Like many here, I have searched for The Perfect Scuttle. Of course "perfect" for one man is not necessarily perfect for another.
During my search I have purchased and used extensively the Georgetown Pottery V3, The Dirty Bird and the Sara Bonnyman "Moss".
In the interest of giving something back to the community I thought it might be helpful to write my impressions of these three, popular scuttles. I hope this is useful to a few of you.
Here's how they stacked up for me and my morning routine.
First of all, I prefer my brush and lather temp to be *just* below the point at which the lather will start to break down so....more "hot" than warm. With that being the case, I don't find any of these scuttle particularly effective with plain old, hot tap water. Of course, this will depend on just how hot your tap water is, but I figure it's much more cost effective, as well as safer for my children and more environmentally conscientious, to microwave my scuttle water for 3 minutes every morning rather than leave my water heater cranked higher than I can use for a shower.
My tap water measures 178º......yours, certainly, may vary. Water boils, at sea level at 212º
[EDIT]it's been pointed out below that my stated tap water temp seems high so I will recheck with a more accurate measuring device and update ASAP.
My Sonicare toothbrush takes exactly 2 minutes to do its thing so actually......this works out just about right. I place a full, 16oz Pyrex measuring cup full of water in my microwave before going to bed in the evening and then after my shower I hit START before brushing my teeth.
So, having established that, in my opinion, near boiling water is needed for *any* of these scuttles to keep your brush and lather nicely warm during a 3-4 pass shave let's move on to the pros and cons of each of these three popular warming vessels.
The first scuttle I purchased was the simply drop-dead gorgeous Georgetown V3. It was, in fact, the incredible glaze on these scuttles that led me to try this one first. The V3 is as far removed from a hobbiest piece of pottery as you could ask for. This is clearly a serious piece of clay, shaped and glazed by a master potter.
This is one very photogenic scuttle:
Considering the quality of the work, this scuttle at $42.00 plus around $8.00 shipping seems like the scuttle deal of the century.
The folks at G'Town really know how to throw clay and do beautiful, stunning glaze work. It's a gorgeous piece of pottery that is expertly crafted, heavy and satisfying in the hand and makes a lovely knick knack in your master bathroom. Unfortunately, this is where the love affair with this scuttle ended for me.
I found that the combination of a small reservoir....less than 6 ounces......and a thickly walled inner bowl rendered this scuttle essentially useless as a warming vessel. With full-on boiling water I could get luke warm lather for one pass, After that I was right back to an essentially room temp lather and brush.
Because I was truly enamored with the beauty of the V3, I contacted Georgetown to discuss what I felt were the pros and cons of their scuttle.
I showered the very nice woman who answered the phone at G'Town Pottery with praise for the quality and aesthetics of the piece, but then diplomatically stated that I felt the scuttle needed a larger reservoir and thinner inner wall to actually be effective.
I was very nice about this, she seemed very interested in my opinion and said she would discuss this with their "master potter" and get back to me. After a week had passed without a return phone call and knowing how busy folks are these days I decided to simply write an email to Georgetown explaining my experiences both positive and negative with their design and suggesting a larger water capacity and thinner inner wall.
I never got a response.
Fair enough........they apparently are not looking for feedback or input and that's their right so......I let it go. And I sold the V3.
If you love gorgeous pottery and your goal is to add a decoration to your bathroom then you will enjoy owning the Georgetown V3 scuttle; if you are looking for an effective way to keep your lather and brush warm, I'd recommend taking a pass.
During the time that I owned the V3 I began reading more and more about a woman in Nova Scotia named Sara Bonneyman who had worked with an avid wetshaver, Dr. Moss, to create a scuttle said to be very effective by all who reviewed it.
Based on web photo's, I wasn't initially as drawn to the aesthetics of the Bonneyman/Moss as I was to the G'Town, but my primary goal was hot lather and brush for 15-20 minutes via a hand thrown piece of pottery dedicated to that task so I decided to contact Sara and order one of her scuttles to compare to the V3.
