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Triple Milled Soaps v. Glycerin Soaps?

I've discovered soaps in the last week after using creams exclusively for my first month of DE shaves. I am very pleased with the results and I think I'm going to be sticking with soaps for a while.

Currently I'm using a triple milled soap, but I've read a lot about more glycerin based soaps or "glycerin rounds."

How do triple milled soaps and glycerin soaps compare? Observations? Preferences?

Any info will be much appreciated.
 
I'm a fan of VDH Glycerine soap. IMHO much better than the Williams I used for 40+ years.

Buy a block of Van Der Hagen and decide what you think. $1.50 at most grocery/pharmacy stores. YMMV.
 
Melt-and-pour soaps ("glycerin") usually are a little slicker and have stronger scents. This has to do with the fact that the cold process soap making method used to make triple-milled soaps kills a lot of the scent. In the grand scheme of things, I think most would agree that triple-milled soaps are superior to melt-and-pour.
 
Melt-and-pour soaps ("glycerin") usually are a little slicker and have stronger scents. This has to do with the fact that the cold process soap making method used to make triple-milled soaps kills a lot of the scent. In the grand scheme of things, I think most would agree that triple-milled soaps are superior to melt-and-pour.

Can anyone explain to me what makes them superior?
 
Triple milled soaps carries a lot of clout here but I will say it is often misused here. As Matt points out it has to do with the processing of the soap which creates a very hard soap that has little air in it. This leads to a longer lasting soap. Your better question would be what the soap base is like vegetable (often palm), tallow, (animal), or glycerin. Tallow and vegetable are more similar as some companies have chosen to replace animal fat with a vegetable based fat. IMO vegetable and tallow are superior to glycerin. Glycerin does provide a nice slick lather with typically booming scents. The others can also provide that slickness with the added benefit of cushion. The scents tend to be more muted but I appreciate them better. Provence Sante is a triple milled vegetable based soap and its by far one of the best IMO. MWF is a tallow non triple milled and is one of the very best. Tabac is quite good and falls into the triple milled tallow realm. Hope this helps.
 
Triple milled soaps carries a lot of clout here but I will say it is often misused here. As Matt points out it has to do with the processing of the soap which creates a very hard soap that has little air in it. This leads to a longer lasting soap. Your better question would be what the soap base is like vegetable (often palm), tallow, (animal), or glycerin. Tallow and vegetable are more similar as some companies have chosen to replace animal fat with a vegetable based fat. IMO vegetable and tallow are superior to glycerin. Glycerin does provide a nice slick lather with typically booming scents. The others can also provide that slickness with the added benefit of cushion. The scents tend to be more muted but I appreciate them better. Provence Sante is a triple milled vegetable based soap and its by far one of the best IMO. MWF is a tallow non triple milled and is one of the very best. Tabac is quite good and falls into the triple milled tallow realm. Hope this helps.

It does help, I am so green I didn't even know the right questions to ask! :biggrin1:
 
It does help, I am so green I didn't even know the right questions to ask! :biggrin1:

Leche made a great post. 99% of shaving soap are either cold process and melt-and-pour. Cold process is made using traditional soap making methods. Melt-and-pour consists of melting a soap base and adding ingredients (good stuff for your skin and fragrances). Cold process soaps include triple-milled and tallow soaps.

I said that most would agree that triple-milled (I was more so referring to cold process) shaving soaps are better just by what I have seen here at Badger & Blade. Some people do not even use melt-and-pour soaps anymore. For me, cold process shaving soaps are better because a good cold process shaving soap provides all the glide a melt-and-pour shaving soap does, plus cushion that most melt-and-pour shaving soaps do not.
 
Triple Milled soaps are really hard, the process is not a cold process only, it uses hot and cold temperatures and pressure....

HOT COLD HOT.....
O O O
O O O


The soap loses water and air during the french milled process
 
Triple Milled soaps are really hard, the process is not a cold process only, it uses hot and cold temperatures and pressure....

HOT COLD HOT.....
O O O
O O O


The soap loses water and air during the french milled process

The temperatures during soap milling is not where the name "cold process" comes from.
 
R

rodeo

If I were to try ONE Triple Milled soap, which one would you recommend I get? (and why?) And what is meant by "cushion?"

I use only glycerine poured soaps now.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
S

Soapourri

Just wanted to chime in here, folks. When you refer to cold process, you are talking about handmade soap, which is very different than commercial. This contains natural glycerin, which is very beneficial. The big commercial soapmakers remove the glycerin.
Triple-milled takes soap and grinds it up several times, making a longer lasting bar with less moisture. Generally those are associated with big commercial operations - and if there is a high content of glycerin in the soap, it would gum up the machines. Therefore, I don't think triple-milled soap is cold process, or handmade.
Glycerin soap, on the other hand, can vary by tons. Some glycerin soap is made from detergents, and some are "real soap" made with vegetable oils.
I enjoy the posts on this forum about soap so I decided to join - love it that you guys are passionate about soap as I am!
 
triple milled soaps are much harder,last longer...if you get a triple milled soap for shaving try to find one made with red or green clay...this really helps to lube the face and give blade "glide"
 
Just wanted to chime in here, folks. When you refer to cold process, you are talking about handmade soap, which is very different than commercial. This contains natural glycerin, which is very beneficial. The big commercial soapmakers remove the glycerin.
Triple-milled takes soap and grinds it up several times, making a longer lasting bar with less moisture. Generally those are associated with big commercial operations - and if there is a high content of glycerin in the soap, it would gum up the machines. Therefore, I don't think triple-milled soap is cold process, or handmade.
Glycerin soap, on the other hand, can vary by tons. Some glycerin soap is made from detergents, and some are "real soap" made with vegetable oils.
I enjoy the posts on this forum about soap so I decided to join - love it that you guys are passionate about soap as I am!

Wow, excellent first post :thumbup1:

Welcome to Badger & Blade!
 
Haven't tested many glycerins, but I certainly prefer the hard soaps or creams.
The glycerin I have is great on fragrance, but a little light on lather.
 
If I were to try ONE Triple Milled soap, which one would you recommend I get? (and why?) And what is meant by "cushion?"

I use only glycerine poured soaps now.

Provence Sante Green Tea, best triple milled soap I have tried, perhaps one of the very best period. Cushion is that extra protection that protects the skin.
 
triple milled soaps are much harder,last longer...if you get a triple milled soap for shaving try to find one made with red or green clay...this really helps to lube the face and give blade "glide"

I don't look at ingredients often, but I don't recall seeing triple milled soaps that have added clay. I've only seen clay added to artisan soaps. Do you have specific examples?
 
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