Thread: Scuttlebutt

I know this has been brought up on the misc forum however I thought I would open this up here also.

I have never been much of a fan of scuttles and have always said keeping lather warm is like a dog chasing his tail. As a matter of fact I'm the guy who originally said shaving with cold water if done right results in a great shave. However like the guy in the Godfather who keeps trying to get out I too am constantly drawn back in.

So now that I have been through enough of these contraptions I've gotten to the point where I know what makes a good scuttle as far as heat retention goes.

It's really two qualities. One is having the walls the right thickness. Too thick and though it makes a very sold feeling high quality piece most of the heat is quickly lost trying to warm the thick walls both inside and out of the piece. Too thin a wall and the piece quickly gets too hot and quickly loses the heat. Second is have a large enough reservoir of water. The more you have the better. I think at least 12oz is the minimum if you want the hot lather throughout the entire shave.

So the moral of the story is that I think most of the pieces on the market are lacking in either of those two traits or a combination of both and the people who make these things, unless it is intended as more of a decorative piece should test them out before making them.

I think I know the one in particular you're talking about and going by the evidence so far I think it's the interior wall that's the problem.

I've heard great things about scuttles, but I've yet to find a really good one

The only one I've tried is the small Moss Scuttle and I happen to like it very much if you want warm lather. I'm using an ice bucket now for cold lather.

Hello, everyone:

I concur with Thebigspendur on his assessment of scuttles in general. I had a commercially made scuttle and finally realized it kept my brush no warmer than an improvised scuttle I had made myself. I sold it.

Are scuttles worth the money, especially with their high shipping costs? If they work for you and you like them, then they are. For me, they are not, because I can do just as well with my own improvised scuttle.

Regards,

Obie
obieyadgar.com