Thread: Is Williams a lost cause?

So after unsuccessfully creating a lather on more then one occasion with my Williams mug soap , i`ve been watching some videos and putting in some time reading through posts with others opinions on the matter. I`ve come to that point in my life where i`m thinking of tossing it out. I don`t generally toss shaving equipment out unless it really sucks. I really want to like William`s because it`s cheap as anything even in Canada but if it doesn`t work and provide a comfortable shave why should I keep it?

I read Disburden`s post on unlocking the secret to William`s and even after using his method i still failed to achieve any lasting lather. It was still all airy and bubbly and i`d been working on it for about 5 minutes, let alone when i put it to my face it disappeared within 20 seconds. Should I keep playing around with it or toss it? I want some opinions.

Also I want an everyday soap as the soap i really love is 20 USD per tub which if I factor in conversion and shipping it works out to about 40 bucks so i`m saving my last tub. I thought that my everyday soap could be William`s but unless something changes i`m going to have to find another soap. I like soap pucks... Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks Guys.

The saving grace for most difficult soaps is 3-4 drops of glycerin. If bowl lathering, put in bowl before whipping lather up. If face lathering drip 3-4 drops of glycerin on moistened puck, load brush and face lather. No soap is a lost cause. Worse comes to worse use it as one of the soap/creams for an Uberlather. Also, have you switched to bottled or distilled water? In many places it's the water that is the culprit. Last observation: If the water you are starting out with is very, very hot that will kill your chances for a good lather. I have had the best results with either tepid or cold water. But I am also a cold/tepid water shaver.

Before I forget. I found an inexpensive Mexican shaving puck called Noble. Look it up. Lathers great!

Try Arko. it's a stick but you can grate it down and pack it in a puck dish. Loud soap smell but lathers just by looking at it :<0)

Cheap ! Mix it with your Williams or anything to tone down the soap smell. It's not bad just a lot of it.

I've lathered with a little bar of hotel soap and my fingers when I forot my gear while traveling, so I'm sure Williams can be used to make a lather. Like Razorfeld, I shave with barely warm water or cold most of the time and am a face latherer. I'd not throw it out, but instead try the glycerin, or using some Williams and some of another brand (Arko is the least expensive I use) and build a combo lather. Believe me, almost any shaving soap can be worked with enough patience.

If it isnt working for you IMO yes it is. If you are looking for super affordable mainstream options you can always grate Palmolive Stick or as was mentioned Arko Stick into a bowl and the performance of both is excellent. You can also buy arko in a puck that comes in a red plastic tub for like $4-5 US if I recall.

Yes, you can lather Williams but imho it is not worth the effort. I agree with Pups that Arko is a much better bet and would add the Palmolive shave stick, formed into a bowl if you like. Just came off a week long use of the Palmolive stick formed into a bowl and really have to ask myself why I would bother with the more expensive soaps I have. The only answer to that is because I can and not because it is necessary.

Bob

I used my Williams in the tub to wash the stink off. Toooooooooo many other soaps that require less effort.

A while back I tried some 'Love My Skin' shave soap (Cedarwood) that really lathered up nicely without a lot of work, provided great cushion, nice but not overpowering scent and comes in a wide variety of scents at a really decent price, less than $5.00 shipped for a puck. Google 'Love My Skin' for more info.

There is a seller on eBay (sbtanning) that lists several scents with ingredients of each, how to lather and instructions on building uber lather. I'll be a return customer once I use up some of my current soap supply.

Arko rocks, that is all.

It is indeed possible to coax a decent lather out of Williams.
Change the water ratio, add a few drops of glycerine, do this, try that...

But why on earth would I want to do that, when there are so many other economy soaps out there that don't require special treatment?


As I have also proved to myself that even when using Williams I can get a decent shave, I see no more reason to continue using Williams, even if I like the old-fashioned scent and would love to love a shaving soap that sells for 99 cents.

But Williams just doesn't cut it.



B.