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Mitchell's Wool Fat Fans: Is there a shaving soap that is equal or better?

Razorock XXX Fresca is pretty good and has a good post shave feel. When I got it, I thought I was getting Razorock XXX but received the Fresca instead. Near as I can tell, the Fresca is XXX + menthol.

But MWF is so good, easy to get, and reasonably priced, and with no lanolin allergy, I don't feel much need to search for an alternative. The Fresca makes a nice change of pace and is invigorating if I feel groggy in the morning.

Tabac is also excellent and gets mixed in the rotation, but MWF is my primary 'go to' soap.
 

Steve56

Ask me about shaving naked!
I shaved with MWF yesterday and got out the Klar Siefen Klassik today. How do they compare? Klar Siefen Klassik has been mentioned as a better performing substitute for MWF. So how does it stack up?

Scent (Klassik) - about the same (BTW, Klar Siefen agrumes is very nice, about the same scent as MdC agrumes)
Latherability - (I made that word up) Better, the small tin notwithstanding, but that’s easily fixed if you want.
Performance - better, the degree is of course debatable. No one complains about this soap, and for a good reason, it is good.
Post shave - about the same, even though Klar Siefen does not contain lanolin.
Price - US prices run about 2x MWF. and the US price per gram is almost the same as MdC per gram delivered from MdC France.

Who should consider Klar Siefen Klassik: Anyone who likes MWF and has trouble lathering it, has a lanolin sensitivity, and doesn’t mind paying a premium for a premium soap (though Pasteur’s had a great price and maybe still does). It would also be much easier to travel with given the size, the MWF ceramic dish is not good travel gear.

Who should not consider it: Value buyers who like the lanolin feel.

E58F1CC6-5640-4F19-8E17-9C3E64B4EC2A.jpeg
 
I shaved with MWF yesterday and got out the Klar Siefen Klassik today. How do they compare? Klar Siefen Klassik has been mentioned as a better performing substitute for MWF. So how does it stack up?

Scent (Klassik) - about the same (BTW, Klar Siefen agrumes is very nice, about the same scent as MdC agrumes)
Latherability - (I made that word up) Better, the small tin notwithstanding, but that’s easily fixed if you want.
Performance - better, the degree is of course debatable. No one complains about this soap, and for a good reason, it is good.
Post shave - about the same, even though Klar Siefen does not contain lanolin.
Price - US prices run about 2x MWF. and the US price per gram is almost the same as MdC per gram delivered from MdC France.

Who should consider Klar Siefen Klassik: Anyone who likes MWF and has trouble lathering it, has a lanolin sensitivity, and doesn’t mind paying a premium for a premium soap (though Pasteur’s had a great price and maybe still does). It would also be much easier to travel with given the size, the MWF ceramic dish is not good travel gear.

Who should not consider it: Value buyers who like the lanolin feel.

View attachment 1359547

Pasteur's is out of the Klar shaving soaps. I confess to being partly responsible for that! Just could not resist the sale price on these.

Gifts & Care in Spain has Klar Seifen refill pucks for ~17 euros. You do not get the tin, only the soap puck for that price. Not a big deal, the tin is just OK, but not worth the extra cost. You can easily find another container.

Is 17 euros expensive for 110 grams of shaving soap? Somewhat expensive, but not ridiculously so. Consider that a puck might last 250 shaves because it is a very dense milled soap. Excellent soap to my taste.
 
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Steve56

Ask me about shaving naked!
Ha! I picked up a few from Pasteur’s myself. Shipping from G&G is of course an issue unless you’ve got a decent sized order.

Gold Dachs is about the same way, you can get two refill pucks in a carton for the price of one in a tin, maybe less. They think very highly of those flimsy tins that always seem to arrive damaged.
 
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Steve56

Ask me about shaving naked!
Kent is rebranded MWF with a different scent, if I'm not mistaken.

As far as post shave MWF is really, really tough to beat.

Any lanolated soap makes about the same post shave. Dovo-Merkur is one and they have several scents, the lavender was sold as RR King Louis Lavender I believe. Stirling has lanolin but not quite as much as MWF or D-M it would seem, still, quite a nice PSF.

There are several soaps that have as good a post shave as MWF sans lanolin but most cost more and some are discontinued. Pre de Provence, Klar Siefen, ABC hard soap previous version, ABC cream, AdP, and the sadly discontinued I Coloniali Mango Oil soap all meet or beat it, but with the exception of PdP they’re more expensive.
 
Interesting, PdP's post didn't Wow me? Depends on the skin maybe? I haven't tried those others.

The only soaps that has matched MWF's post for me have been Stirling mutton and La Toja stick.
 
Interesting, PdP's post didn't Wow me? Depends on the skin maybe? I haven't tried those others.

The only soaps that has matched MWF's post for me have been Stirling mutton and La Toja stick.
Many people using PdP don't use enough soap because the soap is so dense and hard. It's necessary to load longer than average for best results. When people complain their lather is thin, this is the first reason that comes to mind. PdP should have abundant lather; not Santa Claus style, but plenty of lather.
 

Steve56

Ask me about shaving naked!
Yep, in that respect it is quite like I Coloniali Mango Oil which out of the sealed pouch is a croap (thus the ‘cream’ moniker), but rapidly desiccates into something resembling fine grained concrete. You can make big lather with either but you have to work at it. If you use a SR though there’s no point in fluffy (cushion) lather.
 
Oh I loved the lather from PdP don't get me wrong. I like the scent of 63 a lot, too. I was referring specifically to the PSF... Which wasn't necessary bad.

