Soap vs canned foam vs cream cost effectiveness

Hey guys. First off I do realize that soaps and creams is waay better than the canned stuff. And that there are different kind of soaps and pastes out there. But has anyone looked into how long does it take to use out the whole product at the same price level.

For example where im from, for same amount of money you can get 100ml of cream, 150 ml of soap and 200ml of canned stuff.

In theory it seems that creams end much faster. And that soaps seem to be very consumption effective if you try to. And 200ml of can stuff seems more win with more weight but does that mean there is more of it to use...

Currently im moving away from the canned stuff and into soaps and creams. I just wonder what would last longer a 150ml of cream or 150ml of soap.

Can't answer the can goo question but in the my 11 months of Srt8 use my Edwin Jaggar soap ( my go to quick shave option ) has 1/3rd left, my razor rock classic cream has less than a 1/4 used and my TOBS cream I got at Christmas has about 1/4 used if that and I shave 3 to 4 time per week

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Originally Posted by hotfuzz

Hey guys. First off I do realize that soaps and creams is waay better than the canned stuff. And that there are different kind of soaps and pastes out there. But has anyone looked into how long does it take to use out the whole product at the same price level.

For example where im from, for same amount of money you can get 100ml of cream, 150 ml of soap and 200ml of canned stuff.

In theory it seems that creams end much faster. And that soaps seem to be very consumption effective if you try to. And 200ml of can stuff seems more win with more weight but does that mean there is more of it to use...

Currently im moving away from the canned stuff and into soaps and creams. I just wonder what would last longer a 150ml of cream or 150ml of soap.

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For me, canned foam or gel lasted about as long as a puck of soap. That's highly subjective because soap pucks come in different sizes and densities. Creams in a tube are about as economical provided that you don't use more than you need. It's hard not to use more than you need when dipping your brush in a jar of the expensive stuff like George F. Trumper.

The canned foam did not adequately protect my face with a multiblade/cartridge razor. The gels got stuck between the blades and wouldn't rinse out, requiring me to press the razor harder against my face.

I have never tried canned foam or gel with a DE, SE, or straight razor. When I started, my dad told me to use his electric and I got my own that Christmas. I didn't like it and started wet shaving with the "latest and greatest" without ever really learning how to do it properly. Now that I have learned about things like blade angle, beard growth, and pressure the last four years with the old-time equipment, I should try a cartridge + foam to see if my new-found knowledge will give me a better shave. But after 40 years of shaving hell with that stuff it's hard to talk myself into this. Attachment 165615

Thanks for info guys. I still have to feel it out myself how it feels with the sops and creams but everyone seem to really love them. They also dont seem to be all that expensive, but I still was wondering about the period they last. Now if they are really close then its a no brainier..
Im just hoping that the shaving soap is nothing like regular soap that can dry out and damage your skin if you wash you face with them.

Congratz CaliforniaCajun on you enlightenment. I was also a victim of cartridge usage as I didnt know any better and there was no one to guide me on the right path. Now for about and year im using shavette and love it. At the moment I wished for changes and am transitioning to straight razor and also away form canned foam. Love the straight and I hope ill love the soaps and pastes too.

I think it is the puck hands down. I know I use creams faster but I might be using more than I need to begin with. I began using soap/brush in 1972 or '73 when I bought a badger brush. I find the puck of soap so much more cost effective, and the lather so much more pleasing, that it wasn't even a question in my mind which way I was going to go. I cannot remember the last time I bought a can of goo. If I was in a pinch, and no soap or brush, I'd lather up with a bar of hand/body soap or even dish soap and shave before I went to a can of that aerated stuff. OTOH ..... maybe the current stuff isn't the same as the stuff from back then ? :thinking:

I think in order for the answer to be defined and accreted you would have to take each product and use only that one until it was gone. That is hard for me to do. I open up the cabinet and choose different soaps and creams all the time. I'm not sure I've completely used very many from the selection and those that I have finished are so old I can't remember when I bought them. I too have used a shave brush and hard soap for a very long time. Even when I only had one soap because Williams was all that I had access too a puck would last forever. Which brings me around to, if you are looking for what is the best bank for a buck it has to be Williams. A buck a puck and it goes for a long time, not the best but certainly the cheapest and very usable.

I think RezDog hit it on the head with you'd have to try each out yourself to see which lasted the longest. I would disagree with Williams because so many people have/had a hard time getting it to lather properly that I would try a slightly more costly soap that lathers more easily. I don't know what you have available in Riga Latvia but suspect Williams may not be available there.

To me the no brainer is to even consider the canned stuff in the equation at all. I have not used that stuff for a long time so it may be better now but it could not hold a candle to even Arko as a shaving soap. If it were me it would be a toss up between a shaving soap or a shaving cream only.

Bob

Good input guys. Im starting to agree with the make-it-yourself foam concept. Yesterday I tried a alcohol-free Nivea shaving cream. I wouldn't say it gave the best lather Ive seen, but the feeling of making your own foam was great. Also my skin felt much better after the shave than when using my gilette can-foam. Maybe it was just a placebo but well see.

From soaps in Latvia, only thing I could find sold locally was proraso white and green. After looking on some reviews I ordered the White one, today im gonna pick it up and check out how that goes.
But I guess the soaps and creams aint that expensive to really think about the budget(first off I thought the soaps for shaving is very expensive). If they last about the same there isnt much difference. And I have to agree that if shaving with soaps and creams makes the process that much more fun I can find myself starting to collect the different kinds of soaps and creams like rest of you do. :)

Welcome, and yes Shaun is right. My first puck was Williams and it lasted forever. I bought 2 more pucks and will probably hand one to my son.

