, clearly drowned / not enough soap or both. If this is truly the case, I would never waste time with this soap since I can get Tabac, Speick, Palmolive & Soap Commander loaded and lathered in under 2 minutes flat with the gear I already own. But I won't know until I try, now will I?
I would compare MWF with Tabac - very similar in performance. I squeeze my brush a bit and work up a dense lather, apply it to my face then apply more water as I face lather to the desired wetness. I do this with all soaps - works well with Williams as well.
I've had the same results until I read something, somewhere...that's pretty clear, right? I have a few small gravy boats I use for some of my soaps. They work really well and have a built-in brush rest. Anyway, this article suggested that before shaving, pour some hot water over the soap so it's covered and let sit for a few minutes while you prep your beard. Empty the water from the soap, then use a brush that has a bit more backbone to it and work the soap with a damp brush to start with and add water to the brush as you go. I tried this and it started to make a decent lather, a bit more work and Hey! It's working! My soap had been sitting for a number of years as well.
