Arko Shave Stick - Can't Get it Slick - Help!

I've been using the Arko shave stick for a while, but only recently began concentrating on making good lather. I've squished the stick into a small jar and I now load the soap onto my brush that way. No matter what I do, I don't get a slick lather. I get a full, thick, yogurt-like lather but it tends to dry out on my face about half-way through my shave. Sometimes the razor has trouble "cutting" through the lather down to my skin due to what feels like friction from the soap! I've tried adding water (maybe not generously enough) and limiting water. No matter what I do, I cannot get a slick lather. My razor (Gillette New SC or Deluxe) doesn't glide through the lather. So I almost have to pull the razor through sometimes. Recently, I added Noxzema Classic (blue tub) to my pre-shave routine. First I tried lathering Arko directly over a thin layer of Noxzema. Then I tried washing my face with Noxzema and then lathering. The Noxzema does condition my skin really well, but it doesn't add any slickness.

Help!!

More water, and more brush time. To saturate Arko, you need to whip it.

More product and more water! If the lather dissipates on your skin, that's a sure sign that you haven't loaded enough product. Try using Marco's method, which is to load with a fully soaked brush (letting the gravity water drip out) for about 60 sec. You should have plenty of slick lather with Arko using this method.

Let us know how it goes.

By the way ... "thick yoghurt like" sounds as if the lather can use more water indeed.

Shaving lather is not like the foam you get from canned gel ... it is thinner (YMMV) and much wetter.

Eeyore said:

More water, and more brush time. To saturate Arko, you need to whip it.

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Thanks! I whip it for about a minute to load the brush, then I face lather for about another minute. Should I be doing more of both?

franz said:

More product and more water! If the lather dissipates on your skin, that's a sure sign that you haven't loaded enough product. Try using Marco's method, which is to load with a fully soaked brush (letting the gravity water drip out) for about 60 sec. You should have plenty of slick lather with Arko using this method.

Let us know how it goes.

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Thanks! This is the method for loading only, correct? So would I then continue to face lather?

Also, the lather doesn't dissipate. Instead it kind of dries out and even "cracks" in certain spots.

Well I'll buck the conventional wisdom and say that I think your using way too much product. You likely can't add enough water without getting pushed away from the mirror by the amount of lather that you would have when you got it to the right mix.

bluesman 7 said:

Well I'll buck the conventional wisdom and say that I think your using way too much product. You likely can't add enough water without getting pushed away from the mirror by the amount of lather that you would have when you got it to the right mix.

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Thanks! This may actually be the case because no matter how much water I add, it doesn't seem to change things. So how does one avoid overloading?

HansSb said:

Thanks! This may actually be the case because no matter how much water I add, it doesn't seem to change things. So how does one avoid overloading?

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I moisten my face well then rub the stick directly on my face then rub more water on top of the soap to generate a thin appearing but very slick lather. How much protection vs slickness you want is a matter of expierence that can only be gained by you.
This lather may seem to be too thin but it probably is not. Shave an area and see how it feels then adjust more soap or more water. You will require a very small amount of Arko to get a fine lather. Remember if you cannot see your skin you cannot tell exactly where your blade is.
You do not need much. The only people that look like they got hit in the face by a Cool Whip Pie are those that are trying to sell soap or do not know how to get a slick lather.

Good luck

HansSb said:

Thanks! This is the method for loading only, correct? So would I then continue to face lather?

Also, the lather doesn't dissipate. Instead it kind of dries out and even "cracks" in certain spots.

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Yep, that method is for loading your brush.

Sorry if I misread your post. If your lather is drying out and "cracking" on your face, that would certainly indicate to me that you need to incorporate more water, though not necessarily more product. Once the brush is fully loaded and you've applied it to your face, try re-wetting the tips of the brush and going back to your face. Observe the consistency of the lather at that point. It should be wetter, slicker, and a little thinner. If you continue adding water, the lather will eventually get very thin and "wispy" and start to evaporate on your face. That's too much water! The sweet spot is somewhere in between those two extremes.

Like everyone else says, more water. Arko loves it. Also, as I bowl lather, once I've got it done I then wash my face, after which I'll whip it again for another half minute or so, it almost seems like something settles in the two minutes it takes to wash my face.

bluesman 7 said:

Well I'll buck the conventional wisdom and say that I think your using way too much product. You likely can't add enough water without getting pushed away from the mirror by the amount of lather that you would have when you got it to the right mix.

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+1

I have found that arko can tend to dry out as well. A couple of things that I think help are...
1: Showering before I shave. Helps facial hair absorb and soften first.
2: I splash my face with water between each pass. The arko soaks it right up.

I actually used to lather arko in a bowl that I pressed the stick in just like you do, but these days I find just running the stick under a bit of hot water, rubbing on my face, and the lathering with a presoaked damp brush works best for me.

There was a previous post some months ago that recommended more water with Arko, mentioning specifically that you can add water generously since "it takes a lot of water to break Arko". I've been whipping it up in a mug, adding drops as needed, as a daily routine. If it gets too much water (which never happens) and turns out runny or thin, it is cheap. You can always dump it and start over.

GoneRetroInOH said:

There was a previous post some months ago that recommended more water with Arko, mentioning specifically that you can add water generously since "it takes a lot of water to break Arko". I've been whipping it up in a mug, adding drops as needed, as a daily routine. If it gets too much water (which never happens) and turns out runny or thin, it is cheap. You can always dump it and start over.

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Might have been one of my posts.

ARKO is like De Vergulde Hand ... people tend to underestimate how much water those soaps tolerate ... and need!

Whip it good!

After reading this thread yesterday I broke open my first Arko stick this morning to try it out. I was surprised at how much lather I got from a seemingly tiny amount of soap on my face. My first pass was a little sticky, and my next two passes were good lather, if a bit messy. Does messy mean I'm doing it right or wrong? I just had a little more running down my face than I'm used to, although I don't face lather very often.

vanhooglesnort said:

My first pass was a little sticky, and my next two passes were good lather, if a bit messy. Does messy mean I'm doing it right or wrong? I just had a little more running down my face than I'm used to, although I don't face lather very often.

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If it is messy you are doing it right...at least that is what I believe. When I shave...especially with Arko...I have it dripping into my chest hair and I splatter it on the mirror. Sure I have to clean up after my shave...but that is when I let the witch hazel soak in and dry before I add my AS.

I have tried loading and lathering Arko in a a bowl and while I can get a sufficient lather and shave, I really find it works best when I rub a light coat of it on my face and then face lather. I find I can get just the right amount of soap to water ratio...plus I just like the way if feels.

Thanks to all!! I think I'll go back to rubbing the Arko stick on my whiskers and face lather with a much, much wetter brush and I'll see if that gives me a slick lather. It seems that my current lather (as detailed above), when judged on the "messy lather scale" is not nearly messy enough and, therefore, not right!