Are there any tips to getting (and keeping) lather hot? I use an old coffee mug to lather up the soap, but its never comforting and warm when I put it on my face, and it is definetly not warm the second time around.
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Are there any tips to getting (and keeping) lather hot? I use an old coffee mug to lather up the soap, but its never comforting and warm when I put it on my face, and it is definetly not warm the second time around.
Place the mug in a bowl/sink with hot water. For the second pass (because you don't rest the brush on the soap again), you need a scuttle or scuttle-like contraption. Something that is warm where you can rest your brush in.
I have two, but I can highly recommend the Dirty Bird scuttle (I have the brush scuttle). http://www.dirtybirdpottery.com/shavinggear.html
Before you start, put hot water in the cup to warm it up. Then after your 1st lather, rest the cup in a bowl of hot water. Depending on how long the hot bowl of water sits, you may have to refill it with fresh hot water.
I like to soak my brush in hot water and find a way to warm up the shaving soap before I start lathering. Just give it some thought and you will figure it out. When winter rolls around, this becomes a bigger issue than when its hot outside.
Welcome to straight shaving!
Pabster
anyone ever tried just microwaving a coffee cup with about 1/4 filled hot water for about 30 seconds -
When ready to lather - empty all but about 2 tablesppons hot water and lather in the cup - the cup should hold it's warmth long enough to get a shave in.
thoughts to this process (for those without scuttles)
andy
I forgot about the simple option, without having to buy a scuttle. You can always rest a bowl or mug in hot water where you can place your brush in between passes. The more contactarea between the bowl/mug and brush the better. Some have made their own scuttles with 2 bowls and glue. This creates a reservoir for hot water to keep the inner bowl warm and thus your brush warm. I find that such a contraption greatly improved my enjoyment. It didn't do much to the smoothness of the shave, but it's much more pleasurable.
You don't want to use the mug with your soap for this, as this will change your lather.
Purchasing something cheap like this Dip Chiller may help you out. Just a cheap scuttle type bowl. I just ordered mine, havent received it yet but ive read positive reviews from people that use it for straight shaving.
i use a heavy ceramic mug to lather in but first i warm it with hot water and a soaking brush... as long as i can keep it off the marble it stays warm through a 3 pass shave, i use a square piece of silicon sold as an oven mitt. also keeps me form chipping the mug or the marble when i slam it down.
Dirty bird pottery makes a great scuttle that I use and it keeps the shaving cream nice and warm. There is a lot of surface area that touches the brush thats loaded with the shaving cream keeping it warm. Works well now, I bet it is even better when it gets colder outside.
Good luck!
I use a mug with a puck of soap in the bottom, and I generate lather on my face. For the second lather, I drizzle just a little very hot water into the base of the brush-- the water works its way to the tips rehydrating the lather and warms it up again.
-Chief
i went to walmart and bought a candle warmer for $5 and two small ceramic bowls for $1 each. I fill the bottom bowl about halfway up with hot water and put Iit on warmer. I then lather up in the other bowl and place it on top of first bowl. I take a shower and when I shave the lather was nice and warm through 3 passes. I was going to buy a scuttle, but this was much cheaper and available now. Hope this helps!
Hope your GFCI in your shaving area is working... :gl:
I recently acquired a Georgia Pottery 20 Oz scuttle as a Father's day treat and all I can say is WOW. What a different experience with nice warm lather throughout the shave progression.
I had been using an old coffee mug and cold lather.
I want to get a scuttle eventually but for now, I use a heavy metal bowl... fill it with hot water for a minute, then empty it. I shave pretty quickly, but it holds the heat for warm lather throughout the shave.
redcannon,
The scuttle will keep your lather warm throughout the shave. Here are the brands I have used and liked:
Moss, Straight Razor Designs, Dirty Bird, Schwarzweisskeramik, Georgetown and Becker. All will keep your lather warm, some better than others.
Give one a try and you'll never regret it.
I'm really loving my Georgetown Pottery scuttle; warm lather is not a problem!
Leftyonly,
Yeah, I should have mentioned DON'T use this set up without a GFCI outlet (which I do have)
Very good point!
