Shave Sticks

shave/brush said:

Sounds like a good soap to try.

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I think it is..... I enjoyed the scent, and as I said it is unique among other offerings on the market. I will absolutely use this in my rotation happily and I am sure with great results.

Today though was my #1 which is my Speick shave stick ! Also very unique and took a minute to grow on me... goes to show what is unique at first sometimes becomes your favorite which is why I am going to stick ( LOL ) with the King R. Emporium soap for awhile as I know the more I use it the more it will grow on me same way that Speick did forever ago.

Been traveling the past couple of weeks.

Shave sticks ONLY....

Took

Arko (oh yea, don't leave home without it)
Harris Arlington stick
Mike's Natural (barbershop scent)
Tabac

Been mixing and matching and today I paired Arko with Mike's and had to stop building lather as it kept piling up on the floor in front of me (too much lather)

Last year I was lucky to grab a stick of Irisch Moos.
pulled it out again today for a totally enjoyable, face-lathered shave!

turtle said:

Been traveling the past couple of weeks.

Shave sticks ONLY....

Took

Arko (oh yea, don't leave home without it)
Harris Arlington stick
Mike's Natural (barbershop scent)
Tabac

Been mixing and matching and today I paired Arko with Mike's and had to stop building lather as it kept piling up on the floor in front of me (too much lather)

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Mick, most folks take a singled shave stick when traveling - you take the opportunity to take all your shave sticks traveling! Living the dream.

-jim

gearchow said:

Mick, most folks take a singled shave stick when traveling - you take the opportunity to take all your shave sticks traveling! Living the dream.

-jim

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Not all, only 4 shave sticks (and it was a hard choice which 4 to take)

The full "kit" as packed.



Full "kit" unpacked

2 towels
1 collarless scrub
1 razor (37c slant)
1 brush (19mm Muhle synth and Muhle travel tube)
2 aftershaves (clubman and special reserve)
1 balm (wild country)
4 shave sticks (Arko, Tabac, Arlingtin, and Mikes barber scent)
Goodly blade assortment (didn't skimp here at all)
1 styptic
1 large shaving bowl (portable sink)

Shave sticks just seem "right" somehow. I use Palmolive and Arko and have no real yen to try others since these are good enough.
Here's the thing with shave sticks IMO.
With all other shaving software - pucks, croaps, creams, gels - there is a fairly wide range of performance. Some great, some goddawful.
Can one say the same about sticks? I contend that one cannot - there are no real duds out there.
Sticks are great.
QED

Oh no! It took me awhile to get the hang of shave sticks and now I'm losing it. My last 2 shaves I did not have enough lather for a second pass. I guess I have to pack on the soap a little more. Geeze.......

shave/brush said:

Oh no! It took me awhile to get the hang of shave sticks and now I'm losing it. My last 2 shaves I did not have enough lather for a second pass. I guess I have to pack on the soap a little more. Geeze.......

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Yes the #1 rule for shave sticks is "load it up.... load it up..... load it up.... Then load it up some more"

Limekiln said:

Can one say the same about sticks? I contend that one cannot - there are no real duds out there.
Sticks are great.
QED

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Seems you did not try the reformulated Boots shave stick yet.

Eeyore said:

Seems you did not try the reformulated Boots shave stick yet.

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Was this a recent change? Do you have the new ingredients list?

For reference here are the ingredients now listed at Boots_Shaving_Stick_Refill on the wiki. I think my Boots stick matches these. I find it acceptable, but I would rather use Arko or Palmolive.

Sodium Palmate, Potassium Palmate, Potassium Stearate, Potassium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Aqua, Sodium Stearate, Glycerin, Palm Kernel Acid, Parfum, Hexyl Cinnamal, Lauric Acid, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Benzyl Benzoate, Limonene, Eugenol, Sodium Chloride, Tetrasodium Edta, Tetrasodioum Etidronate, Pentasodium Pentetate, CI 77891.

Nope, it was the only shave stick I ever threw away. I bet the ingredient list includes dirty socks!

