Shave Sticks Review Project

Hayden said:

Luc, save the container it can be used for tabac stick refills(tabac and moos sticks use same container) or if you ever decide to melt VDH into a stick.

Click to expand...

That is good advice for many, but I am pretty sure Luc already knows how to reuse shave stick containers:

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ave-stick-container-(Vintage-Shave-Stick-Ads)
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Creating_A_Shave_Stick
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Shave_Stick_Containers

Me, I need to work harder: a couple of years ago I emptied a Tabac holder... and tossed it away. Not a mistake I am likely to repeat.

Hayden said:

Luc, save the container it can be used for tabac stick refills(tabac and moos sticks use same container) or if you ever decide to melt VDH into a stick.

Click to expand...

I don't know so far if I will recycle it or not as this one seems to get loose a bit and the shave soap doesn't stay out unless I apply a pressure behind it while face lathering.

mblakele said:

That is good advice for many, but I am pretty sure Luc already knows how to reuse shave stick containers:

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ave-stick-container-(Vintage-Shave-Stick-Ads)
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Creating_A_Shave_Stick
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Shave_Stick_Containers

Me, I need to work harder: a couple of years ago I emptied a Tabac holder... and tossed it away. Not a mistake I am likely to repeat.

[URL]http://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/media/31588/full[/URL]

Click to expand...

All great pages and great picture Mike!

Another update as I go...

I got a couple of ingrowns over the last few shaves. I've been on and off with the Sir Irisch Moos aftershave combined with the stick. It seems that the ingrowns are milder without the aftershave (I should say, when I use another one)... I might try the old 50% Witch Hazel/50% Faulty Aftershave. It's a bummer as I like the scent. I find it strong in both the shave stick and aftershave. I superlathered the stick with some shave cream this morning. The scent was milder and I found the lather was a bit better. The Sir Irisch Moos lather is good, but not as good as other products that I used in the past.

The project continues, I reckon I should probably get a scale to know how fast the product is going down. That way, I could do a curve over time and know when the product should be finished.

I noticed something this morning, the Sir Irisch Moos shave stick got a bit larger than the push tube. Meaning, the soap is locking itself from sliding back inside. I will try to get some pictures of that but I'm curious if someone else noticed their Sir Irisch Moos or even Tabac Shave stick doing the same?

It's probably absorbing some water and expanding. Or mabe your on to something and it will be fruitful and multiply.

Oh how I love the Moos, AS too. I find it to be a slightly soft stick. Combined with the large surface area means that it's easy to load up a lot of soap, so I get super rich lather evey time. I've got 3 sticks in reserve, and 1 Beginish is holding for me...doesn't seem like enough.

Luc said:

I noticed something this morning, the Sir Irisch Moos shave stick got a bit larger than the push tube. Meaning, the soap is locking itself from sliding back inside. I will try to get some pictures of that but I'm curious if someone else noticed their Sir Irisch Moos or even Tabac Shave stick doing the same?

Click to expand...

I have had this happen with some homemade sticks. If it is a problem, try putting it in the freezer for a couple of hours.

I still need to get some pictures up, I didn't get to it yet. I will probably switch product soon to get something to compare it to and will get back to SIM later. The situation that I got isn't an issue, it actually solves the problem I had when the stick was sliding back inside the cylinder by itself while face lathering.

Luc said:

I still need to get some pictures up, I didn't get to it yet. I will probably switch product soon to get something to compare it to and will get back to SIM later. The situation that I got isn't an issue, it actually solves the problem I had when the stick was sliding back inside the cylinder by itself while face lathering.

Click to expand...

Mine sticks, but not enough to keep it from sliding back. Maybe I push harder. But it's not a problem for me. I hold it by my thumb and middle finger, with my index finger holding the slider thing.

I'm unsure how long the Sir Irisch Moos will last as it's melting quicker than I thought. It's not as bad as a glycerin soap but still won't last 6 months of daily usage for sure. The stick seems to be reshaping itself as I use it so it's locking itself into the cylinder. I will take a few pictures when I get some spare minutes. Tabac must be similar but I'm unsure.

The Sir Irisch Moos had a 3-4 shaves before I started using it daily. We will see how long it lasts before I run out.

Here's a picture of the shave stick. I'm below half the stick at the moment. The "broder" formed by the soap prevents it from sliding back inside the tube. Which is pretty good.

I'm approaching 50 shaves and getting near the end of the stick (already). The strong scent isn't so bad but I didn't combine it with the SIR Aftershave yet. Will do this week-end. Pictures of the left overs to come.

Luc said:

I'm approaching 50 shaves and getting near the end of the stick (already). The strong scent isn't so bad but I didn't combine it with the SIR Aftershave yet. Will do this week-end. Pictures of the left overs to come.

