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Soap Tests, aka culling the herd.

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Spent the last 30-40 days using the Supply Injector (Single Edge SE) almost exclusively. It works great with their blades and is the first offering from them I will keep.

How does that relate to soap, well it's such an easy razor to get a great shave with that I started keeping everything but the soap the same. No A/S or balm at all after the shave, it's MN and we're in Winter and MN Winter is not the most gentle in the U.S. So the house air is pretty dry. Forced air gas, but I do have a humidifier, but I also go outside when it's zero F and windy.

My tests don't care about lather quality, persistance, feel during the shave. Those are niceties, just like razors with minimal blade feel. I will put up with poor lather or a lot of blade feel if an hour later my face doesn't feel like it was assaulted by a sharp object. After I dial my soaps down to ones that pace the post shave test, then I will consider the other qualities, but in my eyes great lather doesn't matter if the post shave sucks.

It's been brutal on soaps. There are some, MdC, Samsons, Zartgefühl, Panama Boellis, Baumbe.be, WM Neuman, Muhle Organic and Schaaf brushless that have passed the test. That is a two pass WTG, ATG and a little buffing, rinse, pat dry and I better not feel tight or irritated on the skin for a few hours immediately following the shave. My skin, even if irritated typically feels fine by four hours post shave.

Those that have fallen. PAA - Cecil, Tabac, Théophile Berthon, Osma Rasage, Blue Devil Vetiver, Muhle Sea Buckthorne, De Vergulde hand, Imeperial.

It's a single elimination. One and done or you live on in the den. Looks like I won't have to buy shower soap for quite some time.

Interesting that some of the artisan or semi artisan super fatted have failed and others you might not expect to shine did. I think it's either the pH level of the soaps or some substance in them either perfume or essential oil that is leaving some post shave tenderness I don't get from the winners. Super fatting or lack thereof doesn't seem to make a difference in my post shave experience. I should note that I have oily facial skin and don't need a lot of moisturizer.

I have MWF, Arko (which I don't think has a chance based on previous experience), Muhle Sandal Wood, DiAmaris, Caswell-Massey (which will probably get a pass no matter what because it smells so damn good, but I think it might pass on merit) Hitton Donkey Milk, One Blade Barberhshop, Tobbs Mr. Taylor, Clinique for Men, Williams.

Some of them I won't use in the shower and will but on BST such as the Tallow Tabac and refill pucks I have. The creams might get used as general face wash. I have oily skin, so if I don't shower first thing in the day but plan to later, I still need to get the oil off, and shaving creams make nice face washes even if they aren't great for shaving.
 
While MWF is not a favorite of mine for shaving, it does have a nice post shave feel. I'll be interested to see if it makes the cut for you. My MWF is being used for hand washing by our laundry tub and I like it quite a bit for that purpose, especially with the dry winter air.
 
I loved reading this post. This was me a year ago or so.

Suffered from eczema for many years. Usually not in the shaving zone, but T-zone, elbows, you name it. Dermatologists gave me expensive creams that didn't work well and I finally gave up on that. Started looking for natural alternatives and wound up researching olive oil and other Castile style soaps. Bought a block of Savon de Marseille and used it for a face wash. Within two weeks, the eczema basically disappeared. Started using the soap with a brush for a little exfoliation and finally came to the conclusion that the soap lathered good enough for me to shave with and the slickness was out of this world. The post shave feel was also perfect and moisturizers were not really needed.

So, with the occasional usage of some of my old favorites, I have gone to a Castile type soap for everything else. I have bought one true shaving soap since then (Stirling Eucalyptus Mint) because I liked the scent.

Unfortunately, my discovery did not replace a soap hoarding disorder. It may have made it worse, actually, because now I know what works for me and the options locally and on-line are basically endless- plus it's normally cheaper than buying true shaving soaps.

I try to justify it by saying it'll also be used in the shower, at the sink, etc. but in reality I now have enough soap for the next 25 years with multiple uses daily.

I hope you continue to update this thread and let us know what works and what doesn't. I've found that when I do use things like the Eucalyptus Mint and Arko, I do a pre-shave wash first with the Castile soap and that usually helps the drying feel of the shave soap afterwards. The big jug of Dr. Bronner's Unscented liquid soap works great for that (there I go...trying to justify my latest purchase ;)).
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Will get back to it today. My Rocca arrived so I have used that a couple of shaves. It’s going to be a keeper too. So I think I will continue on with the testing with the Supply. Once done with that I might go a second round on the keepers with the Rocca.