Yes, I did. Sometimes I prefer to address my post to a person, especially the one who started the thread, rather than do a general post. In this case, I also thought newcomers to Straight Razor Place might benefit from my humble post. Finally, I have thought of doing a big thread on some scuttles in general for the benefit of our new members, and this was a test run of sorts. Thanks for your thoughts.
I thought we already had a sticky dedicated to scuttles? I could be mistaken. It would be a good idea to cover all the things SR related but I understand that it would be a huge undertaking. I don't have a problem with resurrecting old threads especially if it is relevant to a topic that should be in constant discussion.
[QUOTE=guitstik;1363153]I thought we already had a sticky dedicated to scuttles? I could be mistaken. It would be a good idea to cover all the things SR related but I understand that it would be a huge undertaking. I don't have a problem with resurrecting old threads especially if it is relevant to a topic that should be in constant discussion.[/QUO
guitstik,
Thanks for your thoughts. Straight Razor Place has a qualified staff of administrators, moderators and mentors and I'm sure they are capable of making such decisions.
His new scuttle was so efficient it has kept his water warm for 5 years.
I tried this...the cup remains reasonably warm during the first pass but either way neither brush nor lather is getting anything but cold. Even when I rest my brush in hot water, by the time I'm done lathering, whether it's the first time or second time - brush is cold, lather is cold.
I tried a mug warmer - kept the mug warm, hot even - still no hot lather..if i'm LUCKY i'll maybe get a few drops of warm lather, before it cools down - the mug is still, somehow warm to the touch though. I've tried different materials too - china, granite, marble, steel.
Honestly at this point, I simply CANNOT believe after THREE HUNDRED YEARS, i'm still having the same problem the dude who first used my razor is having - no hot lather.
I think your wanting too much. HOT lather is no better than warm lather. Warm is good enough for me. I use a scuttle and i go as far as to sit the scuttle in a sink of hot water. Change the water in the scuttle for more hot water to keep it as warm as possible. Warm is comforting. Hot might not be as nice. JMO.
Keep in mind that body temps are over 95 degrees. So evan if you lather is 90 degrees, its warm but you might think its cold.
It’s a balancing act. You can warm the scuttle and warm the brush and bloom the soap with warm water, but if you get things too hot, the lather degrades quickly.
I have actually had the best luck face lathering by rubbing a soap stick on my wet face and using hot water on the brush.
Possibly a warming plate set at 120? But as DZEC posted, lather degrades, fades away with heat.
How cold is your house?
I spent the last year or more playing with cold water.
With the last cold spell I relented and went over to the warm. side.
First hint, plastic. Ceramic is just too hungry for heat.
Second hint is a wooden stir stick or chopstick in a plastic 1 or 2 cup measuring cup (spout) and microwave some water to about 120-125F. Not over 150F (will scald skin in seconds) but the until you get the timing correct safety mandates an anti boil over aid like the wood stick and caution.
Warning: Good brushes do not like boiling water. Crazy hot kills the glue of the knot target 120F (tap hot).
I lather in a plastic 4" salsa bowl low heat capacity and while textured is easy on a good brush.
I dip my brush in the measuring cup of hot water, shake most out and gather some soap from the puck.
I let my boar brushes soak for 20 seconds, expensive badger dip and shake.
If using a cream I put a dab in the lathering bowl and start building a lather with a minimum
of water and keep adding dribbles of hot water as needed.
If I got the brush dry enough I now have the opportunity to add hot water a little at
a time and build my lather. I marvel at how much additional water a lather can take up.
When the lather is close, I try some on my face and face lather a bit. Each time
adding a teaspoon of hot water or less and work the lather till I get it right.
Then each time I need another load of lather on my face for another pass I add a small bit
of my hot water. My hotest tap, closest to the hot water heater is 122F which is fine.
About $2 for the measuring cup, about $2 for the plastic salsa bowl at my grocery.
The warmth of that last dribble of hot water and reworking the lather is noticeable.
If the measuring cup water gets cool, get a bigger measuring cup.
Summary: Plastic, the heavy ceramic mugs need to be very heavy and need to be preheated
like a tea kettle and are their own class of joy. In all cases a dribble of tap hot water
to refresh the lather helps. The measuring cup of HOT water allows the last dribbles of
water to be effective in all cases when refreshing the lather.
Yes this is an old thread.
