Where'd my lather go?

[Kyle 3 Pass]

Hi men, I did a three pass last night! I used my new stainless steel palm bowl for my Mama Bear soap lather. The whip was nice at first, but after my first pass, I looked down at the bowl and my lather was basically non-existent.

I am a newbie wet shaver, and I have been having problems with thick, long-lasting lathers. Any suggestions?

I did get a BBS after three passes! RazoRock lotion for an aftershave is amazing! LOTH (Lady of the House) loves it!

 

[Kyle 3 Pass]

I eventually resorted to a face lather for my third pass.

 

[Wingnut]

Kyle, my first thought (and the thing that most new wet-shavers do) is that you didn't load enough product. How long did you load your brush? If the answer is less than a minute, there's your problem right there. Give loading more soap a try and see where that gets you.

One other thought--are you by any chance using a scuttle for your brush between passes or using another method to keep your lather warm? If you heat your lather too much, it will also tend to deflate quickly, so if you're somehow doing something to keep it warm you should probably back off a bit there as well.

Good luck!

(Oh, and BTW, we also have quite a few female members here at B&B, so you might want to re-think your greeting!)

 

[BlackBear]

More of everything I would say. More loading, more water (maybe), more whipping. Pre-heat your bowl in a sink of hot water while you shower to try and keep that lather nice and warm, but like John said - too much heat will destroy your lather. Mama bears soaps are quite hard, and are probably better suited to a stiffer brush.

 

[Kyle 3 Pass]

I probably loaded it for a minute. In between passes, my brush just sits in with my lather in the bowl.

I am doing a shave tonight, but I will use Taconic shave cream. I will keep you all updated on my lather!

 

[global_dev]

there is a point when incorporating too much air also becomes less advantageous.

 

[Gabacho]

That is why I went to face lathering!

 

[Nashty]

For mamabears I fill my soap mug with hot water and let it sit with my brush soaking in it while I shower. I dump it out and shake and squeeze most of the water out of my brush. Then load for a minute or so adding a dab of water if I need. Then face lather, again adding dabs of water as needed.

 

[jeffriley]

I'm not very experienced, but I had similar experiences. My problem was too much water. I have very hard water and I think that also has an effect on how long the lather will last. I have started warming my lather, and that also seems to cut down on the life of the lather. I would just take some time to practice until you really get a handle on the process. If you are using expensive soap, buy a puck of Williams or VDH and practice until you know the recipe and technique that your water requires. If you get good stiff lather with a consistency about like whipped cream than you're golden.

 

[Ducati Scotty]

Too much water too soon can make a lather with larger bubbles tha collapses faster.

Scott.

 

[superkreep]

More soap, a bit of water, lots of swirls. That typically works.