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What's so bad about Wilkinson Sword shaving soap?

I have a tob myself and I found it a descent soap, not the best in the world but it get the job done nicely. It’s in my shaving rotation even that I don’t used it often, but a class it in the good cheap soap for the $$.
I had the chance to tried the stick and I have to agree the stick is a performer not just descent, it’s in my list to buy some.
 
So after reading this thread I decided to pull my blue bowl out of the closet to try it again. I didn't remember it being horrible, but certainly not great and I haven't used it in over 2 years. I did a very heavy load and a face lather with my Plissoft and had no issues getting a good lather rather quickly. I didn't even add any water since I remembered that his soap isn't very thirsty at all.

The lather was fine during the shave and everything went well with decent glide and protection. I wouldn't have even needed AS if I didn't want to use it since after right after the shave and for the next 10 mins my skin felt fine. So overall, for the price (the cheapest per g soap I can find) I would say this is a good soap that's probably better for many than Williams but not as good as Arko or Proraso. You could certainly do worse but I imagine that this is probably the cheapest shaving option available to me, even cheaper than a can of Barbasol per shave.

I would definitely recommend it for anyone who is shaving on a tight budget, but unless you like the scent and the price it's nothing special and you probably won't use it much. If you want something with only traditional ingredients this isn't going to cut it either but other than that, it performs well enough and I'll start using it again once in awhile.
 
I were used to building up thick thick lather and Arko would do that perfectly. Wilkinson Soap would go flat much faster and I'd need to go to tub for the subsequent passes. Arko stick, first applied to face and lathered would protect well, but bowl lathering an Arko would dry my skin.

I then started shaving with straight razors where a dry lather would make everything worse. I couldn't get much benefit from Arko's thick lather as it would make the blade too sticky on the face. I mostly used cream soaps with a bit more water than I were with Arko and those wet and slick lather would give me much better experience in my straight shaving routine.

I came back to Wilkinson soap that I were finding a bit weak and flat. I added adequate water, in my new standards, loaded the boar brush with shining lather. This time, the touch of the lather on the face was much more moisturizing and slick. A brushload would also be enough for a few passes. The after shave results were quite fresh and moist, much better than that dry or otherwise tallow-ed face I'd get from my Arko shaves.

I still use Arko for DE shaving with aggressive razors but Wilkinson soap is a nice addition in my milder DE razor those would clog easily with a thicker soap or straight razor shaves where I need a bit more slickness and a moistened skin.
 
I rather like Wilkinson soap in the blue tub. I picked up a tub in a pharmacy on a trip to Canada and it has become one of my regular soaps for use when I am away from home. I would compare it with Proraso in quality. Not "top tier," but certainly a respectable performer.
 
The stick is awesome. I'd rank it up there with the tabac and SIM stick. Never tried the bowl, but can highly recommend the stick!
 
Believe me, the stick is better. I believe it has tallow whereas the tub does not. I grate it into a tub and it makes it into my rotation, though admittedly not that often as I have some really good soaps.
 
Have to say I really like the Wilkinson blue bowl. Like the smell and even though I live in a hardware area lathers fine. At £2 a bowl in some shops, what's not to like?
 
Like Palmolive sticks I've found my nearest branches of UK supermarkets Morrisons, Asda and occasionally Tesco have it in stock. The price never seems to fluctuate.

I think for the price - £2-£2.30 odd - it's a decent product and it's great that it's easily obtained. I don't dislike the scent although I'm not crazy about it either.

However I've recently tried the blue shaving stick and I'm in the camp that says it outperforms the bowl. Long live the stick!
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
I have a Blue tub and I use it from time to time. I don't mind it for something different but I don't know if I could use it everyday. It performs well and the price is fine.
 
It smells great to me and what I done is worked a divot and put it up with water in it now it really Blooms lather.
 
It's kind of funny to see so many people actually liking (or at least not hating) the infamous blue bowl after it has been so despised previously!

I remember speaking out for it in a thread a while back and seemed to be the lone voice at the time
 
It's kind of funny to see so many people actually liking (or at least not hating) the infamous blue bowl after it has been so despised previously!

I remember speaking out for it in a thread a while back and seemed to be the lone voice at the time

It's really not that bad, but it's cheap soap so you can't expect a top tier soap but I think it works about as well as Arko and Williams.
 
I see the OP had this posted from Birmingham, UK, which is unfortunately where I am posting this from. Don’t you guys in the US get this soap under the Schick brand over there?
 
The after shave results were quite fresh and moist, much better than that dry or otherwise tallow-ed face I'd get from my Arko shaves.

Arko really strips all oils from your face like nothing. That's one of the reasons why it's a good soap. To compensate for this you need to use a bit greasier post-shave moisturizing cream/balm. Arko Classic is perfect for this.

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I see the OP had this posted from Birmingham, UK, which is unfortunately where I am posting this from. Don’t you guys in the US get this soap under the Schick brand over there?

As much as I have stuck up for Wilkinson Sword blue bowl I have to say, of all the possible soaps to have shipped from the UK, this sounds like a puzzling choice!
 
Arko really strips all oils from your face like nothing. That's one of the reasons why it's a good soap. To compensate for this you need to use a bit greasier post-shave moisturizing cream/balm. Arko Classic is perfect for this.

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Problem is, people with dry skin will not like the post shave feel and just adding a moisturizer doesn't help everyone. Any soap that is too cleansing, like Arko, I rarely use because I shave twice a day. I do have skin that tends towards oily rather than dry, so it doesn't bother me if I haven't shaved in a day or so, but one of the biggest complaints, other than scent, is that it's just too drying.

Stripping oil from your face actually isn't a good thing, you need oil to maintain moisture and pH of the acid mantel that defends your skin from infection. For me, I use such soaps sparingly and I don't use facial cleansers that do not strip oil completely off before I shave.
 
@dabrock

Yup, I totally agree. Stripping oils from the whisker to get them to soak up water, lift up and get cut easier (and avoid ingrown hair) has the dry skin as collateral damage, no question about it.

Wow, two shaves per day! I wish my skin could take it, I'd love that. :santa:
 
@dabrock

Yup, I totally agree. Stripping oils from the whisker to get them to soak up water, lift up and get cut easier (and avoid ingrown hair) has the dry skin as collateral damage, no question about it.

Wow, two shaves per day! I wish my skin could take it, I'd love that. :santa:

It's actually not too bad if you don't shave too aggressively i.e. try for a BBS. I generally shave only 2 passes, and sometimes only a single pass if my skin isn't feeling the best. I started doing twice a day because I really enjoy shaving and I have so much soap and blades I figured I might as well try to get some use of them before I die lol.
 
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