I do know the Zartgefuhl already survived the Rocca. At this time I need to get more experience with the Rocca before I would let it eliminate a soap. But I do consider the success with Zartgefuhl a pass for that soap.
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Williams, modern Williams, now discontinued modern Williams was used today. Realized I had not used it in some time and well, it was Wednesday and on some forums there is a Williams Wednesday.

Two hours since the shave. No ill feelings at all on the face. The Williams stays.

I picked up three pucks when the puck making operation was shuttered. Too bad really as there is no other US mass produced puck that I like as well. VDH was not really a match IMO other than it had a better, easier lather. Lather alone, does not a shave soap make.
 
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Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
D'Amaris was up today, it's a nice Romanian cream. I like the scent and lather. I the lather is more protective than some.

As soon as the dry down started, I got the slight itchy burny sensation on some places on my neck. That is typically the most sensitive area for me. If a soap irritates my cheeks, the neck area for sure is lit up. This one did not do that, but in no way did it leave me feeling as good as the others.

For me, not a keeper.
 
Too bad really as there is no other US mass produced puck that I like as well
Have you tried Ogallala soap? I believe it’s made in the US. I used some today for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by how well it performed.
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Have you tried Ogallala soap? I believe it’s made in the US. I used some today for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by how well it performed.
Long ago. At the time I was trying a bunch of glycerine soaps. If I recall I had the sage and cedar, but it still smelled like bay rum to me. I don't really care for bay rum. I recall liking it better than Mama Bears which even in the unscented didn't agree with my skin.
Do they all have a bay rum smell plus whatever the named scent is or is possible I got a mislabeled pack?
 
Long ago. At the time I was trying a bunch of glycerine soaps. If I recall I had the sage and cedar, but it still smelled like bay rum to me. I don't really care for bay rum. I recall liking it better than Mama Bears which even in the unscented didn't agree with my skin.
Do they all have a bay rum smell plus whatever the named scent is or is possible I got a mislabeled pack?
Yes, they all have the bay rum base with other scents added. I’m really liking it at the moment.
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Yes, they all have the bay rum base with other scents added. I’m really liking it at the moment.
Thanks. I did not realize that. I think I would like it if it was either without the bay rum and with just the other scent or not scented at all.
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
So... shave update.

Have a few brushless creams I'm going to work in there. The first was about and hour and a half ago. Duke Cannon Superior Grade Shave cream.

It's meant to be used brushless, so I did not even try lathering it though I have seen some do so. To me the whole appeal of a brushless cream is that it's BRUSHLESS. This can be nice for travel, or if you don't like doing the dishes after your shave or even to shave like grandpa did, because folks, believe it or not in the 40's - 60's there were quite a few that appeared to be pretty popular until the canned foam won out over them.

I often wonder if the canned foam won because it was better, or was it simply because some brushless creams are not all that white and it's a bit harder to see where you have been and have not been. That really doesn't bother me. I don't have an issue knowing where I shaved and have yet to shave.

Back to the shave. Post shower as always. Simply applied an almond sized drop onto my wet face and worked around and then did the first pass (WTG). On the second pass, I splashed on some water and then did the same thing only taking a slightly larger portion of shaving cream. (I felt like I could have used a bit more on the first pass). Did the ATG pass.

Got a great shave and my skin doesn't even know I shaved as far as any irritation. So for me, this one is a winner. I know that you can't whip it into a foamy froth with a brush will mean many aren't interested, fine. There is a place in my rotation for good brushless creams.

I was just thinking this weekend about the soaps I have liked. One thing they all seem to have in common is they are very mild. Now if I lived in the old west and was all dirty, sweaty and hadn't shaved for a week, I think a good powerful soap would be a good choice. The natural oils on my skin would just about be a pre-shave and mix with the soap and maybe "gentle-ize" things a bit. I'm soft though and have become accustomed to bathing daily before my shave. That means I don't need much in the way of a powerful soap. So gentle soaps or even brushless creams are probably nicer to my skin.
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
First off a correction. Osma Rasage should be listed in the soaps that made the cut for me. It's not a great lather as far as persistent, but it gives me a good shave. Actually, more on the lather. On second pass, I like to add a bit of water to the lather. I purposely want a thinner later. Some soaps the lather can "absorb" more water, get a bit runnier, but not change much. The Osma lather when given extra hydration tend to lose it's persistence. So I could get a thicker more persistent lather, but choose not to because on my second pass, I don't want any extra cushion, I like to have good feeling but use a light touch. I will use it, but probably won't rebuy there are soaps that lather better and work as good or better.