Click to expand...

How does it compare to the triple milled soaps like Speick or Palmolive for hardness?

I have been told more than once that Tabac and SIR are the same base soap with different scents. My experience of cutting a Tabac puck to fit into a shaving mug leads me to believe that the soap is indeed soft enough to expand in the container but still hard enough to use as a stick. I found my Tabac puck easy to cut but not soft enough to smush into a mug like some sticks (example: Arko).

Shave 50 with the stick today. I did the SIR shave (stick + aftershave). I should take a picture of where I'm at since that stick is melting and will be over in a month according to my guesstimates.

ia_james said:

How does it compare to the triple milled soaps like Speick or Palmolive for hardness?

Click to expand...

I'd say SIR is softer a bit. What seems to happen is that I get "chunks" of soap in my beard when I apply the product. It's probably too dry when I try to spread the product. I'm working on how to get that right balance still. The whole lather works well, no issues there, it's the chunks that shouldn't be there.

mharris127 said:

I have been told more than once that Tabac and SIR are the same base soap with different scents. My experience of cutting a Tabac puck to fit into a shaving mug leads me to believe that the soap is indeed soft enough to expand in the container but still hard enough to use as a stick. I found my Tabac puck easy to cut but not soft enough to smush into a mug like some sticks (example: Arko).

Click to expand...

Well, when I had a puck of Tabac, I would say that Tabac is a tiny bit harder since I can presse SIR a bit. It's harder than Arko but it's not rock solid like a few soaps I had in the past.

Luc, I find that a great property of Irisch Moos--it's soft, so getting lots of soap on my face is easy. Don't those chunks just make for good facelathering?

I have not used SIM myself, but the wiki shows some difference in the ingredient lists. The stearic acid should make Tabac firmer, which matches up with the report from Luc. The positional difference in Aqua may or may not be important, depending on the process. The rest of the differences appear to be scent-related.

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Sir_Irisch_Moos_Shave_Stick

Aqua, Potassium Stearate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Tallowate, Potassium Cocoate, Sodium Tallowate, Sodium Cocoate, Glycerin, Parfum, Stearic Acid, Linalool, Potassium Hydroxide, Eugenol, Coumarin, Butylphenyl, Methylpropional, Citronnellol, Tetrasodium EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Limonene, Benzyl Benzoate, Geraniol, Cinnamal, CI 77891.

Click to expand...

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Tabac_Shaving_Soap

Potassium Stearate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Tallowate, Potassium Cocoate, Aqua, Sodium Tallowate, Parfum, Sodium Cocoate, Glycerin, Potassium Hydroxide, Tetrasoium EDTA, Tetrasoium Etidronate, Sodium Hydroxide, CI 77891, Limonene, Hydroxycitronellal, Linalool, Citronellol, Coumarin, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionene, Benzyl Alcohol, Citral, Eugenol.

Click to expand...

http://blog.thesage.com/2012/03/26/single-oil-soap-stearic-acid/ describes a pure-stearic soap:

After the soap had cured, it was really hard. When cutting it, the ends crumbled and broke. I snagged a piece to test at the sink. It was really hard, there was no lather and it felt almost waxy. It would be useful when you have a soft bar of soap but I wouldn’t make it a large percentage of your oils.

Click to expand...

mblakele said:

That is good advice for many, but I am pretty sure Luc already knows how to reuse shave stick containers:

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...ave-stick-container-(Vintage-Shave-Stick-Ads)
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Creating_A_Shave_Stick
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Shave_Stick_Containers

Me, I need to work harder: a couple of years ago I emptied a Tabac holder... and tossed it away. Not a mistake I am likely to repeat.

Click to expand...

really liking the reviews so far, and adding to my wish list, but i notice in this picture the shave sticks are kept in, what i presume, are air tight containers. is this a must so the stick doesn't dry out? i just wrapped aluminum foil around my Palmolive stick. should i invest in something air tight for my sticks? same with my soaps really, no lids, is this a problem?

DEshave said:

really liking the reviews so far, and adding to my wish list, but i notice in this picture the shave sticks are kept in, what i presume, are air tight containers. is this a must so the stick doesn't dry out? i just wrapped aluminum foil around my Palmolive stick. should i invest in something air tight for my sticks? same with my soaps really, no lids, is this a problem?

Click to expand...

No you don't need something air tight, in fact, having small holes (like the LaToja shave stick) allow the shave stick to dry while the cap is on. If you don't cover your soaps, they might get dust on them

Luc said:

No you don't need something air tight, in fact, having small holes (like the LaToja shave stick) allow the shave stick to dry while the cap is on. If you don't cover your soaps, they might get dust on them

Click to expand...

great thanks for the info! now back to your regularly scheduled shave stick reviewing.