Shave Sticks Review Project

bcs89 said:

Great thread - it wont seem right if it's relegated to reference though, there must be more sticks about, or a second pass at some of them - any reformulations since testing?

-s

Click to expand...

I haven't got any reformulations except for the Wilkinson Sword Stick (Green vs. Blue). The Green is better than Blue but Blue is still a strong contender. We cannot say that much about many products that were reformulated, unfortunately...

Would it be possible to post a version of your list w/o consideration of current/discontinued. If this is going to be a reference, at some point the ones in the currently made section may get discontinued as well. I'm a big fan of IM and would love to see where it fits in your overall rankings. And if I were to come across a stash of another discontinued product, I'd love to see where it ranks overall.

One of my favorite threads...thanks so much for putting in this incredible effort.

shevek said:

Would it be possible to post a version of your list w/o consideration of current/discontinued. If this is going to be a reference, at some point the ones in the currently made section may get discontinued as well. I'm a big fan of IM and would love to see where it fits in your overall rankings. And if I were to come across a stash of another discontinued product, I'd love to see where it ranks overall.

One of my favorite threads...thanks so much for putting in this incredible effort.

Click to expand...

Right now the list is very short so that's easy to integrate. Just for the form, here's the current list. I could make one when I finish the list so it's easier or I could integrate the sticks right now with a "Discontinued" next to the discontinued ones....

Rankings

Currently made

• Wilkinson Sword Shave Stick - Green (Vintage) - Link
• Wilkinson Sword Shave Stick - Link
• Sir Irisch Moos Shave Stick - Link
• Tabac Shaving Stick - Link
• Speick Shaving Stick - Link
• Valobra Shaving Stick - Link
• Arko Shaving Stick - Link
• Mitchell's Wool Fat/Kent Shaving Soap - Link
• Chicman Shaving Stick - Link
• Palmolive EU Shaving Stick - Link
• Lea Shaving Stick - Link
• De Vergulde Hand Shaving Stick - Link
• Barbus shaving soap - Link
• Palmolive OZ Shaving Stick - Link
• La Toja Shaving Stick - Link

Avoid at all costs

• Erasmic Shaving Stick - Link

I think this list would be right.

Luc said:

In an hour, this thread will be 2 years old. I did not think that it would still be followed like this after 2 years. Hopefully, I will be able to finish my list eventually to have a complete reference on Shave Sticks(at least, the most common sticks). I have a few sticks in reserve that are not listed, I plan to do a mystery stick soon...

The D.R. Harris shaves are going well, again, great product! I got 10 shaves done with D.R. Harris so far.

Click to expand...

I have read almost every post on your thread ......and have been following your thread since I joined the B&B. And enjoy it very much very good information that I have come to rely on. Congratulations on having an interesting and worthwhile reading for two year anniversary.

Luc said:

Right now the list is very short so that's easy to integrate. Just for the form, here's the current list. I could make one when I finish the list so it's easier or I could integrate the sticks right now with a "Discontinued" next to the discontinued ones....

Rankings

Currently made

• Wilkinson Sword Shave Stick - Green (Vintage) - Link
• Wilkinson Sword Shave Stick - Link
• Sir Irisch Moos Shave Stick - Link
• Tabac Shaving Stick - Link
• Speick Shaving Stick - Link
• Valobra Shaving Stick - Link
• Arko Shaving Stick - Link
• Mitchell's Wool Fat/Kent Shaving Soap - Link
• Chicman Shaving Stick - Link
• Palmolive EU Shaving Stick - Link
• Lea Shaving Stick - Link
• De Vergulde Hand Shaving Stick - Link
• Barbus shaving soap - Link
• Palmolive OZ Shaving Stick - Link
• La Toja Shaving Stick - Link

Avoid at all costs

• Erasmic Shaving Stick - Link

I think this list would be right.

Click to expand...

Thanks a lot! Great to see the Moos rated so high. Maybe we'll see some new discussions about it since a bunch of sticks just sold on the BST.
I'd vote for integrating now with "Discontinued" labels, but that's just me.

