Lets talk about shaving

[Civicclutch]

Well, soap is one of those that every person is different. What I might suggest you might not like. I can list what I tried and my brief experience with them.

My problem was finding soaps that I didn`t get a burning reaction from. If you have no allergies my first question would be do you prefer vegan or tallow based. Tallow uses an animal fat of some sort but it does leave your skin feeling moisturized post shave. I prefer vegan as I don`t care for the feeling. There are a lot of soaps out there and that leaves the next question of budget as soaps range from as low as $1 and change(Williams mug soap) to $75(Martin de Candre, Xpec).

Here is a list of soaps I tried and my thoughts:
Tallow:
Williams mug soap - this has been around since time began, most drugstores carry it. Not easy to lather but once you learn it not bad but not my cup of tea. Scent is off putting

Mitchells Wool Fat - this is another one that is somewhat hard to lather but is a real nice soap. I didn`t care for the post shave feel.

Cella - this one isn`t quite as bad to lather. Has a nice post shave feel. Has a cherry cordial type smell. This soap you need to use frequently as I just tossed mine out because it went rancid. I had it for about 9 months. But with 8 to 10 soaps in rotation I wasn`t using it enough.

Proraso - another good soap that I believe is tallow based. Lathers easy nice post shave feel. I tried the white tub(Sensitive skin) but it has touch of menthol in it and I didn`t care for it.

Vegan:
Godrej - bought direct from India at the same time I purchased a 100 blade pack of Gillette 7 o`clock Permasharp blades. I bought two pucks. Got to try it on Sunday it for the money it is quite nice. It has two drawbacks, first is the scent is kind of like industrial cleaner and the other is the puck and the container is way too small to draw a lather from. Good performance and slickness though.

Van Der Hagen Luxury - My go to soap. I have the scented and it has kind of a clean somewhat cucumber smell. I don`t mind the scent but love the ease of lathering and the slickness/performance. It can be found at Walmart for around $4.

Mama Bears soap - I have a bay rum and an aged spice(Old Spice soap. It is an okay soap that I haven`t used much but does work decent and easy to lather. Priced around $11 a tub.

Soap Commander - I have the confidence scent(Honey Patchouli and musk) similar to a bay rum scent. Another soap that is easy to lather and has good slickness and performance. Priced around $15 a tub.

Captain`s Choice - Just acquired this soap and love the bay rum and it is an all around great soap. I also have the sandalwood scent but seemed to be lacking the slickness and performance. I am judging this on only one shave though and should give it a few more tries.

Saponifio Varesino - I have the Felce Aromatica(fern) scent. I totally love this soap and have been savoring the shaves since it isn`t exactly cheap at around $25 for a refill puck, more if you order it with a would shave bowl. I would like to try their other scent s but with the amount of soap I have I just can`t buy anymore.

Martin de Candre - This soap comes from France and it has a following like you wouldn`t believe. The biggest drawback is it costs about $65 for a jar delivered to the states. The jar does last forever it would seem. I didn`t care for the performance/slickness of it. The other thing is it seemed like after you made the pass with the razor your skin would feel tacky. I sold this soap and figured it cost me just under a buck a shave to try it.

I also have 3 creams, Derby Lavender, Old Spice Musk and Palmolive in the green tube. All these are fairly reasonable are are quite easy to lather since they are in cream form. Unless you prefer face lathering a bowl for lathering is highly recommended to control how much water you need to add.

I would suggest trying samples of soaps if you are not sure what you like or would like. A lot of the soaps makers sell them. I believe Soap Commander does, Stirling soaps I know does(Tallow soap and as you have read I am staying away from them). I think shave store like Maggards I think sells samples of various makers of soaps. A couple of the soaps I mentioned I sold in a lot with some not worth mentioning. Check out Badger and Blade forums if you haven`t found it already. Sorry for being long winded. If you have any questions post here or feel free to PM me.

