Shaving bowls - do all those ridges, ribs, protrusions etc. really help ?

[Pappa Piccolino]

Hi everyone. I've been thinking about upgrading my shaving bowl. I use a standard breakfast bowl, just a smooth ceramic thing, cost a few dollars and easily available everywhere. I know that a few companies make shaving bowls and scuttles, where the inside is molded with ridges etc. to give a bumpy surface. This is supposed to create a better lather, faster. In my local currency, one the these bowls would set me back between $80 and $120, so my question is this : are these bowls really worth it ? Do they make such a great lather that it would justify such a price ? Or are they a little more on the gimmicky side ?

Thank you in advance.

 

[xxvaleria]

I have bowls of both types and have used them for years. Frankly, I can't tell much difference between them.

 

[OhioBob]

Papa, I used to think there was little difference in bowls and it was all technique until out of curiosity I ordered a Timeless plastic shaving cream bowl for a very reasonable price. It has ridges in a spiral pattern in the bottom of the bowl and the ridges go up the sides. Many have complained the bowl is too tall, but I find it satisfactory. I now can make a wonderful lather in 1/2 the time. It can be ordered on Timeless’ site and I think West Coast Shaving also carries it. If you don’t want to spend a lot of $ order this bowl!

 

[Pat Puma]

I don't know what your local currency is, but a Fine lather bowl is about $25 on West Coast Shaving and I've seen Captains Choice bowls for under $40. I think gentle ridges like those in those two bowls and the Timeless plastic bowl are easier on your brushes than pointy dots or the sharper ridges in the suribachi bowls. There is also a hammered copper bowl sold on ebay at a very reasonable price that many guys love. It comes from Turkey.

 

[dmshaver]

I've tried big coffee mugs, & they worked OK. Now I have a Captain's Choice lathering bowl & it works great for when I bowl lather. Have you tried face lathering?

 

[ScottMac]

My only main issue is that many of the "purpose made" lather bowls are too small and I end up whipping up a lather which drips over the side. Wish I could find one a bit bigger. I generally like lather bowls over "regular" bowls as they tend to look nicer.

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[RayClem]

Soap lather is a thixotropic emulsion. That means that the more sheer you introduce, the lower the viscosity. Paint and most other emulsions act the same way. Thus, to create small bubbles in the soap, rather than large ones, you need to introduce a lot of sheer.

If you have ever examined an electric blender, you will see that there are ridges inside the glass container. Those ridges help introduce sheer. In a shave bowl, any type of texture inside the bowl will help introduce sheer into the lather. Of course, anything other than a highly polished metal or glass bowl will have some sort of texture. When I travel, I often generate my lather inside a paper coffee cup. However, specifically introducing ridges, dimples, etc. into a shave bowl helps. You can still whip up a lather without those texture elements, but having them will make lathering easier and faster.

 

[Ad Astra]

Soap lather is a thixotropic emulsion. That means that the more sheer you introduce, the lower the viscosity. Paint and most other emulsions act the same way. Thus, to create small bubbles in the soap, rather than large ones, you need to introduce a lot of sheer.

If you have ever examined an electric blender, you will see that there are ridges inside the glass container. Those ridges help introduce sheer. In a shave bowl, any type of texture inside the bowl will help introduce sheer into the lather. Of course, anything other than a highly polished metal or glass bowl will have some sort of texture. When I travel, I often generate my lather inside a paper coffee cup. However, specifically introducing ridges, dimples, etc. into a shave bowl helps. You can still whip up a lather without those texture elements, but having them will make lathering easier and faster.

Excellent answer and thanks!

AA

 

[Truman]

Soap lather is a thixotropic emulsion. That means that the more sheer you introduce, the lower the viscosity. Paint and most other emulsions act the same way. Thus, to create small bubbles in the soap, rather than large ones, you need to introduce a lot of sheer.

If you have ever examined an electric blender, you will see that there are ridges inside the glass container. Those ridges help introduce sheer. In a shave bowl, any type of texture inside the bowl will help introduce sheer into the lather. Of course, anything other than a highly polished metal or glass bowl will have some sort of texture. When I travel, I often generate my lather inside a paper coffee cup. However, specifically introducing ridges, dimples, etc. into a shave bowl helps. You can still whip up a lather without those texture elements, but having them will make lathering easier and faster.

 

[Zipslack]

Turkish hammered copper bowls are very cheap and work well.

Here's a vendor on Ebay that sells them (But It Now...not an auction) for $5.95 US with free shipping.

Handmade Hammered Turkish Copper Shaving Bowl - Brush & Safety Razor Holder | eBay

 

[sugardaddy]

I've tried many bowls. I don't think the sisters are worth much. If they save a little time, in my experience, it's not that much.

So to me it might be worth $5-10, but not much more.

What I like much more is a bowl with an in-turned lip to help the lather stay in.



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[fast shaver]

Turkish hammered copper bowls are very cheap and work well.

Here's a vendor on Ebay that sells them (But It Now...not an auction) for $5.95 US with free shipping.

Handmade Hammered Turkish Copper Shaving Bowl - Brush & Safety Razor Holder | eBay

That is a fantastic price.! I have the Turkish bowl & a Timeless bowl. both work very well at getting the bubbles out of lather fast. A smooth bowl works as well but, takes a little more time to work the bubbles out.

 

[Vespasian]

I have a really nice hand-made bowl (see my avatar pic) in red and lavender, inside glazed, outside matte. It came fro Utilemud, on Easy, now seemingly sadly defunct.

Just the gentle internal ridges from the hand-trowing process. I used a smooth bowl one for comparison, and my bowl made lather much quicker than a smooth cereal bowl.

 

[Boghopper]

I've tried many bowls. I don't think the sisters are worth much. If they save a little time, in my experience, it's not that much.

So to me it might be worth $5-10, but not much more.

What I like much more is a bowl with an in-turned lip to help the lather stay in.



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Why did you have to bring my sisters into this?

 

[sugardaddy]

Why did you have to bring my sisters into this?

Haha!

... Ridges! Ridges! ...

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[cryhavoc]

When I used to bowl lather I super glued a few pennies to the bottom of a smooth bowl, it made the bowl generate lather better and faster. DIY works if you don't want to spend money on a shave bowl with ridges.

 

[mikelz777]

I think that ribs, ridges and protrusions work enough that they can't be totally dismissed as gimmicks but the claims that they make better, quicker and easier lather are very much over exaggerated.

 

[AshleyC]

Whatever keeps the puck in place, rather than spinning around in unison with my brush, I'm for.

 

[Iloverootbeer]

I have a smooth bowl, as well as a Doug Smith Pottery shaving bowl and use both regularly. In my experience, the shaving bowl works better if you are using hard soaps (loaded into the brush or pressed into the bottom of the bowl) and the smooth bowl works better for creams. Shaving bowls can be harder on brushes if they have sharp edges in them, so when I use the shaving bowl I use synthetic brushes as opposed to natural hair.

 

[mglindo]

I have tried many shaving bowls. For what it's worth, this is the best of them:

I purchased it on Etsy from:
Symmetrical Pottery

It was not glazed so it was not slippery when wet and it was wood fired not kiln fired. Okay it was a bit pricey but this is my most favorite of the bunch and my daily user. The lines you see inside are raised and work exceptionally well. The thing is I haven't see another one since although it could be special ordered.

The long and short of it is you can go as inexpensive, didn't want to say cheap, or as pricey as you want. Bottom line is if it works for you and are you happy with it. Some people are happy with a smooth bowl that they have made ridges in it with some type of glue. Easy peasy! Go with what floats your boat I say!

Mike