That said I find that pucks do last the longest. I have found several that I like better than Williams. I also have 3 massive cans of Barbasol that my father had when he died and can of Edge shave gel (free after coupon). Four giant tubes of C.O. Bigelow for $20 after sale and coupon. Cremo shave cream (free after coupon). A puck of L'Occitane Cade that was a Christmas Gift. A puck of Arko and two shave sticks gifted to me. Also a puck of Col. Conk Amber that was part of a raffle I won at a So Cal SRP get together (Thanks again Marty!). And more!

Just the ones I listed above were extremely inexpensive. There are many others I have and have tried. Each with it's own positives.

All these would easily last me quite some time, but I still have a list of others I want to try.

In no particular order:
Tabac
Cella
TOBS
D. R. Harris
Palmolive Stick
Mitchell's Wool Fat
Mikes Natural Orange (several scents)

I never throw any out, and occasionally pass some on. Depending on what my mood is when I setup for my shave I grab one I haven't used in a while and later up.

I would not be surprised if you try 4 or 5 in a year. This is all part of the process.

Enjoy the shaves as they come!

I haven't been shaving as long as pretty much everyone on here but i will say that over the last year or so, i've found that you can make a hard puck of soap last a really long time. I was using crabtree & eveyln soaps for about 10 months and i feel like i haven't made even a minor dent in them. The puck is $10 here, might be cheaper in europe. However, i have recently gotten addicted to the soft soaps like LA ShavingSoap and StropShoppe soaps that are more like a stiff grease. They lather awesomely but i can't imagine they last very long. it doesn't really bother me much though. However the in-between seems to be stuff like Stirling soaps. Its a puck but its soft enough to be pliable and its super cheap! But i think the Arko and other strange relics of the past are the best bang for buck if all you want is something to shave with.

or just ask and someone will send you some samples that will probably last you a long time ;)

I make soap and have noticed in my trials and recipe refinement that soap tends to last longer than tube or tub shaving creams. I have tried many in my tests too.

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I think it is the puck hands down. I know I use creams faster but I might be using more than I need to begin with. I began using soap/brush in 1972 or '73 when I bought a badger brush. I find the puck of soap so much more cost effective, and the lather so much more pleasing, that it wasn't even a question in my mind which way I was going to go. I cannot remember the last time I bought a can of goo. If I was in a pinch, and no soap or brush, I'd lather up with a bar of hand/body soap or even dish soap and shave before I went to a can of that aerated stuff. OTOH ..... maybe the current stuff isn't the same as the stuff from back then ? :thinking:

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For you and others who used canned foam 40 or more years ago, was it a thicker, richer, better quality product than it became in later years?

Until I got fed up, and REALLY fed up and began looking for an alternative means to shave, I didn't know I had choices, or that DEs and other retro-shaving methods still existed.

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Originally Posted by Mastershake

I make soap and have noticed in my trials and recipe refinement that soap tends to last longer than tube or tub shaving creams. I have tried many in my tests too.

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Im just starting with making my own soaps. I've gathered a few recipes online but nothing thats come out right. Trying to figure out a balance between a hard puck and a soft grease type soap. Have you noticed any one particular ingredients like castor or coconut oil that results with a harder longer lasting soap?

I've tried shaving with just about every form of preparation to try to honestly evaluate them, all the way down to using Dawn Dishwashing Liquid applied with my hands. I've even used the so-called "canned goo" from time to time just to see if there is a difference in shaving effectiveness. I haven't seen any at all. I can get a fine shave with a sharp blade and just about any kind of lather, "canned goo" included. The logical next step for me is to forego lather altogether and shave with just water. I might give that a try tonight for the heck of it.

I did the math once.

Arko (from Turkey) is CRAZY good quality at a price-per-shave I cannot figure out how to beat. And the aroma, not long lasting, is still free.

I also think how you lather is a factor. If I face lather with a puck, there is very little waste. When I bowl lather, I always make too much. That said, I have been wet shaving almost 3 years and some of my low rotation picks have been in use that long with more to go.

+1 on the Arko, it works great and lasts forever and it can be bought for $1.50 or less

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Originally Posted by MisterMoo

I did the math once.

Arko (from Turkey) is CRAZY good quality at a price-per-shave I cannot figure out how to beat. And the aroma, not long lasting, is still free.

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do you sell your soap?

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Originally Posted by Mastershake

I make soap and have noticed in my trials and recipe refinement that soap tends to last longer than tube or tub shaving creams. I have tried many in my tests too.

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Hard soap all the way...last much longer and I find I get a better lather from them.

Creams are nice, but they do tend to go much faster.

When I consider the fact that I probably already have enough soaps and creams to last the rest of my life, I don't bother trying to do the math on it. But I will say that if you pick up a puck of DR Harris, it'll shock you how long it takes to use the whole thing up. Its a small puck but never seems to go anywhere. Same thing with MDC. After a dozen uses it still looks exactly like it did when it arrived. But if value for your money is a primary concern, I have to second the Arko suggestion by MisterMoo. It performs exceptionally well and is really cheap. I don't know what product (soap/cream/goo) lasts the longest but when it comes to value, Arko is tough to beat.