Thanks for info I felt like I had 3rd degree burns the first time I used the razor and soap. The soap I wasn`t impressed and the blade sucked but the replacement astra blades were lot better. Now to try some different soaps currently using the old shaving cream


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[skibik]

Thanks for info I felt like I had 3rd degree burns the first time I used the razor and soap. The soap I wasn`t impressed and the blade sucked but the replacement astra blades were lot better. Now to try some different soaps currently using the old shaving cream


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Wet Shave Products soap, two of there scented soaps I got a reaction from that started to burn. Cremo Cream I can`t use at all, after a shave with that my face was like I was in a furnace. I even sent a letter to them since they guarantee satisfaction and after some emails back and forth to them they wanted to send me another tube of the original and I asked for the cooling instead and they also sent me a bottle of the moisturizer. Needless to say the cooling was just as bad. Tabac is another one I didn`t mention in my post. A big following on that soap on Badger and Blade. The scent is described as smelling like the inside of an old ladies purse. To me it was kind of smells like Old Spice cologne. I got a slight reaction to that soap also.

Captain`s Choice soap I have is like Proraso and Cella they are not a hard soap nor a cream but in between. Like a hard clay. Makes for easy lathering. I have a few hard soaps. The creams I have, Palmolive, Old Spice and Derby these are all super easy to work with. Old Spice isn`t all that great but the other two are really good. Lot of creams out there but after I use these up I don`t think I would buy anymore because it seems like I consume more than I would with soap.

Blades are the same thing. Everyone has the one they prefer. Just like soap I would recommend getting a sampler pack. My preference is Gillette 7 o`clock Permasharp Stainless(India) and Wilkinson Sword Classic(Germany and not the one from India) are at the top of my list. that Astra blade is the SP(Super Platinum) I don`t care for them. I just used one from a sample pack and I can get a good shave just not a great shave.

FYI, today`s shave, 2 day beard, Captain`s Choice Bay Rum, Omega silvertip badger brush, Gillette Slim adjustable razor(1964 re-plated in gold), Gillette 7 o`clock Permasharp Stainless blade(one previous shave on it), first pass with the grain, lather, second pass across the grain, lather, third pass against the grain, squeezed out the remaining lather from brush and did some buffing or touch-ups. Finished with cold water rinse and dry, splashed on some witch hazel, after it dried, rubbed on some Dove Men`s Care Post Shave Balm hydrate. I have had some good shaves but this morning was an awesome shave. I have had good shaves before but the awesome shaves are far and few in between. Now that I have the right soaps and my number one blade I expect a lot more.

Happy shaving!

[rwright]

I haven`t switched razors yet but recently switched to Billy Jealousy Hydroplane shave cream. Very little is required but gives me the smoothest shave without irritation. I can only imagine what it will be like once I ditch traditional razors.

[trashmanssd]

Maybe this will be my birthday present this year. Get a nice old school DE safety razor set up. I have only used a real razor 4-5 times in last 20 years. I use a trimmer only back to 5 o`clock shadow, thats as close as my shave gets.

[The Driver]

I also love Proraso but I`m going to try the billy jealousy too.

[GearHead_1]

Proraso (green tub) is my go to soap. I don`t like their cream as much. Original formula is my favorite. I probably have a dozen different soaps but I alwalys go back to Proraso.

[jrock645]

I`ve beeen using this caffeine shave cream lately. Tried it becaus I was just intrigued, didn`t expect much. I like it a lot! Very creamy and leaves my skin feeling great afterwards. I thought the caffeine thing was a gimmick but it really does leave my skin feeling tighter and smoother.

[GearHead_1]

I`ve beeen using this caffeine shave cream lately. Tried it becaus I was just intrigued, didn`t expect much. I like it a lot! Very creamy and leaves my skin feeling great afterwards. I thought the caffeine thing was a gimmick but it really does leave my skin feeling tighter and smoother.

Name?

[jrock645]

Name?