My all time favorite post shave soap is La Toja. Vegan and without lanolin. Go figure.
 
I'm not sure about the current veggie formula but the older tallow version of the Lea classic puck is basically the exact same soap as MWF!

It lathers up the same (starts frothy and gets thicker as water is added), and a very similar post shave feel which only MWF and Lea provide.

Initially I thought Mitchell's produced the soap but I confirmed with Lea that it's made in-house.

I'll have to try the veggie formula one day just to compare.
That's good to know. I'm sure that it's the tallow and lanolin that provide those characteristics. It will be very interesting to see if they can match that with the veg formula.
If you do try it out to compare, then please post your findings :)
 
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I shaved with MWF yesterday and got out the Klar Siefen Klassik today. How do they compare? Klar Siefen Klassik has been mentioned as a better performing substitute for MWF. So how does it stack up?

Scent (Klassik) - about the same (BTW, Klar Siefen agrumes is very nice, about the same scent as MdC agrumes)
Latherability - (I made that word up) Better, the small tin notwithstanding, but that’s easily fixed if you want.
Performance - better, the degree is of course debatable. No one complains about this soap, and for a good reason, it is good.
Post shave - about the same, even though Klar Siefen does not contain lanolin.
Price - US prices run about 2x MWF. and the US price per gram is almost the same as MdC per gram delivered from MdC France.

Who should consider Klar Siefen Klassik: Anyone who likes MWF and has trouble lathering it, has a lanolin sensitivity, and doesn’t mind paying a premium for a premium soap (though Pasteur’s had a great price and maybe still does). It would also be much easier to travel with given the size, the MWF ceramic dish is not good travel gear.

Who should not consider it: Value buyers who like the lanolin feel.

View attachment 1359547
I use Klar mostly for travels. The puck seems to last forever. I think it performs almost as well as SV.
Have anyone tried the one with activated charcoal?

1636444454327.png
 
I shaved with MWF yesterday and got out the Klar Siefen Klassik today. How do they compare? Klar Siefen Klassik has been mentioned as a better performing substitute for MWF. So how does it stack up?

Scent (Klassik) - about the same (BTW, Klar Siefen agrumes is very nice, about the same scent as MdC agrumes)
Latherability - (I made that word up) Better, the small tin notwithstanding, but that’s easily fixed if you want.
Performance - better, the degree is of course debatable. No one complains about this soap, and for a good reason, it is good.
Post shave - about the same, even though Klar Siefen does not contain lanolin.
Price - US prices run about 2x MWF. and the US price per gram is almost the same as MdC per gram delivered from MdC France.

Who should consider Klar Siefen Klassik: Anyone who likes MWF and has trouble lathering it, has a lanolin sensitivity, and doesn’t mind paying a premium for a premium soap (though Pasteur’s had a great price and maybe still does). It would also be much easier to travel with given the size, the MWF ceramic dish is not good travel gear.

Who should not consider it: Value buyers who like the lanolin feel.

View attachment 1359547

Thanks for this great review. It may just be one persons opinion, but based on the details that you have provided here, I think I should change the classification of Klar Seifen in my list to be in the superior category.
Obviously the list I made based on other peoples suggestions is by no means definitive and I consider it a crude way of ranking suitable alternatives, but it is something that I keep referring back to when I am browsing online stores for shaving gear.
If there is a good deal on one of the listed soaps, I may add a puck to an order to try it out.
 
I
After trying most classic soaps, I’ve settled on ARKO. The scent, which I find to be OK, fades and it makes a very good and effective lather.
I have been very tempted to put Arko on the list, but I am still afraid of the scent and also that it may have a drying effect on the skin.
I don't like citronella all that much, but I may get a stick and let it air out for a while.
 
Any lanolated soap makes about the same post shave. Dovo-Merkur is one and they have several scents, the lavender was sold as RR King Louis Lavender I believe. Stirling has lanolin but not quite as much as MWF or D-M it would seem, still, quite a nice PSF.

There are several soaps that have as good a post shave as MWF sans lanolin but most cost more and some are discontinued. Pre de Provence, Klar Siefen, ABC hard soap previous version, ABC cream, AdP, and the sadly discontinued I Coloniali Mango Oil soap all meet or beat it, but with the exception of PdP they’re more expensive.
I see on the WCS web site that the PdP is roughly the same price as the MWF.
 
That's good to know. I'm sure that it's the tallow and lanolin that provide those characteristics. It will be very interesting to see if they can match that with the veg formula.
If you do try it out to compare, then please post your findings :)

Honestly, I'm not sure about that.
I've used several tallow/lanolin soaps and none of them performed like MWF/Lea.

Nor did they display the characteristics of these two soaps...

Majority of soaps start off like thick paste and require water to THIN them out to a usable lather.

MWF/Lea start off frothy and require water and agitation to THICKEN them up to a usable lather.

I've found no other soap apart from MWF/Lea with these peculiar characteristics out of the 200 or so I've used.
 
Honestly, I'm not sure about that.
I've used several tallow/lanolin soaps and none of them performed like MWF/Lea.

Nor did they display the characteristics of these two soaps...

Majority of soaps start off like thick paste and require water to THIN them out to a usable lather.

MWF/Lea start off frothy and require water and agitation to THICKEN them up to a usable lather.

I've found no other soap apart from MWF/Lea with these peculiar characteristics out of the 200 or so I've used.
That's interesting.
How about the Stirling soaps ? They are tallow soaps with lanolin, how do they compare ?
 
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