The purchase price of this scuttle was a tad higher at $60.00USD than most of Sara's competitors, but it was the shipping that really hurt. The shipping quote was not part of the checkout process other than a note that states "Shipping costs are exact postage plus 5.00 for packing."
I had no idea that S&H would add about $25.00 to my ultimate cost for this scuttle but, Sara isn't getting rich off of her shipping charges; she packs her scuttles very well and it is, after all, a fairly lengthy trip from Nova Scotia to my home in North Carolina. If you live in the US and you want a Moss, you have to pay to have it delivered. This is the *only* downside to purchasing a Bonneyman/Moss scuttle.
I've had a few email exchanges with Sara and she is a pleasant and responsive person to do business with and obviously takes pride in her work.
Upon receiving my Bonneyman/Moss I was actually very pleased with the aesthetics. It has such clean, simple lines that I found it *appealing* initially and that its simplicity became elegance once I began to live with it.
Have you ever noticed how a piece of music that grabs you immediately may be one that you grow tired of quickly, but that a song that takes several listens to get in to becomes a part of your life; music that is timeless and that you never tire of?
The Bonneyman/Moss is like the latter; it grows on you until eventually you discover its perfect harmony and begin to realize that it is a work of art that you may never tire of.
The glaze is not as fancy as the G'Town's, but it is a different style of pottery from an artist with a different vision and I find it very attractive if not quite the initial jaw dropper that the G'Town scuttle is.
Okay, so the purchase price of the Bonneyman/Moss is a little higher, though in my estimation reasonable and the shipping expense may be a deal breaker for some, but it is a very finely crafted piece of pottery that for me at least has a beauty that goes beyond skin deep.
How does it perform?
In a word, fabulously. The bowl is not really large enough to lather in, but this is okay because I prefer to lather in a separate lather bowl (also a Bonneyman by the way).
This scuttle warms your lather and brush incredibly well and holds that heat seemingly forever. Even on my lazy, Saturday morning shaves during which I use a straight razor and really take my time to enjoy the shaving ritual, this scuttle has no problem keeping both lather and brush warm for 20 minutes provided you have filled the generous 14oz reservoir (aprox) with near boiling water.
So at this point I have a well made, attractive scuttle that is very effective and I should be satisfied. Nope.......unfortunately I keep surfing around B&B and I discover another scuttle........the Dirty Bird.
After my friend Wayne Truitt purchased one and loaned it to me for a week or so I decided I'd like to own one of these as well.
I placed an order for the DB and received it promptly within 10 or so days of placing the order. Like the Georgetown, the DB runs a very reasonable $42.00 plus around $8.00 shipping.
Aesthetically, this scuttle is closer to the Georgetown. The clay work is not as over-the-top (if that matters to you) and the glazing not as intense, but it is a nicely made piece with an attractive glaze and is also, like the Bonneyman/Moss, much more effective than the G'Town.
The Dirty Bird's bowl is large enough to lather in if that's your preference and the large (14-16oz) reservoir and reasonably thin inner wall allows this scuttle to retain heat as well as the Bonneyman/Moss.
The owner of Dirty Bird Pottery, Julie Moore, is a real pleasure to deal with. From PM's that she and I exchanged recently she is obviously very concerned about feedback from this community and making sure that she is creating an effective scuttle that will work well for wet shavers.
This goes along way with me and I have no problems recommending the Dirty Bird scuttle very highly. It is reasonably priced, nicely made and effective. It's the bang-for-buck entry in this shootout.
Ultimately though, my pick was the Bonneyman/Moss.
The Georgetown, as previously stated, just didn't get the job done for me; its combination of small reservoir, thick inner wall and beautiful, but heavy glaze does not allow enough heat to transfer through to the lather and brush. The Bonneyman/Moss and Dirty Bird are equally effective so you essentially will choose one over the other based on aesthetics and, potentially, price.
Regardless of which scuttle you choose though, you shouldn't spend another dime on your shaving kit until you purchase a scuttle. I feel that the warm lather and brush add immeasurably to the enjoyment of a good wet shave.
I hope this is helpful and please feel free to reply or PM me with any questions!
During my search I have purchased and used extensively the Georgetown Pottery V3, The Dirty Bird and the Sara Bonnyman "Moss".