Pacific shave company. I bought it from Amazon but I`ve also seen it in grocery stores, and I think target.

[skibik]

Name?

Pacific shave company. I bought it from Amazon but I`ve also seen it in grocery stores, and I think target.

I think I also seen it in Target. I was eyeballing it but thought it might end up like Cremo and would end up in face burn.

[jrock645]

I think I also seen it in Target. I was eyeballing it but thought it might end up like Cremo and would end up in face burn.

Works great *for me*.

[GearHead_1]

Personally I prefer shave soaps as in a puck of soap. That said, Proraso`s cream is also pretty good. Their formula is sold under the banner of C.O. Bigelow at Bath and Body Works. If you watch their specials you can get 2, 5.2 oz tubes of this for about $10. They also sell a couple of differnt fragrances of body wash under the Bigelow nameplate. Just thought I`d throw this out there.

[trashmanssd]

Well I am jumping into the old shaving club game. My birthday is next week and my wife asked what her mom could get me (usually around 100$) so I figured a decent set up should be around that plus I can grab few extras my self. I am just trying to decide between 2 different Razors my number one concern is comfort by a long shot really dont care if I dont get the perfect shave as, long as I dont get razor burn or in grown hairs I know I will stick with it and learn and my skin will toughen with time. My Choices were (the highly recommended starter) Merkur 34C or Murkur Futur. Was leaning towards the Futur because its adjustable and supposedly can give a more comfortable shave. I may even just get both with in a month or so to try, the 34C at 30$ is not a big cost to start adding to what I am sure will become a collection of a new addiction.

[skibik]

Well I am jumping into the old shaving club game. My birthday is next week and my wife asked what her mom could get me (usually around 100$) so I figured a decent set up should be around that plus I can grab few extras my self. I am just trying to decide between 2 different Razors my number one concern is comfort by a long shot really dont care if I dont get the perfect shave as, long as I dont get razor burn or in grown hairs I know I will stick with it and learn and my skin will toughen with time. My Choices were (the highly recommended starter) Merkur 34C or Murkur Futur. Was leaning towards the Futur because its adjustable and supposedly can give a more comfortable shave. I may even just get both with in a month or so to try, the 34C at 30$ is not a big cost to start adding to what I am sure will become a collection of a new addiction.

I don`t own the Futur but from what I read setting number 1(the least blade gap) is quite aggressive or more open then the 34c. Of course I started with the 34c per the recommendations here. It is a great razor but for me the only drawback is the short handle at 3" long. Shorter than the average disposable. I don`t mind it but I would personally like a longer handle such as the Merkur 38c.

If you don`t mind used and are into vintage check the bay for Gillette Slim Adjustable. I had one in my birth year and can be had for around $40 in good to mint condition. I now have a re-plated Gillette Slim Adjustable in gold in my birth year but that gets spendy. Search for replated razors or check out Hibco(where I got mine from) or Delta Echo.

FYI, the blade gap setting on #1 on the Futur is considerably more open or aggressive then the Slim set at nine. I shave with my Slim set to 5 or 6 with my 7 o`clock Permasharp blades and turn it down to 3 or 4(less aggressive) with the Feather blades. Check out this link on Razor blade gaps. Double-Edged Safety Razors Ranked by Blade Gap

Another way to open the gap on a razor that isn`t adjustable such as the 34c is to take used blades cut the edge off, about an eighth inch each side leaving the center. Put your shaving blade on the cap and place these blade shims on the cutting blade so they are between the cutting blade and the base. This moves the safety bar .004" for each blade shim used farther away from the blade making it more aggressive. Doesn`t sound like much but it is a lot. I tried 2 shims on my 34c for .008" and it makes a big difference. I have done this trick on a Gillette Tech from `64 also and it works. There is enough threads in the handle to allow for this.

[Angus]

...Well I am jumping into the old shaving club game. My birthday is next week...

Hold on. When was your b-day? Did we collectively miss it?? I need to make this right if so.