It's between 53 and 65F (12C - ~18C or so) in my house (yes, that's on purpose, during winter i keep my windows open all day, during summer my thermostat is set to 12C...any warmer than 16C and I can't sleep and feel really hot). Bathroom is probably on the warmer side. I've tried plastic, it doesn't help...plus i'm always afraid of heating up plastic too much.
THe one thing I"ve been trying for the last few days is a cast iron melting pot/ladle thingi, heat it up on the stove, get the water to about 180F-200F or so...rest the brush in the water for a bit, then pour out the water and use the now heated up cast iron pot for lathering. EVEN THAT doesn't work. The water itself ends up cooling to "even a baby should be fine with this temperature" level in about 1 minute or so.
It's also INSANELY dry in my house, again hopefully less so in the bathroom (on the plus side things are HIGHLY unlikely to spoil in my house, even FOOD lasts longer outside than you normally think it would because it's so cold and dry).
I don't think putting your brush in water that is 180 to 200 degrees is a good idea. You're going to mess with the glue holding it together. It seems like you want some seriously hot lather too me. Good luck.
Really? SO like 60-80F? That's downright cold. 80F, which is around room temperature in hot climates I'd consider maybe lukewarm. My lathers never get above 60F to be honest, even with the insane things I do, 60F is as high as I ever get (according to the thermapro i have anyway).
Also this can't POSSIBLY be true. Body temp is 97-99F, and i know 100% that hot lather machines felt warm to the touch, and physically that will only happen if temperatures reach or exceed body core temperature (so minimum of 95F). Honestly, I've used hot lather machines, (or had them used on me), all i want is the temp that they reach, whatever you think that is, I just want that...but without having to buy one of those(which I am 99% sure is fairly close to 100F, like 90-95F at minimum, though I"ve never measured it.).
P.S: far as I can tell, the "hot water" setting on my bathroom tap is about 100F or so, maybe a little less, maybe a little more but 100 seems like a safe bet (120F is mentioned in various places including hydro company websites as a very common setting for hot water at homes, but the limit to safe temperature - any higher can be dangerous to sensitive skin such as children. So, 100F seems like a REALLY good bet regarding most peoples hot water taps at home).
Perhaps you're confused about F vs C? 100F is about 37.8C. 80F is about 26C, which is usually considered "room temperature" in warm climates, 110F (or about 43C) is a temperature I've seen on warning labels for hot water tubs and kettles and the like as a warning "hot water" temperature - this seems to be the where the commonly accepted "really hot" range starts for water. So good temperature for "warm to hot water", which will feel nice during cold climates for a shower is around 90-100F, any colder and it will be well below body temperature and then it's just plain PHYSICS that it will NOT feel warm to the touch, let alone hot or scald - you can't possibly harm a brush with something that is COLDER THAN YOUR OWN SKIN!
Also: I put my brush AFTER taking the water out of the heating device. By the time my brush is in there, it's cold enough wash my face in, so not hotter than 105 or so by ANY MEANS, and likely a LOT colder. Generally I find, it's impossible for any liquid to stay above 95F in my house outside unless being supplied with heat in some way - for more than 15seconds - like this is true even for Soups, I LOVE drinking soups but everything above the second sip is just cold.
You are right about hot water heaters in homes, 120F seems to be the hottest recommended. No, I am not confused about F vs C as I grew up using F and then had to learn to use C for temps. Our tankless hot water heater is set to 125F, about 52C, as the boss likes it really hot. Before switching to cold water shaving I did make lather in a modern scuttle with a built in hot water reservoir to keep the lather warm and it did keep it warm.
I have no idea why you can't feel that the lather is at least warm as the majority of people can. Instead of doing really insane things to get a hot lather you might want to get one of those old style commercial hot lather machines as they seem to work for you when nothing else will.
Bob
Sorry, i think I may not have communicated this well: i can feel warm lather fine, if it is indeed warm. I have no issues for example when I'm shaving at my parents house, get nice warm, even hot lather there. My problem is, it is IMPOSSIBLE for any liquid to stay above 65F or so in my house for more than 15 seconds unless being supplied with heat. I'll try the hot lather machine tbh, as a last resort. But again, my problem isn't me being wierd and demanding some insane temperature, my issue is that my house is SO COLD and DRY that NORMAL temperatures lathers and water reaches and stays at for most people, it doesn't for me. Again, 65F is as hot as I'll EVER GET water, lather, brush or really ANYTHING liquid to stay at without it being heated up. Solid objects are better at retaining heat - my blade or that cast iron pot seems to be able to even stay warm for a long time.
to those most recently asking...