In the interest of giving something back to the community I thought it might be helpful to write my impressions of these three, popular scuttles. I hope this is useful to a few of you.
Here's how they stacked up for me and my morning routine.
First of all, I prefer my brush and lather temp to be *just* below the point at which the lather will start to break down so....more "hot" than warm. With that being the case, I don't find any of these scuttle particularly effective with plain old, hot tap water. Of course, this will depend on just how hot your tap water is, but I figure it's much more cost effective, as well as safer for my children and more environmentally conscientious, to microwave my scuttle water for 3 minutes every morning rather than leave my water heater cranked higher than I can use for a shower.
My tap water measures 178º......yours, certainly, may vary. Water boils, at sea level at 212º
[EDIT]it's been pointed out below that my stated tap water temp seems high so I will recheck with a more accurate measuring device and update ASAP.
My Sonicare toothbrush takes exactly 2 minutes to do its thing so actually......this works out just about right. I place a full, 16oz Pyrex measuring cup full of water in my microwave before going to bed in the evening and then after my shower I hit START before brushing my teeth.
So, having established that, in my opinion, near boiling water is needed for *any* of these scuttles to keep your brush and lather nicely warm during a 3-4 pass shave let's move on to the pros and cons of each of these three popular warming vessels.
The first scuttle I purchased was the simply drop-dead gorgeous Georgetown V3. It was, in fact, the incredible glaze on these scuttles that led me to try this one first. The V3 is as far removed from a hobbiest piece of pottery as you could ask for. This is clearly a serious piece of clay, shaped and glazed by a master potter.
This is one very photogenic scuttle:
Considering the quality of the work, this scuttle at $42.00 plus around $8.00 shipping seems like the scuttle deal of the century.
The folks at G'Town really know how to throw clay and do beautiful, stunning glaze work. It's a gorgeous piece of pottery that is expertly crafted, heavy and satisfying in the hand and makes a lovely knick knack in your master bathroom. Unfortunately, this is where the love affair with this scuttle ended for me.
I found that the combination of a small reservoir....less than 6 ounces......and a thickly walled inner bowl rendered this scuttle essentially useless as a warming vessel. With full-on boiling water I could get luke warm lather for one pass, After that I was right back to an essentially room temp lather and brush.
Because I was truly enamored with the beauty of the V3, I contacted Georgetown to discuss what I felt were the pros and cons of their scuttle.
I showered the very nice woman who answered the phone at G'Town Pottery with praise for the quality and aesthetics of the piece, but then diplomatically stated that I felt the scuttle needed a larger reservoir and thinner inner wall to actually be effective.
I was very nice about this, she seemed very interested in my opinion and said she would discuss this with their "master potter" and get back to me. After a week had passed without a return phone call and knowing how busy folks are these days I decided to simply write an email to Georgetown explaining my experiences both positive and negative with their design and suggesting a larger water capacity and thinner inner wall.
I never got a response.
Fair enough........they apparently are not looking for feedback or input and that's their right so......I let it go. And I sold the V3.
If you love gorgeous pottery and your goal is to add a decoration to your bathroom then you will enjoy owning the Georgetown V3 scuttle; if you are looking for an effective way to keep your lather and brush warm, I'd recommend taking a pass.
During the time that I owned the V3 I began reading more and more about a woman in Nova Scotia named Sara Bonneyman who had worked with an avid wetshaver, Dr. Moss, to create a scuttle said to be very effective by all who reviewed it.
Based on web photo's, I wasn't initially as drawn to the aesthetics of the Bonneyman/Moss as I was to the G'Town, but my primary goal was hot lather and brush for 15-20 minutes via a hand thrown piece of pottery dedicated to that task so I decided to contact Sara and order one of her scuttles to compare to the V3.
The purchase price of this scuttle was a tad higher at $60.00USD than most of Sara's competitors, but it was the shipping that really hurt. The shipping quote was not part of the checkout process other than a note that states "Shipping costs are exact postage plus 5.00 for packing."