I did use my Rocca last week which I am not using to evaluate these soaps so I won't talk about the soaps with that. I had two shaves with my soap evaluation setup which is to say the Supply Injector SE.

The soaps tried were Muhle's Sandalwood which came included in the purchase of my Rocca and another Haslinger Ringelblumen that I got when I purchased a Shavemac brush a year or so ago.

The Muhle Sandalwood performed perhaps like the Sea Buckthorn they offer as well. The lather very similarly if not identical. It's an easy enough lather, but it really lacks slickness. No weepers but there was irritation so it didn't make the cut. I might mention that I liked the scent of the Sea Buckthorn more, never been a Sandalwood fan.

I had relegated the Sea Buckthorn to shower use, but it's in that role that I can really understand why it's not a great shave soap. It's not even slippery enough to drop. It's a Muhle can't find a better soap to give with their razors. Their organic cream is nice and perhaps they should find a way to at least give a sample of that. I can't see the inclusion of the regular pucks they have as driving any additional sales. At least not from me.

The Haslinger Ringelblumen did much better. It's also easy to lather, persistent, smells pleasant, and gives a nice shave. There isn't much to say about it other than that. It's a soap I will restock when it runs out. Perhaps Muhle should do what Shavemac does and just include some Haslinger.
 
Pretty interesting read, I'm surprised MdC made the list. I was going to grab some after reading so much about it here on B&B only to find it has possibly the most mediocre, clearly overpriced formulation I've ever seen in a shave soap. The scents might be nice, but they are clearly fleecing their customers. There's no way the ingredients, even after curing for 3 months yield a great shave soap. Do you think that its more the soaps you dislike, you are reacting to? perhaps to fragrance or a specific ingredient? or is it more the general structure of the lather?
 

Chandu

I Waxed The Badger.
Pretty interesting read, I'm surprised MdC made the list. I was going to grab some after reading so much about it here on B&B only to find it has possibly the most mediocre, clearly overpriced formulation I've ever seen in a shave soap. The scents might be nice, but they are clearly fleecing their customers. There's no way the ingredients, even after curing for 3 months yield a great shave soap. Do you think that its more the soaps you dislike, you are reacting to? perhaps to fragrance or a specific ingredient? or is it more the general structure of the lather?
It's all about the post shave feel. Did the soap provide enough slickness/protection/whatever for the shave and not allow the razor to irritate my skin and not irritate my skin itself. So it could be any ingredient including fragrance that causes problems or the design of the soap itself meaning the particular combination, the pH level, etc.

Price to performance ratio is not my concern at this point as all of these soaps are bought and paid for. When they are consumed and it's time to rebuy, then yes, some may not be acquired again if there is another I like just as well that costs less. By that time shave quality will be a given and then factors like lather, cost, etc will play a role. But, first I need a soap that doesn't work against me and require aftershave or balm to hide its short comings.
 
First off a correction. Osma Rasage should be listed in the soaps that made the cut for me. It's not a great lather as far as persistent, but it gives me a good shave. Actually, more on the lather. On second pass, I like to add a bit of water to the lather. I purposely want a thinner later. Some soaps the lather can "absorb" more water, get a bit runnier, but not change much. The Osma lather when given extra hydration tend to lose it's persistence. So I could get a thicker more persistent lather, but choose not to because on my second pass, I don't want any extra cushion, I like to have good feeling but use a light touch. I will use it, but probably won't rebuy there are soaps that lather better and work as good or better...
This Osma soap is really great stuff, IMHO. Definitely unique.

If you have not done this already, try taking the soap in hand and using it like a big shave stick. Rub it in small circles on the wet beard area. Apply enough soap to see a thin white layer over the entire area to be shaved. Then, build your lather on the face, adding scant water is several stages. This gives me abundant lather for three passes, though the final pass is a bit thinner, it is no problem at all and gives an excellent, deep shave.
 
One and done? It takes me several shaves to dial a product in, whether it be a soap, a razor, a blade, or a brush. Even if I've used that product successfully in the past. With a "one and done" policy, you might be missing something....
 
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