Tell me about the Arko stick......

[djh]

In the city this morning I walked past a Turkish grocer's and with a few minutes up my sleeve and my inquisitive hat on, I popped in to do some research. Lo and behold they had 100-packs of Derby blades in stock (and for Zürich very reasonably priced), cheap DE razors, Derby half-blades (for use in a shavette) and Arko sticks. Naturally I grabbed some more blades and an Arko stick.
Please tell me about your experiences with Arko- I have heard that it provides a great lather, but how is the scent?
Thanks in advance...

 

[birnando]

it smells awful. Really offensive.

There are so many other soaps out there that performs as well or better.
Not easy enjoying the whole ritual when the shave den smells like a red light district bar's toilet
Arko is cheap and produce lather, and that's all the good I can say about it.
I'm never using that sad smelly thing again.
YMMV

 

[jansob]

Smells like soap to me. Not offensive, but not something to look forward to either.

 

[xriley]

It does smell like soap and it is a great performer. You will probably enjoy it.

 

[inkcoffee]

Arko smells like a regular bar soap, like Ivory. To me it has a very faint citronella smell. I like using it in conjunction with a high glycerin soap to get a puffy tallow and glycerin (with different smell) superlather. My favorite mixer is Omega.

 

[ferroburak]

Crush into a puck with your hand and let sit open. It will produce a flexible lather depending on your lather treatment.

 

[Sir Jammy Fishpaste]

Amazing lather, distinct smell...

It does have a very pungent aroma - this can be somewhat cured by leaving it unwrapped - but its incredibly easy to lather and the lather is excellent quality.

Its a very soft soap, so its very easy to squish into a container if you prefer not to use as as a stick.

A great soap and an even greater price!

 

[RichGem]

Smells like hell (strong urinal deodorant); performs like heaven.

 

[winston61]

I don't know why some may object to the scent. In use and afterword, I notice no offensive odor and it does not interfere with my AS. Have your brush (well broken in) a little wetter than usual, it will make much lather that does not dry out and gives a fine shave. Of course there are many other fine soaps and creams available. You pay your money and you make your choice. I use Arko and find it to be a very fine product. I shred mine and mold it into a puck to place in my Marvy mug.

 

[Antique Hoosier]

One of the very best surprises in close to 4 yrs in this hobby. I love the Arko stick!

 

[talibeard]

Simple but very good shaving soap. Scent is a strong old-fashioned soap smell with a bucket of citronella. Smells fine to me but nothing luxurious about it. Top performer and (together with EU-Palmolive?) best bang for the buck. Especially on hot summer days I can't think of a nicer shaving soap.

 

[Leche]

The smell is soapy, slight citrus, and some citronella. I like it and it works well.

 

[Rudy Vey]

It is one of the best, if not the best, tallow based soaps there is! The scent may be offensive to some, but it fades fast and then it is a nice soapy scent as some said. I would bet if this would be offered by one of the big names for 20x its price, most would say "oh, an old style barber shop soapy scent, nice".
It is not as bad as Williams, which I think smells like a urinal puck.

 

[goby]

it smells awful. Really offensive.

There are so many other soaps out there that performs as well or better.
Not easy enjoying the whole ritual when the shave den smells like a red light district bar's toilet
Arko is cheap and produce lather, and that's all the good I can say about it.
I'm never using that sad smelly thing again.
YMMV

My mileage is the same as yours.

OTOH, I just got my first stick of Palmolive (EU). It smells amazing.

 

[AJMiami]

I like it...performance is on par with the best

 

[the beav]

Best bang for the buck as far as soap goes and I like the soapy scent. I squished two sticks into an old Mama Bear tub and was ready to go...

 

[StreetGlide Steve]

It's what an Aardvarks butt might smell like. I did say might.

 

[Devish D]

Terrible artificial scent and not as good as other shaving sticks like the Valobra,Palmolive or the Wilkinson.

 

[Skrymr]

The scent doesn't bother me. It smells like any bar soap, and it doesn't linger. It also lathers great.

 

[Doric.]

I couldn't get past the scent to even use it once.