It took me awhile to get the hang of shave sticks but I finally got it. But now my last 3 shaves I find I don't have enough lather for a second pass. I tried adding more soap. I had plenty of lather to start with but still none for a second pass.
I think I figured out what I am doing wrong now. When I first got the hang of using soap sticks I would add water to my brush by dipping the tips into water about a 1/4 inch. Now I think I am dipping it in the water much deeper and I must actually be washing out my soap too much. I'll know with my next shave on Friday.

I sometimes pass the soaped brush under the faucet for a quick splash of water.

I use different techniques with different brushes. With badgers I squeeze out most of the water, then as the lather builds I use my fingers to pick up a little water and dribble it into the breach, maybe 1/4 tsp at a time. With boars I really squeeze out the knot, because too much water in the beginning seems to displace the soap. As the lather builds, I dip the tips as needed. With horse I dunk the knot about halfway.

I tried again tonight and I put a lot of soap on and I did not over water my brush but when it came time for the second pass I had very weak lather. I have no idea what I am doing wrong. I used a shave stick about 6 or 7 times successfully but now I seem to have lost it.
I'm open to all ideas. I used Tabac and Arko soap which have worked great for me in the pass.

Time to clean your brush? One theory is that hard water deposits build up over time, reducing lather quality. How_to_Clean_a_Shaving_Brush documents one process - although recently we have heard some objections that the 1:1 vinegar soak is too strong.

I have two sticks (Arko & Palmolive) that had been languishing on my shelf for 6-7 months until this morning. I bought them early on after discovering this insidious forum.
In the meantime, I had been using several soaps (Mike's barber shop is my favorite), bowl lathering, boar brush. SWMBO makes hand soap that she sells locally in the antique store where she works. She found a recipe for shaving soap and of course, I was her first client. She does render beef fat for her concoctions and the hand soaps are fine (essential oils, all natural). However, the shaving soap is another story. Soaked a hunk of it in my bowl, whipped up what looked to be a good lather and applied it to my face continuing to face lather. Seemed kind of light but had a nice slickness to it (she used some kind of clay as well in the mix). But, and keep in mind she's watching me this morning, it gave new meaning to vanishing cream! Did the right side of my face first and before I finished the left side, the lather on the right side had disappeared. Tried whipping up some more (left side gone too) with same result.
Grabbed the Palmolive stick, rinsed my face, applied the Palmolive, face lathered and had a great shave.
Forgot how easy and fast the sticks are. Good cushion, plenty of lather for a two pass shave with a lot left in the brush. I'm sure she'll try another batch some day, but I'll be stick man for a week or so.

I have been having problems using my soap sticks lately. I think I figured it out. I first was successful with shave sticks using my Plisson Cade brush. I was so excited about my success with face lathering that I decided to buy a brush that had a good reputation for face lathering. So I ordered a Semogue 610 boar brush. It seems to be well liked for face lathering. That is when things went sour. I'm sure this is a great brush for face lathering but I guess for me I just can't seem to make it work. I went back to my Plisson last night and things got much better again.
I guess for face lathering I have to stick with synthetic brushes. I give up on my Semogue 610.

I've moved to using my Muhle 19mm synth mostly. Though I do break out the Duke 2 and the custom face brushes I made on occasion.

Synth is just too "easy" Get it wet. Make lather. What could be easier?

shave/brush said:

I have been having problems using my soap sticks lately. I think I figured it out. I first was successful with shave sticks using my Plisson Cade brush. I was so excited about my success with face lathering that I decided to buy a brush that had a good reputation for face lathering. So I ordered a Semogue 610 boar brush. It seems to be well liked for face lathering. That is when things went sour. I'm sure this is a great brush for face lathering but I guess for me I just can't seem to make it work. I went back to my Plisson last night and things got much better again.
I guess for face lathering I have to stick with synthetic brushes. I give up on my Semogue 610.

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Maybe it still needs to break in? My 620 didn't really shine until the hairs started to split, which wasn't too long a wait compared to my SOC.