ok, to see what this is all about I just tried the hand lathering technique

I got some very nice lather this way, as was said up-thread less air than in a bowl so that the lather could be applied thinner at the same coverage.

One problem was that after whipping up the lather I put a hot towel on for a minute, and after that the lather was cold. When I use a bowl, I keep it in the sink that is filled with hot water, so bowl and lather stay nice and warm.

Another problem was the amount of lather that was left after the first pass. I tried your suggestion, Lynn, running it under hot water, but it turned whatever was left very thin, and it was almost like shaving with hot water only.
Any suggestions?

Redwoood