What big money soap to get
- Thread starter Chaddy187
- Start date
Maybe Czech & Speake. Not because I have tried it, but because it costs big money.
Maybe these soaps are 10 times better than a $3 puck of Col. Conk. I don't think I'll ever find out. I cringed when I paid 14 dollars for Mitchell's Wool Fat soap.
Maybe these soaps are 10 times better than a $3 puck of Col. Conk. I don't think I'll ever find out. I cringed when I paid 14 dollars for Mitchell's Wool Fat soap.
You want slick? Go to the Stirling website and order 5 or 6 soaps for about what you'll spend on a puck of MdC.
--Bob
Buy a puck of Haslinger and then take the wife out for dinner on what you saved. 
Martin De Cadre
Santa Maria Novella
Santa Maria Novella
- Thread starter
- #6
Boellis Panama 1924 in the beautiful ceramic coffret
Saponificio Varesino 70th Anniversary in beautiful aluminum tin
Acqua di Parma Collezione Barbiere shave cream
Saponificio Varesino 70th Anniversary in beautiful aluminum tin
Acqua di Parma Collezione Barbiere shave cream
- Thread starter
- #8
no!
American soaps often have an intense fragrance, it seems. I think it's cultural; different tastes for different folks.
For soaps with a more muted scent, there are several European choices, like the already mentioned Haslinger soaps.
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They are often made by "one man shops" or small artisan factories, who do not have the same economy of cost as the large players. Besides, they often have luxury packaging. Both factors show up in the higher price.
Santa Maria Novella.
Great soap.
Are the expensive soaps better than the cheaper ones? Trick question. I purchased my SMN in Italy for $38 dollars/7.8oz or 0.48/0z - not much more expensive than quality American Artisan soap such as Strop Shoppe(strop shoppe 0.40/oz).
Most "expensive" soaps come from Europe. They are expensive because of the markups as the product moves from Europe to the States not because of some magical ingredient or manufacturing technique. This problem goes both ways. American artisan soaps in Europe are much more expensive than in the States. If I were in Italy instead of in the States I would probably be asking myself, "Is it worth buying an expensive American soap?"
Great soap.
Are the expensive soaps better than the cheaper ones? Trick question. I purchased my SMN in Italy for $38 dollars/7.8oz or 0.48/0z - not much more expensive than quality American Artisan soap such as Strop Shoppe(strop shoppe 0.40/oz).
Most "expensive" soaps come from Europe. They are expensive because of the markups as the product moves from Europe to the States not because of some magical ingredient or manufacturing technique. This problem goes both ways. American artisan soaps in Europe are much more expensive than in the States. If I were in Italy instead of in the States I would probably be asking myself, "Is it worth buying an expensive American soap?"
I'll stick with my Arko. Great performance, and not pretentious.
Yes and no. Picking a soap is like picking a bottle of red wine. Paying more doesn't mean that you're going to get a better soap. Sure it increases your odds but there are plenty of lesser priced soaps that are a great value. If you know which ones to buy some might be better than some that are way more expensive. I've bought plenty of expensive soaps that haven't impressed me and plenty of inexpensive soaps that I've found to be outstanding.
Generally this is true with everything we buy. Another way to put this is you do not get what you don't pay for.
Yes, as a matter of fact, quite a bit better. Free enterprise actually works. But the math is not a direct ratio. A $30 soap is not ten times better than a $3 soap. It's quite a bit better, but you have to decide if the difference in quality is worth the money.
My favorite soap to date is Antica barbieria colla. It's a large puck and I only use a small amount of product, so it's not quite as expensive as it initially seems. Shipping is usually a big part of the problem. This puck actually costs $29, but the shipping is another $30.
My second choice is Cold River Soap Works. It's a very nice soap, but the ABC is better.
I have the greatest respect for anyone who can say that their $10 soap works just fine and they wouldn't consider paying more. That's absolutely a legitimate position. But don't kid yourselves, there's a difference. Is the difference worth paying for? I can't answer that one for anyone but myself. Rationally I suppose the answer would have to be no, but nothing's too good for me.
In the under $5 range - for the most part you're not going to find anything to compete with the very best soaps out there. You should buy a stick of Arko and try it though as it's (in my opinion) the very best performer in this price range. Performance is excellent and way above it's price point. A great throw in item.
$10 to $20 range - this is where you'll find the very best values and some of the very best soaps available today. There are many really great artisans making some of the best soap that's even been available right now. Some soaps like Cold River, Strop Shoppe Se w/tallow, Captain's Choice, Tiki, Soap Commander, Reef Point, Catie's Bubbles, PannaCrema, Barrister & Mann, Los Angeles Shaving Co, WSP Rustic and some of the RazoRock Soaps are very impressive and some of the very best available at any price. (RazoRock soaps are made by about four different manufactures and rebranded with the RazoRock logo so you have to know which ones to buy as they don't tell you what soap was made by which company).
$20 to $40 range - this is where I find a lot of overpriced soaps that often fail to deliver. Sure there are some exceptions like AOS, and Saponificio Varesino but there are plenty of others that fail miserably. Be very careful in this price range or you'll pay a lot for an about average soap.
$45 to $80 - These are the big dollar soaps. Some are outstanding and others are very good but maybe a bit overpriced. Martin de Candre is excellent and I don't think it's all that expensive if you look at it from a longevity standpoint. A tub of MdC lasts me 8 months or longer of everyday shaves so I'm looking at less than $10 a month for soap. A $10 tub of RazoRock soap will last me about a month of every day shaves. So cost wise the Martin de Candre is cheaper for me in the long run. Kinda like going to Costco where you get the huge bill up front but have laundry soap for a year. Even with MdC, WSP Rustic soaps are a copy that is very similar in performance. You won't find that great MdC Fougere scent in a WSP version and they won't last quite as long but they are about an $11 soap. I have both scented MdC soaps in my shave den along with several WSP soaps and I enjoy them all. I'll replace both the MdC and WSP soaps I enjoy when I run out despite the price difference.
