Tallow v. Glycerine

[salazch12]

Aside from ingredients and the manufacturing process, what's the difference? Do they make different qualities of lather?

[bobfarvour]

I think so.
Tallow lathers easier and makes a better lather. For me.

[salazch12]

They better be better at 5 time the cost! :-)

[SuperChris]

Well thats not the best comparison. Most soaps, tallow soaps included, contain glycerine. Maybe a tallow vs non-tallow is better. Tabac, for example, has tallow and glycerine. Even then, it still varies soap to soap. Mama Bears soap do not contain tallow but are among some of the most highly-praised soaps on this board and modern Williams, tallow is the second listed ingredient, is loathed by a large part of this forum. Its all YMMV.

[paco664]

tallow soaps agree with my face much much better than glycerine based.... the glycerine tends to be "sticky" and the razor doesn't glide well....YMMV

[Marco]

In my opinion the correct distinction is not between tallow Vs glycerine soaps, but more properly between good Vs bad soaps. In other words a quality shaving soap is a quality shaving soap, regardless of having tallow or not.

[Danny]

+1 to Marco's reply. I have used some excellent soaps from both sides of the camp. The main difference to me, is simply that tallow based soaps last longer.

[Fortitudo Dei]

Aside from ingredients and the manufacturing process, what's the difference? Do they make different qualities of lather?

An aside (and following on from SuperChris): Unless you are talking about transparent melt-and-pour type soaps (which for the want of a better word are sometimes called "glycerine" soaps due to extra glycerine being added at the point where the soap is turned transparent) the distinction you are talking about is between tallow-based soaps and vegetable fat-based soaps. 90% of the time, vegetable based soaps use palm oil. The manufacturing process is essentially the same for both types. The glycerine content which naturally arises when the fats are saponified into soap is roughly equal for both types (unless the manufacturer has removed it for other purposes or added extra).
There is no such thing as a glycerine based soap as glycerine is not a fat and cannot be turned into soap.
(Trying to correct this basic misunderstanding has become a personal crusade... :)

[oc_in_fw]

(Trying to correct this basic misunderstanding has become a personal crusade... :)

Ever think of changing your user name to Don Quixote? :biggrin:

[ramon]

Whe , on this forum all tallow lovers are United !
sorry for vegetarians , TALLOW , TALLOW , TALLOW !
one more time , TALLOW , TALLOW , TALLOW , UNITED FOREVER !

[talibeard]

When you mean 'melt & pour' soaps versus tallow based soaps I most definitely prefer the tallow soaps but I encountered several non-tallow soaps that perform great and some tallow based ones that were not so good.

When I count the various soaps in my den there is a 4-1 tallow/non-tallow ratio.

[nathanb]

They better be better at 5 time the cost! :-)

Not all tallow soaps cost a lot of money (Palmolive, Arko).


In my opinion the correct distinction is not between tallow Vs glycerine soaps, but more properly between good Vs bad soaps. In other words a quality shaving soap is a quality shaving soap, regardless of having tallow or not.

+1, I really like my tallow soaps but I have been suitably impressed by certain non-tallow soaps (Provence Sante, La Toja). However, I would be interested if anyone knows of a bad soap that contains tallow?

[leonidas]

....all the cool kids use tallow soaps..........

.....tallow is where it's at...............

[Lando]

Not a big fan of melt and pour soaps, they've never worked that great for me. YMMV.
Lots of forum members bemoan the reformulation of famous tallow soaps (Penhaligon's, Trumper) into non-tallow versions. So maybe tallow is better

[talibeard]

However, I would be interested if anyone knows of a bad soap that contains tallow?

I don't know a bad one (some might consider modern Williams but I actually like it and think it is quite good) but Tabac and IM are far from my favs; they lather fast and the lather looks fantastic but for performance I rather go elsewhere. A veggie soap like TOBS Traditional (aka Vulfix aka Cyril R. Salter) outperforms those two easily in cushion and protection but as always YMMV.

[lt114]

Tallow doesn't necessarily equal quality. Williams has tallow and we all know what great stuff that is. :001_unsur

[barneykiller]

Tallow doesn't necessarily equal quality. Williams has tallow and we all know what great stuff that is. :001_unsur

The best available!!! :thumbup: <---sarcasm

[salazch12]

Ah, the great Williams debate.