What's new

pre shave soap worth it?

and does it actually do anything? PAA sells this pre shave soap they call the cube. Anyone heard of it and has used it? Your thoughts on pre shave soaps and if they actually make difference when it comes to shaving? thanks
 
and does it actually do anything? PAA sells this pre shave soap they call the cube. Anyone heard of it and has used it? Your thoughts on pre shave soaps and if they actually make difference when it comes to shaving? thanks
We don't have your face and beard. A lot of people obviously enjoy preshaves, that's why they are a thing. I would suggest you give it a try if you're curious about them. I use homemade versions occasionally but I wouldn't pretend to know whether or not they'd work for you. There are also different types, I have no experience with PAA.

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk
 
There’s many ways to get pre-shave done - shower, hot towels, wetting the face and beard, oils, hydrating creams, etc.

The main point of most of them is to hydrate your skin and hairs, and help the hair push out a little more for better final results.

They all work to an extent, you just have to figure out what you might like.

For example, I used to use preshave oils before each shave, but when I started SR shaving I found that the oils is was using actually decreased the razor glide and hurt the shave more than helped. I found that simply hydrating my face properly with water and making a good slick lather eliminated my “need” for any other methods. I no longer use preshave products. If I do, I actually end up using them in conjunction with other aftershave products or lotions to help my skin post-shave.
 
I usually just grab a small dollop of lather and massage it in before I start to face lather. I don’t find the pre-shave stuff to be particularly effective, to each their own, though.
 
I bought a bar of their lime pershave soap years ago when they were still How to Grow a Mustache and did it in conjunction with RR. Once I got the bar I put it in the draw and never even opened it so I really don't know how well they work but I might break it out some day. I hear it's supposed to increase both lather and slickness.
 
I've used proraso and I have Edwin Jagger, they do work but believe it or not what works best for me is noxzema. I wouldn't shave without it now, and it's cheap to boot
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
I have tried a few pre shaves and I find that they do not really work for me. The only thing is to try them like I did and see what you think. As always YMMV. Good luck.
 

shavefan

I’m not a fan
and does it actually do anything? PAA sells this pre shave soap they call the cube. Anyone heard of it and has used it? Your thoughts on pre shave soaps and if they actually make difference when it comes to shaving? thanks

"pre shave soap worth it?"

Only you can answer that question. Some think it's great, others not so much. As usual YMMV...
 
I've found no benefit to pre-shaves in my 55 years of shaving. Just a quick, pre-shower face-wash with any soap works for me. These days I use a pine tar soap but a Neutrogena face bar, or any other bar soap you wash your face with, will work just as good. A good shave soap is more important than any pre-shave.
 
Out of curiosity, I have tried a number of pre-shave stuffs. I have not found any of them to improve anything that can't be improved by using what I already have more efficiently.
In other words - lets say that I have diagnosed that my lather is lacking. Instead of buying a crutch to overcome it, what I really need to do is up my lathering game.

All those products have done for me is, lighten my wallet, waste my time, and clutter up my cabinet.
 
I've tried a bunch - oils, creams, glycerine soaps. Can't say I've noticed any improvement at all from using them. My father, however, swears that 3P cream is some kind of miracle medicine. He's 100% sold on pre-shaves.
 
I use the PAA cube and Proraso green and white preshave creams. The cube definitely adds some slickness and protection. The Proraso adds a great face feel that I can notice post shave. Especially the green. I get a nice refreshing menthol feeling throughout the shave. Are they necessary is a different question. I do enjoy the experience of using them though.
 
I did not find that a dedicated pre-shave soap makes a difference for me.

For a while I used Musgo Real pre-shave soap, then I used some other glycerine based soap and found that there was no noticeable difference, and now I just use a wet sponge to have facial skin and beard soak up some moisture before the shave.


B.
 
If I can't shave right after showering, I will wash my face twice with glycerin based soap.

First wash is to clean, second is to hydrate.

This has always worked for me

.
 
Unless my face is covered in sawdust (evening shaver here), which does happen from time to time, I don't use a soap prior to lathering. What I use is hot water to rinse my face and allegedly open the pores, followed by a mentholated pre-shave cream or lotion: Vitos, Proraso, European Nivea, Myrsol emulsion. What I like about the menthol at this stage is that it causes a slight numbing effect for the first pass. Really helpful as far as I'm concerned.

If I'm using a mentholated shave cream, I'll sometimes start out with some apricot kernel oil or Jason skin oil. These are pleasurable too and helpful with dried skin in the winter months.
 
As with most things in traditional shaving, YMMV!

I have found little benefit from pre-shave products so I do not use them. Others find them helpful.

Give things a try and decide for your self would be my advice!
 
I feel pre shave helps with atg on my neck my shave routine is kind of a Zen thing and it includes a a cashmere shave brush which is too small and cramps my hand for shave soap lathering and I refuse to sell it. So I load it with pre shave and do a casual face scrub and let it sit on my face while I assemble my razor and load my shave brush

Between Stirling musgo paa non cube and the cube I find the cube much slicker. But then glycerin is much higher up on the ingredients list for the cube

Imo the advertised lather booster is bogus though with my shave den inventory
 
Top Bottom