Santa Maria Novella was very similar to Proraso Green so for me. So much so that it wasn't worth the price difference to me. The Aqua de Parma soap formula was copied by Razorock in their XXX soap which I actually preferred. They've changed their formula since to make it a bit different. It comes in a nice jar but it's about $65. ABC is a very good traditional Italian almond soap but there are no shortage of great Italian almond soaps available for a lower cost. RazoRock did an ABCBA soap a while back (I still have a block of it) that was a very good copy of ABC. I've used them side by side and failed to tell the difference. PannaCrema Nuavia soaps are outstanding (some of the best I've tried) and come in really cool ceramic jars.
While I admire your idea of just buying the more expensive ones right away. My advice to you is to try and get some samples of some of the high dollar soaps to try before you drop $70 on one of them. Once you've tried some of them you'll know right away what value it has to you and whether or not you want a large jar of it. In the mean time look for some really great soaps in the $10 to $20 category which seems to be the sweet spot. Don't just choose anything in this price range though as they aren't all good.
I haven't tried every soap out there but I've tried most of them, including just about all of the high dollar ones, I stopped counting after about 400 soaps so if it's something that you're interested in odds are I've tried it. Feel free to PM me if you want to share what scents you like and don't like and exactly what you're looking for in a soap. I'd be happy to give you more specific recommendations of what soaps to buy including brands and scents if I have more information from you about what you enjoy.
$10 to $20 range - this is where you'll find the very best values and some of the very best soaps available today. There are many really great artisans making some of the best soap that's even been available right now. Some soaps like Cold River, Strop Shoppe Se w/tallow, Captain's Choice, Tiki, Soap Commander, Reef Point, Catie's Bubbles, PannaCrema, Barrister & Mann, Los Angeles Shaving Co, WSP Rustic and some of the RazoRock Soaps are very impressive and some of the very best available at any price. (RazoRock soaps are made by about four different manufactures and rebranded with the RazoRock logo so you have to know which ones to buy as they don't tell you what soap was made by which company).
$20 to $40 range - this is where I find a lot of overpriced soaps that often fail to deliver. Sure there are some exceptions like AOS, and Saponificio Varesino but there are plenty of others that fail miserably. Be very careful in this price range or you'll pay a lot for an about average soap.
$45 to $80 - These are the big dollar soaps. Some are outstanding and others are very good but maybe a bit overpriced. Martin de Candre is excellent and I don't think it's all that expensive if you look at it from a longevity standpoint. A tub of MdC lasts me 8 months or longer of everyday shaves so I'm looking at less than $10 a month for soap. A $10 tub of RazoRock soap will last me about a month of every day shaves. So cost wise the Martin de Candre is cheaper for me in the long run. Kinda like going to Costco where you get the huge bill up front but have laundry soap for a year. Even with MdC, WSP Rustic soaps are a copy that is very similar in performance. You won't find that great MdC Fougere scent in a WSP version and they won't last quite as long but they are about an $11 soap. I have both scented MdC soaps in my shave den along with several WSP soaps and I enjoy them all. I'll replace both the MdC and WSP soaps I enjoy when I run out despite the price difference.
Santa Maria Novella was very similar to Proraso Green so for me. So much so that it wasn't worth the price difference to me. The Aqua de Parma soap formula was copied by Razorock in their XXX soap which I actually preferred. They've changed their formula since to make it a bit different. It comes in a nice jar but it's about $65. ABC is a very good traditional Italian almond soap but there are no shortage of great Italian almond soaps available for a lower cost. RazoRock did an ABCBA soap a while back (I still have a block of it) that was a very good copy of ABC. I've used them side by side and failed to tell the difference. PannaCrema Nuavia soaps are outstanding (some of the best I've tried) and come in really cool ceramic jars.
While I admire your idea of just buying the more expensive ones right away. My advice to you is to try and get some samples of some of the high dollar soaps to try before you drop $70 on one of them. Once you've tried some of them you'll know right away what value it has to you and whether or not you want a large jar of it. In the mean time look for some really great soaps in the $10 to $20 category which seems to be the sweet spot. Don't just choose anything in this price range though as they aren't all good.
I haven't tried every soap out there but I've tried most of them, including just about all of the high dollar ones, I stopped counting after about 400 soaps so if it's something that you're interested in odds are I've tried it. Feel free to PM me if you want to share what scents you like and don't like and exactly what you're looking for in a soap. I'd be happy to give you more specific recommendations of what soaps to buy including brands and scents if I have more information from you about what you enjoy.
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If you want to pay a lot of money for a shaving soap I would suggest getting a soap from Czech and Speake. The Oxford and Cambridge is a really nice scent, lavender and mint. Lathers beautifully.
Martin de Candre is a heck of a shaving soap. It lathers as easily as anything you'll find, smells amazing, really simple ingredients. It's very expensive and some people complain about it being drying. I think it's worth trying at some point.
Czech and Speake I think would be another excellent soap. It's tallow based and made by Valobra, who made my favorite shaving soap to date (Art of Shaving tallow formula).
Czech and Speake I think would be another excellent soap. It's tallow based and made by Valobra, who made my favorite shaving soap to date (Art of Shaving tallow formula).
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