I had no idea that S&H would add about $25.00 to my ultimate cost for this scuttle but, Sara isn't getting rich off of her shipping charges; she packs her scuttles very well and it is, after all, a fairly lengthy trip from Nova Scotia to my home in North Carolina. If you live in the US and you want a Moss, you have to pay to have it delivered. This is the *only* downside to purchasing a Bonneyman/Moss scuttle.
I've had a few email exchanges with Sara and she is a pleasant and responsive person to do business with and obviously takes pride in her work.
Upon receiving my Bonneyman/Moss I was actually very pleased with the aesthetics. It has such clean, simple lines that I found it *appealing* initially and that its simplicity became elegance once I began to live with it.
Have you ever noticed how a piece of music that grabs you immediately may be one that you grow tired of quickly, but that a song that takes several listens to get in to becomes a part of your life; music that is timeless and that you never tire of?
The Bonneyman/Moss is like the latter; it grows on you until eventually you discover its perfect harmony and begin to realize that it is a work of art that you may never tire of.
The glaze is not as fancy as the G'Town's, but it is a different style of pottery from an artist with a different vision and I find it very attractive if not quite the initial jaw dropper that the G'Town scuttle is.
Okay, so the purchase price of the Bonneyman/Moss is a little higher, though in my estimation reasonable and the shipping expense may be a deal breaker for some, but it is a very finely crafted piece of pottery that for me at least has a beauty that goes beyond skin deep.
How does it perform?
In a word, fabulously. The bowl is not really large enough to lather in, but this is okay because I prefer to lather in a separate lather bowl (also a Bonneyman by the way).
This scuttle warms your lather and brush incredibly well and holds that heat seemingly forever. Even on my lazy, Saturday morning shaves during which I use a straight razor and really take my time to enjoy the shaving ritual, this scuttle has no problem keeping both lather and brush warm for 20 minutes provided you have filled the generous 14oz reservoir (aprox) with near boiling water.
So at this point I have a well made, attractive scuttle that is very effective and I should be satisfied. Nope.......unfortunately I keep surfing around B&B and I discover another scuttle........the Dirty Bird.
After my friend Wayne Truitt purchased one and loaned it to me for a week or so I decided I'd like to own one of these as well.
I placed an order for the DB and received it promptly within 10 or so days of placing the order. Like the Georgetown, the DB runs a very reasonable $42.00 plus around $8.00 shipping.
Aesthetically, this scuttle is closer to the Georgetown. The clay work is not as over-the-top (if that matters to you) and the glazing not as intense, but it is a nicely made piece with an attractive glaze and is also, like the Bonneyman/Moss, much more effective than the G'Town.
The Dirty Bird's bowl is large enough to lather in if that's your preference and the large (14-16oz) reservoir and reasonably thin inner wall allows this scuttle to retain heat as well as the Bonneyman/Moss.
The owner of Dirty Bird Pottery, Julie Moore, is a real pleasure to deal with. From PM's that she and I exchanged recently she is obviously very concerned about feedback from this community and making sure that she is creating an effective scuttle that will work well for wet shavers.
This goes along way with me and I have no problems recommending the Dirty Bird scuttle very highly. It is reasonably priced, nicely made and effective. It's the bang-for-buck entry in this shootout.
Ultimately though, my pick was the Bonneyman/Moss.
The Georgetown, as previously stated, just didn't get the job done for me; its combination of small reservoir, thick inner wall and beautiful, but heavy glaze does not allow enough heat to transfer through to the lather and brush. The Bonneyman/Moss and Dirty Bird are equally effective so you essentially will choose one over the other based on aesthetics and, potentially, price.
Regardless of which scuttle you choose though, you shouldn't spend another dime on your shaving kit until you purchase a scuttle. I feel that the warm lather and brush add immeasurably to the enjoyment of a good wet shave.
I hope this is helpful and please feel free to reply or PM me with any questions!
a "Moss" scuttle from my father for Christmas this past year. I found it to be a joy during the cold NY winters but dont really see the point during the summer. However, fall is here and its out of my shave locker. I even had one of my roommates use it last week and he really enjoyed it. The only down side they are a pain to get in the states!
