Steve56
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tallow vs non tallow
- Thread starter BearHeart
- Start date
The best non-tallow soaps I have tried (and they perform about as well as the best tallow soaps I have tried) are the TOBS hard soaps, their formulation for an awesome lather is on point and they are fool proof and easy to use.
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There are great soaps in both categories these days especially. Soapmakers have come such a long way that in a blind test it would be hard to near impossible to tell the difference on some of these soaps. Vegan soap bases tend to leave a lighter face feel afterwards (PSF) which ive grown to appreciate rather than the superfatted soaps that leave a layer of film like a Balm. Also depends on the weather, some use heavier soaps in Winter when the extra moisturizer could come in handy, and in Summer could be a bit too much. If you are not a Vegan than try a good variety of soap bases and see what works best for you.
I have some non-tallow Razorock Classic on the way. I'll let you know Saturday.
I find non-tallow soaps to be better overall than soaps with tallow. Tallow soaps are slicker, but that’s about it.
Vegan underperformance with GD Vertu for SR shaving. Works good for DE shaves, love the scent, but lacking the lasting slickness for my SR shaves. The lather disappears when wet enough for my SR shaves.
I only have 1 soap and a cream which are tallow free and I find are excellent performers. My soap is Speick active and the cream is from the BS Macca root and Aloe which is one of the slickest creams I have.
Shaving soaps require a certain level of fattiness, higher than regular soap which mixes more easily with water and rinses off faster. It doesn’t matter much what types of fats make up the mixture. What is important is the quantities and proprtions.
Tallow is a complex mixture, a greasy sludge waste product of slaughterhouses. When broken down with hydroxide it produces mainly fatty acids (stearic, palmitic, myristic acids for example) and glycerin.
Vegetable fats are very similar.
Most shaving products have these fatty acids as the main ingredient. They may come from animal and/or vegetable sources, it is not indicated on packaging. So what is perceived as a « veggie » soap might come entirely from tallow.
Tallow is a complex mixture, a greasy sludge waste product of slaughterhouses. When broken down with hydroxide it produces mainly fatty acids (stearic, palmitic, myristic acids for example) and glycerin.
Vegetable fats are very similar.
Most shaving products have these fatty acids as the main ingredient. They may come from animal and/or vegetable sources, it is not indicated on packaging. So what is perceived as a « veggie » soap might come entirely from tallow.
I think a lot has to do with also how the soaps are made, some of my best performing soaps has very few ingredients and some has a ton of ingredients like ABC has a basic vegan ingredient similar to MdC but has almond oil added and also Nuavia but has shea butter and calendula extract added and they perform really well for me.
While PAA CK-6, SVC v3, GD, Valobra has tons of ingredients and also some of the best performing soaps I’ve tried, both the minimal ingredients and the ones with a lot more ingredients are both slick and offers great protection and post shave feel.
Yet I’ve tried others with similar ingredients that does not perform as good as my top performers, even MdC with only 4 main ingredients offers great lather and performance while others with similar ingredients while not bad doesn’t have the same qualities, there are vegan and tallow that are great and as well as ones with just about the same ingredients that are not as good.
It must be how they are made or perhaps some just use higher quality ingredients?
I always wondered how the good shaving soaps do it especially the ones with minimal ingredients, of course it would also depend on the amount of each ingredients used in proportion that makes the formula.
While PAA CK-6, SVC v3, GD, Valobra has tons of ingredients and also some of the best performing soaps I’ve tried, both the minimal ingredients and the ones with a lot more ingredients are both slick and offers great protection and post shave feel.
Yet I’ve tried others with similar ingredients that does not perform as good as my top performers, even MdC with only 4 main ingredients offers great lather and performance while others with similar ingredients while not bad doesn’t have the same qualities, there are vegan and tallow that are great and as well as ones with just about the same ingredients that are not as good.
It must be how they are made or perhaps some just use higher quality ingredients?
I always wondered how the good shaving soaps do it especially the ones with minimal ingredients, of course it would also depend on the amount of each ingredients used in proportion that makes the formula.
My favourite soaps are all non tallow. I think those who moan about non tallow are stuck in the past.
I never hear a wish for some of best loved soaps to produce a tallow version, MDC, Sv and proraso , for instance are all considered first class with not an animal ingredient in sight! Yet i bet some would long for a veg version of, say MWF.
Just adding my thoughts.
I never hear a wish for some of best loved soaps to produce a tallow version, MDC, Sv and proraso , for instance are all considered first class with not an animal ingredient in sight! Yet i bet some would long for a veg version of, say MWF.
Just adding my thoughts.
I enjoy non tallow a little more for the ps feel. I do wish veg soap makers would make synthetic cooling soaps, at least 5 artisan brands have made tallow versions already. I'm not counting paa chel which might be nice quite expensive for 2 oz of preshave imo.
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When I first started wet shaving a little over 4 years ago I would have resoundingly said that tallow soaps are the best. Now after 4+ years of wet shaving I say it doesn’t matter if it’s tallow or non-tallow. If it’s good it’s good if it sucks then it sucks. So far I’ve only had two bad soaps based on the soap’s performance
As a noob, been wondering about that tallow debate. I very quickly learned that “a top note of X and a base note of Y and a delicate lingering smell of whatever” means absolutely zero if the soap doesn’t do the main thing it was supposed to do- lather up easily and provide a smooth, slick shave to help protect your skin from nicks, cuts and irritation. Moisturizing, medicating etc is a bonus. As long as the smell isn’t horrible I’m all about function first.
