Thanks Obie for giving a novice some direction on what and what not to purchase.
Unfortunately most are not available locally and would have to be specially imported.
But that won't stop me! :)
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Thanks Obie for giving a novice some direction on what and what not to purchase.
Unfortunately most are not available locally and would have to be specially imported.
But that won't stop me! :)
Guess I owe it to myself to try a First Tier product one of these days. I've been pretty happy with many of those listed in the 2nd tier, so...
No problem with that , Dapper Dan, Razo Rock, And dont ever forget Mama Bears Soap. Top Tier?? perhaps not, But I have yet to find a better scent quality and spot on smell than Mama Bears. For $13 bucks that tub lasts as long as MDC. There are so many quality soaps to sample. Some just lack the whole Wow factor.
Have you seen Obies Shave area?? I have seen it in SOTD. It would be like staying at the Pfister , but thats a Milwaukee thing as well. Top Shelf all the way.
As stated before, I got the Arlington based on Obie's list,,,, dang glad I did. What a fantastic soap. Thick , fast lather that lasts for 3 passes.
The scent, well,,,, I have the cologne already. Got the cologne as a PIF from OCDshaver a few years ago,,, one of my favorites.
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THe Arlington is great stuff.
If you liked Arlington, try the Windsor, which is in the Top 5 of my favorites of all time, from the first time I tried it I was blown away and every time I use it, it has it all, rich lather, and the scent is the nicest I've experienced in a shave soap, hands down, for me at least.
When you watch a Bond film, either old or new, and they set a scene in one of those old British offices, I always imagine it would smell like DR Harris Windsor, as old school as old school can be in my opinion.;)
I'll get that In March,,,, next month is the Castle Forbes.
The CF Lime, it has been passed along, the Cedar and Sandalwood while nice, is just OK in my opinion, the Castle Forbes Lavender, simply mind blowing in my opinion. Another Top 5 for me, and one of the few soaps personally, that is as nice as MDC Original (which is the Lavender).
Castle Forbes Lavender, prepare to have mind blown, it's one of rare gems IMO....;)
Lavender it will be,,,,,,,
That is 3 of you speaking highly of D.H. Harris. Arlington
Ok going back in.
Thanks for the recommendations. I have been wanting to try some new stuff!
I purchased "The Art of the Shave " sandalwood cream. although, I like the product, it does seem to dry out very quickly. Is it that I am not lathering it up enough? Not enough water? Any feed back would be appreciated.
I have never used the sandalwood, but the AOS Lavender is on of my favorites,, probably a water issue. You have to experiment a little when you first start this journey, ,,, find a good bowl that fits your hand & lather a few bowls
Curse you for this thread! My daughter just rated my soaps and creams by scent only for a January line up. Now I'll probably have to pif some of my Stirling soaps to make room for some top listed creams here.
This thread made me consider what products I use nowadays. I found that I only really use my first tier products. And a good thing too, I like to think, as there are plenty of high-quality products around not to settle for anything less than extraordinary - or at least better than good. I have some second tier products around, which are good, but not great. So they don't really see any use.
I still have a lot to try, though. XPEC, Martin de Candre, Penhaligon's creams, Esbjerg creams, the new wave of French artisan soaps, Cold River Soap Works, and the Álvarez Gómez Barbería cream are among the more notable products I have yet to sample.
It sounds funny when men talk about the scents they like.
I would love to use only top tier soaps but then I would be afraid I could not appreciate them without using lesser performing soaps on occasion. Also, I am incapable of tossing bad soaps. She will not let me do that.
Donations to monthly giveaway. Thats my story and I am sticking to it.
I use a couple of top tier soaps frequently. Today I tried Lebelle. The last shave I used Le Pere Lucien. I don't think the Lebelle can compare. Now, I wonder why? What makes one soap or creme better than another? In addition to the shave test, I also do the thumb and middle finger test: feeling the lather between those fingertips. I have been known to scamper out of the shave den (bathroom...my own), and cry out to SWMBO:
Just feel this, feel how rich it feels, now smell it!
I seldom receive an appropriately enthusiastic response from the other terminal.
Used the same brush, same razor, but my B&M soap today. Last shave with Baume.be was disappointing. Today was magnificent. The bay rum was no bully.
Thanks to Obie I just ordered a tub of xpec and St James of London black pepper and lime from srd excited to get this as I was scraping the bottom of my current cream tubs trying to find the last little bit because I've been for awhile now.
Just picked up some D.R. Harris Arlington from a local Barbershop. They only had the cream, but that just means I have another cream to use in my White dog scuttle which isn't a bad thing. Thanks for the recommendation Obie!
Where do JabonMan/Eufros soaps feature?
Judging by a lot of the reviews, they should be pretty close to the top.
Opinions?