15 shaves already, it's a smooth ride so far. Very easy to use, very nice soap. As stated already, my only complaint is the size of the stick where the average stick is 50grams, this one is 40grams. D.R. Harris is also sold at premium price versus the other sticks. Other than that, great product. From what I can estimate so far, a surprising 75 shaves out of that would bring right up the value... We shall see on shave #30

Luc said:

15 shaves already, it's a smooth ride so far. Very easy to use, very nice soap. As stated already, my only complaint is the size of the stick where the average stick is 50grams, this one is 40grams. D.R. Harris is also sold at premium price versus the other sticks. Other than that, great product. From what I can estimate so far, a surprising 75 shaves out of that would bring right up the value... We shall see on shave #30

Click to expand...

Interesting. Although I think that D.R. Harris soaps are top notch, I've bypassed their shave sticks considering them to pass the cost threshold into a luxurious indulgence. Perhaps I need to revisit my assumption.

On a more general note, I've not been using sticks as much this year as I have in earlier years. A few later morning shaves than normal combined with early appointments remedied that. A quick 2-3 passes twice with an Arko lather, paying extra attention to good technique, netted to wonderful, almost BBS shaves.

This is slowly coming together. I will probably be finished on Thanksgiving (That's the Canadian one). I've been experimenting with glycerin and the results are interesting.

Luc said:

This is slowly coming together. I will probably be finished on Thanksgiving (That's the Canadian one). I've been experimenting with glycerin and the results are interesting.

Click to expand...

Looking forward to hearing about it - being, as I am, a full on shave stick junkie now .

-s

Here are the cracks in MWF. 1 month later, not as bad as a few other pucks that I've seen...

D.R. Harris is over, review to be posted this week-end with the next stick!

Luc said:

D.R. Harris is over, review to be posted this week-end with the next stick!

Click to expand...

Looking forward to it sir (as well as this also!).

-s

Today I tried Wilkinson stick and I loved it: nice scent, easy to lather, goes a long way, slick and leaves skin well moisturized.
Thanks Luc for saving me so much time a money.
I'll stick with this stick.

lloydrm said:

Today I tried Wilkinson stick and I loved it: nice scent, easy to lather, goes a long way, slick and leaves skin well moisturized.
Thanks Luc for saving me so much time a money.
I'll stick with this stick.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't do that if I were you, try some more sticks!

I'm surprised to see Palmolive ranked so low -- I thought it git a lot of love on the forilum, at least. I ordered some, haven't used it yet. Ordered an Arko stick, too, just to take the plunge. Only one I've actually used is LaToja, which I do like. I just can't rank it, since it's my only.

wagstaff said:

I'm surprised to see Palmolive ranked so low -- I thought it git a lot of love on the forilum, at least. I ordered some, haven't used it yet. Ordered an Arko stick, too, just to take the plunge. Only one I've actually used is LaToja, which I do like. I just can't rank it, since it's my only.

Click to expand...

One thing that puts the stick that low is the water. Compared to the other sticks, it's not as easy to use. If, in your area, you have soft water (the water is hard in Montreal), it will be easier to use. At the moment, my top ones are producing great lather with the tap water. If I start using a filter/distilled water, it would probably be a different game.

Thanks, Luc. My water is, sadly, hard. We'll see how it goes....

I also have very hard water and as a result I have come to the conclusion that when my stock of palmolive is depleted I will not buy more. Do not get me wrong, Palmolive is a decent sort of soap: it lathers easily and it provides decent glide and protection. Apart from the fact that I do not particularly care for the scent, my main grudge is the fact that you have to be very careful when attempting to create a water saturated lather with it because, in my experience, there is a tipping point which you get to quite quickly where the lather seems to collapse and become surprisingly runny. With other soaps sticks such as Tabac, Sir Irisch Moos, Wilkinson, Speick and Valobra, I do not get this behaviour before the desired consistency is achieved.

I find Palmolive to be an above average whisker softener and that's important to me. But it does seem to work better when I travel to places with softer water so that's when I use it mainly.

I posted a review this morning in the review system here: http://badgerandblade.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=211184

I cannot believe that only Syngent and myself tried and reviewed this fantastic product. It's a great product that works really well but the price point is where I see a main issue. I mean, 40grams for almost $20 is a lot. We are talking shaving soap and only 40 grams of the product where the puck goes for the same price but you get 100 grams. The container is obiviously the expensive part.

I would consider keeping this one in my rotation but I would buy the puck instead and use that puck as a stick on special occasions.

Post 1 will be updated in a few minutes. The next stick will be revealed tomorrow!