Reusing old soap?

[TheVez2]

So I found an Old Spice shaving mug in a box at the antique store. The box and mug still have soap residue all over them. The mug still has about 1/3-1/2 of a puck still in it. Can/should this be used? I'm thinking it is soap, it is self cleaning, right? All I need to do is rinse it off and wash off a few layers and it'll be good to go, right?

Any point in doing this?

 

[nemo]

If what's left is actually Old Spice then there is a point to doing it! Great stuff, you'll love it.

But whatever it is, go ahead and use it after washing the dust off the top layer.

 

[BladeRunner001]

Try it...that's the only way to know what it really is and how great it still is.

I'd be curious too

 

[jtb]

I have an old puck of SeaForth I just shaved with this morning... I can't believe the lather it produced. I might need to start a hunt for "vintage" soaps.

 

[TheVez2]

Thanks guys, I figured it would be OK, just wanted to make sure I wasn't commiting a faux pas. It didn't smell like anything, but I suspect if I wash off a couple layers of faded soap, the scent will come out.

 

[poppi]

Wash it well and use the heck out it. I've gone to vintage soaps as well and find them excellent, giving great lather in nothing flat and doing a wonderful job. Getting great shaves with them.

I have a Seaforth puck, some Colgate Cup Soap (my favorite) and a couple of Williams. Figure I'm set for about 4 years.

 

[Blue-EyedSon]

As the others have said, you should be fine using the soap. I have a couple vintage soaps and they perform great. However, in my experience, I wouldn't expect the scent to come back after getting through a couple layers of soap. The pucks that I use have completely lost their scent and it definitely isn't just buried under the top layers.

 

[michiganlover]

As the others have said, you should be fine using the soap. I have a couple vintage soaps and they perform great. However, in my experience, I wouldn't expect the scent to come back after getting through a couple layers of soap. The pucks that I use have completely lost their scent and it definitely isn't just buried under the top layers.

+1

Most of the vintage soaps are effectively scentless, except for a generic smell I have come to associate with tallow.

Many of the vintage soaps one might find (Old Spice, Williams, Colgate, Yardley, Wrisley, Seaforth) are at least as good (and sometimes better) as the top shelf soaps of today.

 

[MrGuy]

There is something very satisfying about using vintage soaps. Yes, performance can be top notch, but even the lower end of the scale is fun to use since they weren't made to last more than a few months. I recently found a 2 inch nub of a Williams stick in an old Colgate tin. The "lather" it made just from washing the outer layer was incredible! I'm waiting for a spacial occasion to try that one out just because I know it will be that good

 

[dcrosso]

About a month ago I purchased several razors at a yard sale for $4. As I was leaving I thought to ask the seller if he had any other shaving items. The homeowner went inside his home and came out with a NIB Colegate shaving soap. I opened it up and smelled it. The soap smelled old and musty without any soap scent at all. I mentioned the soap had lost all of it's scent. The homeowner offered to give it to me to see if it could be used. I took it home at no cost.

I was contemplateing if I should use it. I did not do anything with it. Four days later I had to go to Walmart for a prescription and wandered over to the shaving supplies. I saw they had Williams shave soap for $1.39 and decided to try a puck.

When I got home I recalled several blogs about mixing left over soaps together and decided to mix the new Williams with the old, scentless Colgate soap. I took my large chef knife and chopped the Williams and the Colgate up into small bits and compressed them into a mug with some boiling water. I let it dry for several days before using.

I now have Williams smelling super soap. I have been shaving almost every day with it and it works about as well as my MWF.