Thread: Soaps that offer samples

I'm looking for shaving soap companies, preferably American, that offer samples. I've looked at Col Conk, W.T. Neumann, and Ogallala Bay Rum. The reason I ask is two fold. One, I don't want to get stuck with horrible smelling soap. Second, I have been known to be allergic to some products such as cologne.

Also, what should I look for in a shaving mug? Should it be heated? I've seen some people using like electric candle warmers to warm the soap. Is this necessary?

SRD offers samples of their soaps. So do some shaving vendors (Shaving Cream Sample Singles - Truefitt, Trumper, Taylor, etc. - The Shave Den Shop - (Powered by CubeCart))

Stirling Soap offers samples. Generally they are 1/4 - 1/3 of a full puck. Plenty of soap to give it a full trial. (not a company rep... just a satisfied customer! :^)

Thanks. What all do I need to use shaving soaps? Mug, bowl, lather dish, heater?

With Stirling, they recommend building the lather right on the soap. So you would need a mug to hold the puck that is also large enough for you to build the lather. I use a vintage Old Spice mug. It is a little small to hold all the lather from a sample. I would recommend a bowl/mug that is wider than 3.5 inches and about 4 to 5 inches deep. Van der Hagen makes a set that includes a boar brush, a small bowl and a puck of soap. The bowl is a little small but functional. The soap is not bad, some even use it regularly. The brush may seem stiff and screechy at first but breaks in nicely. Of coarse, I like boar brushes... have three of them!

Forgot to address yhe "heater." I just fill the sink and bowl (without the soap) with hot water and let everything soak while I shower. You"ll get two passes that are fairly warm.

Striling is the best bang for the buck on a couple of fronts, but in addition to the others listed, Maggard Razors has a very nice selection of soap samples. They are worth checking out!

Why do you like Boar brushes? Do you prefer over badger?

As a group, would anyone be interested in us contacting the various manufacturers and getting a huge sample pack put together? We could have it shipped to one address, and have someone divide up into "one-of-everything" packs to distribute. If anyone's interested, Id be happy to volunteer to divide it up and forward to all concerned, but postage would be from Australia. It appears most members are from USA? If so, would be more than happy to chip in and have a sample set sent to/from anyone in USA who would be happy to facilitate. Dont know if this has been attempted before on the forum, its just an idea Im throwing out for discussion. I know if it only cost me 10-30 Id love a wide range of samples to try and discuss. Plus, on a forum like this I would imagine we would get good participation from the suppliers?

Well I really like mystic waters.