Will the real "Old Spice" please stand up

**Island Dreamer** · 03-02-2012, 07:37 PM

Yes, I've seen from your posts how invested you are in this issue. Stay classy, my friend.

**luvmysuper** · 03-02-2012, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by Island Dreamer

Yes, I've seen from your posts how invested you are in this issue.

I couldn't have stated my opinion any clearer than that my friend!
Perhaps it would be best for all, if we both just stayed out of this thread from here on out.
Lets do that then.

**Go Forth** · 03-02-2012, 08:20 PM

Originally Posted by dcobranchi

Based on overall similarity, it is concluded that currently produced Shulton Old Spice (a product of India) and vintage Shulton Old Spice are essentially identical.

In examining the tracings closely, it appears that the current Shulton has 4 strong spikes (at 10.4, 11.3, 13.2, 13.7) that are either absent or much weaker in the vintage. The spike at 14.0 is much stronger in the vintage than in the current Shulton. The spikes at 14.1 are strong in both, but much stronger in the current. In addition there are other minor variations. The current and vintage do not appear to be the same formulation, and the observed differences could account for differences in odor. Such differences would also depend on the potency of those components, the identity of which are not known. This is not my area of expertise, but I'd like to know why do you feel that the formulations are identical. It might be worth doing a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to actually identify those components that differ between the two, as they might be quite important parts of the overall aromas. Thank you for a very interesting contribution!

**The Nid Hog** · 03-02-2012, 08:34 PM

One of the best posts I've ever read. Bravo!

**Sullybob** · 03-03-2012, 06:03 AM

Excellent work!

**SmoovD** · 03-03-2012, 06:49 AM

Thanks for the post. And confirming (possibly) what many of users have suspected. Bottom line: wear what you prefer.

**brianw** · 03-03-2012, 07:12 AM

Originally Posted by SmoovD

Thanks for the post. And confirming (possibly) what many of users have suspected. Bottom line: wear what you prefer.

a very wise post

**rickcharles606** · 03-03-2012, 10:13 PM

Holy cow, quite possibly the best post ever! I don't wear any of the varieties of OS, but I suddenly want to try all the variations, lol. Nothing like scientific enabling...thanks ;-)

**sir-nix-alot** · 03-04-2012, 10:09 AM

I realize impossible to control - but I think the huge factor is the age of the samples.

Even if the Shulton India recipe is EXACTLY the same as the Original, you must account for 4o years of maturation somehow.

**Shmu** · 03-04-2012, 01:41 PM

SO COOL!!! It's great to see some fellow science dorks on this site!

**dcobranchi** · 03-04-2012, 03:58 PM

Thanks. guys. I didn't realize the thread was opened back up.

A couple of clarifications:

Yeah, HS-GC-MS would be better than the FID I used. Unfortunately, I don't have access to a mass spec right now. Hopefully later on this year.

No, I don't have a GC in the basement. I use it in my job. The HS analyzer is new and I was playing around with it trying to optimize the conditions.

Yes, there are differences between all four samples and there's no way to state categorically that the vintage and the current Shulton used the same recipe. But overall IMO the Shulton was very close. Certainly closer than the P&G or the the Vijon.

**PDB** · 03-04-2012, 04:20 PM

You would not need to use HS for the GC-MS, you could try a SPME injection. I think that would get the job done in a normal inlet. This thread has made my day. It is not often I get to see GC work outside of my job. I have been working with GCs in one form or another since '93. Thanks for the interesting post.

**flink** · 03-05-2012, 09:46 AM

I'm really happy that there is some scientific proof to back up my memory. P&G's Old spice is very different than the stuff I remember from long ago, in the Shulton days.

**cryhavoc** · 03-06-2012, 05:01 PM

Originally Posted by Wingnut

This is CLASSIC shavegeekery! My hat's off to you Daryl, you menth-head you!!

+1 Great Job!

**La Linea** · 03-07-2012, 02:20 PM

Wow, kudos to you, sir. I myself have used Old Spice since at least the mid-70's.
But to show how unsophisticated I am, I didn't know there had been a change in ownership and places of manafacture. I do vaguely recall having a gap in my usage (usually got it for Christmas) and when my kids got me some the next time, I remember, though vaguely, thinking something is different here. I am working on a bottle that is P&G, 1993 date. When did all these changes occur?

Before some of you judge me too harshly, remember this, we are all ignorant, just on different subjects.

**masonjarjar** · 03-08-2012, 07:55 AM

I always knew that the first bottle of Old Spice I bought for myself in the 90's was not the same as the bottle in our bathroom growing up that my Dad used. Dad's was sweeter.

**dcobranchi** · 03-11-2012, 12:41 PM

Originally Posted by PDB

You would not need to use HS for the GC-MS, you could try a SPME injection. I think that would get the job done in a normal inlet. This thread has made my day. It is not often I get to see GC work outside of my job. I have been working with GCs in one form or another since '93. Thanks for the interesting post.

Yeah, SPME could be interesting. Still need that dang quadrupole, though.

**H.S.M.Jr.** · 03-12-2012, 08:07 AM

dcobranchi;

Sir, thank you for your time and effort in doing the experiment on the different OS. I don't know when OS was first manufactured, but I started using it in the mid 1960's, and it is still one of my favorites. One change I remember that first got my curiosity up, was the change in the gray plastic stopper that is used to cap the OS bottles. The earlier ones were slimmer in diameter than the later ones, I can't remember what year I first noticed this change. Could this change have happened at the time SHULTON sold out to P&G? Just curious.

Somewhere I have partial bottles of the Burley AS and Cologne, Lime, and another bottle of the old SHULTON OS AS. Also, there is a container Burley Body Powder. This is in an elongated 6 sided white plastic container having a closure on top you would slide to open.

I would wear OS ever day but, the wife doesn't appreciate the fragrance as I do.

**gollum83** · 03-12-2012, 07:49 PM

Originally Posted by dcobranchi

Yeah, SPME could be interesting. Still need that dang quadrupole, though.

What no spares lying around?

Shame about the lack of access to a mass spec. It would be interesting to see if the differences between the two Shulton samples were due to degradation in the vintage sample or distinct differences in the actual formulation of the two.

Neat study though.

**The Knize** · 03-12-2012, 08:31 PM

This is one of the "coolest" things I have even seen!

Thanks for sharing this!

Let us know when you are ready and willing to run a similar study, across the years this time, of say Habit Rouge EDT, Knize Ten, Guerlain Vetiver, and probably scores of other edt-type scents many folks around here are confident have been reformulated! For that matter, I am confident the Old Spice formula has changed a number of times over the years.