Thread: What, exactly, is wrong with VDH?

Currently I have TOBS Sandalwood, Mitchell's Wool Fat, and Prairie Creations Walters Soap (Krissy's attempt to recreate vintage William's). When I first ran out of the soap sample I started with and placed an order for TOBS and MWF, I bought a puck of modern Williams to make do in the meantime; after a few weeks of surprisingly clean but maddeningly cushion-less shaves I realized there was a Rite Aid in the area and bought a puck of Van Der Hagen Select to see why it's so well-regarded among the ubiquitous/cheap soaps.

And I have to say, the VDH is very nearly my favorite soap, straight up, of the ones I'm using right now (haven't opened the Prairie Creations one yet). After wrestling with modern Williams and copious amounts of water I have no problem with soaps that demand more water/effort than I anticipate, but even so VDH lathers up more easily than just about any of the other soaps I've used so far. In a bowl it doesn't look all that impressive; but with face or hand lathering, it blooms to a thick and perfectly wet* lather with hardly any more effort than turning a dab of TOBS into a mountain of snow. It's been consistently slicker than my attempts with TOBS no matter how many times I go back to it as a control, and it's easily the best hand soap I've ever used in my life.

*-And I mean that in the most precise Greek sense of the word "perfect", as in "it is everything that a lather should be, as a result of the right proportion of water to soap."

Now I whole-heartedly accept that this might just be an extreme case of YMMV. Rather than blaming the TOBS or the MWF, I'm perfectly content to limit my conclusion to just "My face might like glycerin more than tallow, and definitely loves soap more than cream." I'm also not ready to blame a soap for something that most likely results from my inexperience with the product--MWF is starting to perform every bit as well as its hype now that I'm getting a better handle on its proper soap to water ratio, and I got a much more satisfying shave from TOBS alone than I usually do, on one occasion when I added a bit more cream to my second pass.

But: What, exactly, does VDH do sub-par? In what specific ways is it mediocre compared to other soaps?

I can point to specific things that I actively disliked about my time with modern Williams. I have no complaints about the quantity or duration of the lather, since I was able to see immediate results from using more water. I hold against it the physical fact that it didn't cushion my face at all against the harshness of my razor, something which literally every other soap has done; and I hold against it the fact that my skin is much more dehydrated when I use this soap than when I use literally any other soap. If these things are foreign to your experience, that's wonderful; but they're very real and useful data for my face, which for obvious reasons is my biggest concern for my own shaving.

I cannot point to specific things where VDH (Select! Not even Deluxe or Luxury) falls short for me in the actual shave. It lathers easily; it cushions my face better than most other lathers I've been able to make; it leaves my skin feeling more lubricated than any treatment I gave it before I took up wet shaving. The Bald Frog soap I started with is still higher in my regard for doing all these things better when I couldn't even create a lather yet, along with taking care of my face long after the shave in various and subtle ways. But the VDH is close enough for me to hold it in positive regard without a handicap for its low (up-front) price. I can accept that other people do not get as satisfactory a result from their trials with VDH, but I haven't been able to find a more detailed reason why than

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

VDH is one of those brands that all of us at one time used. it's great for a beginner and comes under the classification of "it gets the job done". Once you explore what's out there you probably won't want to use it again though some do like it and go no further. If you do some exploration you'll find a whole universe out there for just a little more money.

Throw them at me. I already know what I like more about Bald Frog (literally every little thing about using a shave soap), but I haven't seen anyone knock VDH on account of Bald Frog. I miss the absolutely magnificent smell of sandalwood when I'm using VDH or MWF, but the performance itself matters more to me and I haven't seen a big enough difference between VDH and others to classify it under "it gets the job done".

There is nothing wrong with VDH. It's a great utilitarian soap. It's just not exotic and/or sexy. It doesn't come with an expensive dish or upscale fragrance. Since it is readily available, it is often ignored despite the fact that nearly everyone has owned or used it. It will provide an excellent lather and for cheap. I don't think anyone will dispute this statement but most of us are hobbyists. So we own products that are superior in other aspects outside of performance. VDH is a fine soap and I'll always give it a thumbs up.

Yeeeaaaah...pretty much everything he said in a nutshell.

Granted I haven't tried very many products, but I like VDH. I use it to make an uberlather with Bigelow, and it works great for that or by itself. Great thread, I'm very interested to see what others have to say on this one.

I personally love the stuff ... I have another cake of a "big name" soap and VDH waaaaaay outperforms it ... nice scent and slicker'n pup sh*t
again YMMV
Mike

There is one thing that VDH does not deliver; the nice fragrance you get in "better" soaps. It really is quite simple, nice fragrances cost money, and VDH is so cheap there just is not much money left for it. For all other aspects, I too find VDH perfectly fine. For all "soap aspects" I find it to be brilliant for the money (lather, cushion, slickness, hydration etc).

I have tried much more expencive soaps that smelled much better, but fared far worse for lather, for instance.

Agreed here. I started straight shaving with VDH, and while I have branched out, I still return to it frequently. A great, no frills soap indeed.

VDH is a good "Chevy" of a soap that I've been using for the past three years. I have, however, found ways of sexing it up a bit. Since the scent isn't very strong, it is easy to overpower it with something else. I like to melt it and add about a teaspoon of Pinaud Clubman's Virgin Bay Rum to it. I also melt it and add it to a milled puck of Williams. Then through in some Old Spice cologne for some additional scent. The lather is phenominal and, surprisingly, so is the scent.

I guess my point is this, VDH is a good work horse of a soap that can be experimented with to create something extraordinary.

I'm glad someone brought this up. I was beginning to think there was something wrong with me and the fact that VDH is my daily driver - and I like it!

VDH is my Ole Reliable. I have other soaps (that were a waste of money) but dony even consider using them anymore. I guess what im tryin to say as well as older more experienced genius's would say (and have learned over the years)
''if it ain't broke, don't fix it'' just as the phrase has been handed down over the years. In summation why even look for anyting better when u have no complaints with what you have?