Cult of Arko

**Malakas1981** · 08-14-2011, 09:21 AM

Hi gents I recently picked up arko shave stick off a fellow member. I have to say I'm impressed with the perfornance the scent wasnt that bad . And was wondering if there are better shave sticks out there? And where could I go to stock up on the arko and a good price ? Once again thanks

**Johnny B** · 08-14-2011, 09:33 AM

Try amazon.they have 12+an extra 3 for $20 on Arko.

**TZee** · 08-14-2011, 09:38 AM

This question is going to garnish a lot of responses. Personally, I'm a huge Valobra stick fan. The smell is like a high quality soap, and the tallow based lather is very protective. Other people will recommend Dr. Harris, although I've personally never had the opportunity of trying it. Oh, and then the Speick crowd will come through, perhaps followed by the Irisch Moos guys. Another stick to look at that is also cheap, and rumored to be a great peformer is the Palmolive stick.

I can vouch for the Valobra being great for sensitive skin and having very little scent, but the cheapest I've been able to find them for is around $9 US.

**Wolfman1** · 08-14-2011, 10:20 AM

Arko is some great soap in my opinion. The last order I got from Amazon. It was the 12+3 offer for $16.99. The vendor has since raised the price to $19.99 for the 12+3, but that is still a great deal.

**Sargon** · 08-14-2011, 10:35 AM

I'm going to try some. I ordered a few things to try from bestshave, and figured that Id' add in an arko stick, too. If I like it I'll nab the amazon 15 pack. I'm prety excited to try it ( as well as a few of those blades I ordered).

**Dennard** · 08-14-2011, 10:39 AM

Tabac and Palmolive shave sticks are two of my favorites. But I'm just gettin into them, so there are many, such as Valobra, that I have not tried yet.

**djh** · 08-14-2011, 10:43 AM

It will be difficult to find a stick which performs better than Arko- you will probably find some which seem a little more "luxurious" and perhaps have more refined scents. I like Palmolive, Wilkinson Sword, Valobra, Speick as well as Arko.

**winston61** · 08-14-2011, 10:47 AM

Arko is just what it seems to be. A cheap stick that happens to perform very well. After you use it for a while you don't notice the scent. If you want to pay more, that's your choice. But for me, good performance at the right price, simple decision.

**greenhorn** · 08-14-2011, 10:53 AM

i haven't found one that performs better than arko. love the scent for a daily soap. speick is my sunday soap. wilkinson sword, palmolive, every now and again. nothing gives me a better shave than the arko. i don't find the italian soaps as slick ( valiobra, cella ) maybe they give me too much cushion.. dunno

i'm happy such a low price soap works so well for me :-)

**littleton82** · 08-14-2011, 12:45 PM

I really enjoy using Arko. It is cheap and works really well! Smell isn't that great at first, but it does grow on you. try it out, you won't be disappointed!

**sanfranciscian** · 08-14-2011, 01:06 PM

I was able to get in on the amazon $16.99 and just went with it having never tried the arko before. Glad i did. can't speak of any other sticks and for that matter i don't use this as a stick, rather grate a couple sticks in a bowl and swirl away. I wouldn't even bat an eye at the now $19.99 price but with all my other product it seems the 15 i have will last forever. Enjoy.

Ian

**wimbouman** · 08-14-2011, 01:49 PM

Mama Bear's!

**Bluebriz** · 08-14-2011, 05:04 PM

Palmolive would be my recommendation, the European version. Lathers up and shaves at least as well as Arko for me, and much more moisturising. YMMV as always of course!

**BrianK** · 08-14-2011, 09:30 PM

Arko is a very hard act to follow for the price.

There are others that clearly are more "luxurious" but they also cost more.

**Viseguy** · 08-14-2011, 10:28 PM

Other sticks to try are Irisch Moos, Tabac, Palmolive, Erasmic, and Speick.

**bassopotamus** · 08-14-2011, 11:16 PM

I don't have experience with other sticks, but I bought some Arko from a barber in Istanbul after he shaved me with it, and I've been really impressed. It is dirt cheap, and is one of my top shaving soaps period (I'd rank it about even with Cella).

**shakin_jake** · 08-14-2011, 11:39 PM

Originally Posted by Bluebriz

Palmolive would be my recommendation, the European version. Lathers up and shaves at least as well as Arko for me, and much more moisturising. YMMV as always of course!

~~~I just tried the Euro version of palmolive stick this past week...and have used it a total of 3 times. I like it...nice slick lather!

It's not an economical stick for those of us in the U.S. I paid $10 (approx) for two sticks with super saver shipping (free) in a combined Amazon order. I think I saw it for about $1.25/stick through a euro vendor but I wasn't interested in any of their other wares at the time...I was wanting only Palmolive stick so I went through Amazon as previously mentioned

Now if i was looking to find fault with Palmolive stick, like Arko, it too leaves a rather sticky soap scum residue on my shaving tools, but w/more effort, the residue will rinse away. Just something I've noticed with these two stick soaps I don't find happening with my other shave soaps

Best,

Jake
Reddick Fla.

**bkfist** · 08-15-2011, 11:19 AM

I've only been trying sticks for the past few months (started with a pif of part of an Arko stick)...

So far my favorite stick is La Toja, it sees use once or maybe twice a week. It leaves the face pretty neutral as far as dryness/moisturizing is concerned. (It's not MdC when it comes to preserving natural oils/moisture, but it's not too far behind.)

If you like the Speick scent and don't have dry skin, Speick is a good shave stick to try, I use Speick about once a month or so, but always follow up with a moisturizer, as it is definitely the most drying product that I still have. (There have been products that were worse as far as drying, but I got rid of them... I keep Speick because I enjoy the scent on occasion, and because it lathers WONDERFULLY.)

I've never tried Valobra but there should be a stick of on my door step when I get home tonight. :) (I figure I *had* to give it a try, there is just no way a Ferrari F1 fan could dislike *all* Italian soaps... Unfortunately it's been that way so far.)

I'd love to give Irisch Moos a try some day, but at about $20 a stick, not knowing what the scent is like... It's just not too likely to happen any time soon.