You know I was not thrilled for a long time with the DR Harris Arlington puck I have. Playing with it the last few days has been turning that around and I am coming to appreciate. Always enjoyed the scent though. I think, like with most soap issues, it was operator error on my part initially.
Bob
I really love the following:
Santa Maria Novella
Martin de Candre - Fougere
Musgo Real - Spiced Citrus
TOBS - Lemon-Lime
Geo. F. Trumper - Extract of Limes
Mama Bear Soaps - Orange Essential Oil
I guess you can tell that I like citrus!
Ok guys I am going to share my honey hole.
Tons of top tier soaps, used once and the people just want to dump the soap.
I have bought 5 Top tier soaps for under $100.
Dont fish the spot dry guys.
Its on Facebook
search
Wet Shaving Enablers Buy, Sell, & Trade.
Tons of DE guys who buy soaps and dont use them or like the scent.
Thanks to Obie I got 3 of his top tier for $30.
B&M sold out soaps for the original price. Some unused, some used once.
For our family I am sharing my spot.
If you use this honey hole give a like, for respect and thanks for a great share
Jonathan
Gentlemen,
I will continue to update this list as I recall the soaps and creams I have used in the past. These days I have many senior moments. Also, after many experiments with certain soaps and creams, if I feel they fit better in a different tier, I will make the change. There are some new updates in the tiers.
Just had my first try of the i Coloniali Mango Oil Shaving Soap, and it was the type of soap that you wait for, that stands out as completely unique. To describe the scent as, "Mango" had me prepped for some type of fruit based smell, and it was in fact anything but. When I first smelled the scent, I thought of deep earthy scents akin almost to a Frankincense deep incense smell, very earthy, wide ranging, deep toned smell - stunning and superb, and personally, if the soap doesn't start to fail after several uses, as I've somewhat found with others, this will be Tier One easily for me, if in fact not in the Top 5.
Personally, when I get a soap like this, it's worth the many misses, because using this soap makes me completely understand why the soap experience, as well as the brush, is so essential for my enjoyment of this fun hobby.
Used it for today's SOTD, and will be using it a few times in a row (which is completely unlike my usual shave routine), 30 minutes later, the wonderful deep scent of the soap is still with me - beautiful!
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When I lived in India I gained a keen appreciation for Mango. I will have to try this!
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Ice been in a Simpsons kick lately and found a good deal on them. I haven't used any of the top tier creams mentioned other than aos products. How does Simpsons compare for you guys that have used it?
Thanks,
Eric
As usual, excellent information from Obie that cuts through all the hype and gets right to the point!
I consider my knowledge of soaps and creams to be the weakest link along my path of straight razor shaving. I bought very many early on, njot realizing just what a supply I had built up, and how long it would actually take to use everything up! I refuse to throw any of the old products out, but all I want to use anymore are my favorites ... Life is just too short to waste time on less that pleasurable endeavors, so something will need to be done! I'm on a "one new soap a year" moratorium, but I still cannot seem to put a dent in the supply.
In any case, I agree with everything Obie has to say... Although, for me at least, MWF moves to tier 1. Further, I'm much more enamored with hard soaps, and my stock of creams is much more limited, but i do dearly love Castle Forbes.
Oh yes, another hard soap that makes it into tier 1 for me is the long departed Klar Kabinett.
Thanks for the kind words, Druid. You are a gentleman.
The only reason I did not mention Klar Kabinett is because it is no longer available. Yes, by all means, I would have put it in the First Tier. I have one small brick of it left and am saving it for a rainy day. Klar Kabinett, with its pleasant rose fragrance, was the best barber soap on earth. Why it was discontinued is tragic — in shave soap terms, of course.
I have followed this post closely since it started. The other night I squeezed the trigger on 5 soaps that I zeroed in on from Obies list. From my research they seem like good possibilities for me to like.
Currently my favorite is Tabac. Have been using and trying to like MWF but have decided to mix it 50/50 with Tabac and use it up that way. Read about it. Watched videos just got tired of spending more time messing with it than actually shaving.
Hoping that two or three out of the five I am trying give my beloved Tabac a run for the money. I'll start a thread when I get them and let you all know how it goes.
Just as in all things in this hobby everyone is different in their likes and dislikes. But when there is a general consensus you do have a good chance of liking a product. Hope everyones new year is going well. Ken.
I recall only very very few people anywhere that complained about Tabac's performance, and I suspect those might have been just bored and trolling. The Tabac soap scent is what's polarizing, and why they decided to stop making Sir Irisch Moos is beyond me.
You won't find an abundance of soaps that equal it and fewer that exceed its performance.
Cheers, Steve
Sir Irisch Moos makes a shave stick?
Irisch Moos Shaving Stick
...and it's discontinued....my bad! The soaps they compel me to look.....:o