Heat some water in a bowl or put water heated in the kitchen in one that's large enough to hold your mug. Build the lather with hot tap water, then , put your mug containing lather in it while you make a pass, or two or three.
However, truth be told, hot lather is not a necessity, it's a luxury. To soften your beard (which is the point), get some hand towels hot with tap water, and hold them on your face for 15 or 30 seconds, then lather.
On the one hand, replying to this thread with my issue COULD result in people getting pissed of at me because I rezzed a dead thread...OTOH people would get pissed of at me if i started a NEW thread by saying "there's already a thread with this same topic, go there!"...and yes, while the rules of conduct here may be to make new threads if an old thread is older than 6 months or whatever, it doesn't (to my knowledge) say that anywhere explicitly, and I've seen and felt people getting pissed off in both directions on various forums. So, honestly most of the time I just simply don't post at all...cuz i don't know what to do. And my social anxiety consequently means that I"m paralyzed with doubt and fear.
Sounds to me like you could use a good space heater.
:shrug:
Try this. It works for me.
Hot shower followed by hot towel on face.
Rub shaving soap directly on moist face. I find using a shaving stick soap easiest.
Soak brush in very warm to hot water. Boiling hot water could loosen the knot, so do not do that.
Use the warm moist brush to raise a lather on your face. Rewet the brush with hot water as needed, shaking off excess water first. A good badger brush will retain the heat better than boar or synthetic bristle.
I've used an electric kettle that I keep under the bathroom sink. You'll need a scuttle. Before showering, fill up the kettle and let it boil the water. When ready to prepare your lather, pour tap water into your scuttle reservoir and brush holder about a 1/4 to a 1/3 full then fill the rest with the heated water from the kettle. You have to play with the ratio of tap and kettle water to get the right temperature. Too hot and the lather will break down. Leave about a tablespoon of the warm/hot water in the bottom of the brush holder, this helps transfer heat from the reservoir below the brush bowl. This method gives me warm lather for as many passes as I care to do.
Hope this helps.
OK, seems I misunderstood. Since you can get a warm lather at your parent's house what is the difference in the temperature they keep their house at and yours and also what temperature do they keep their hot water set at? It may be that the ambient temperature at your house is too low to let the lather remain warm for long and/or your water temperature is too low also.
You could be loosing heat from your water on the way from the hot water tank to your bathroom if your basement is very cold. Insulating the hot water pipe in that case may help.
Bob
Gentlemen,
I think, for lack of a better word, "warm/hot" rather than "boiling/hot" for my lather. "Boiling/hot" will contribute to breaking down the lather, as well as over time damage the badger, boar or synthetic brush. My shave den sink offers all the plain old "warm/hot" water I need to heat my scuttle.
Here is the way I play in my humble shave den: On the way to the shower, I fill my Schwarzweisskeramik scuttle, both bowl and tank, with "warm/hot" water from the sink faucet, and bloom my soap, if it needs it. The brush stays out, because I feel the "warm/hot" water in the scuttle bowl is still a wee bit too hot for my brush.
By the time I'm out of the shower, the water in the scuttle bowl is safely warm in which to soak my brush. Since I use pre-shave to further soften my beard and give extra protection to my ultra-sensitive skin, I massage a small amount of it onto my Hollywood face let it sit for about a minute or so before applying the hot towel over it ("warm/hot") — three times.
I then take out the soaking brush, give it a gentle shake and a light squeeze. I dump the water from the scuttle and just refill the tank with "warm/hot" water from the faucet. I load my brush with soap or cream, swirl it in the scuttle bowl a few times, long enough to warm the brush, and then proceed to face lather. I adjust the lather's moisture as I go along.
That's that. During the shave, if I feel I need to reheat the bowl, I dump the water from the scuttle tank and refill it, again, with the "warm/hot" water from the tap. This way my brush stays comfortably "warm" throughout the shave.
And gentlemen, this ritual (and the actual shave) is one of life's greatest pleasures.