Thread: Why are traditional soaps/creams better than canned creams?

Hi everyone,

It seems like everyone here uses traditional shaving cream, soaps, etc to shave with. I see tons and tons of wonderful reviews of great products. Everything from Castle Forbes to Mama Bear Soaps to Williams Soap.

My question, what is the advantage of these soaps/creams over canned/aerosol shaving cream? I haven't seen any information regarding advantages other than name calling like "canned goo" or "canned crap".

Don't get me wrong, I can't imagine a homemade/specialty product being simply par with mass production, but I want more concrete information as to why everyone hates it. I know straight shaving is better than cartridge shaving, and I hear concrete reasons as to why, but not why traditional creams and soap are better than canned.

As you can tell, I have not had the chance to try any traditional products yet, and I'm looking for a good reason to spend money on a brush and other products.

Thanks, and I hope that made sense.

-Jon

I am one of Colleens many fans here(The Gentlemans Quarter) her soaps, smell great, feel great, leave no noticable residue, great lubricity between blade and skin, and prepares whiskers for their inevitable demise. I havent tried a lot of whats available out there, but I just cant imagine anything better!

I think the easiest way to make a comparison would be to look up some reviews of the canned stuffs. I still look over at B&B for rewiews, and here is an example of a review: Gillette Hydrating Gel - Badger & Blade (I hope linking to over there is alright).

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

I am one of Colleens many fans here(The Gentlemans Quarter) her soaps, smell great, feel great, leave no noticable residue, great lubricity between blade and skin, and prepares whiskers for their inevitable demise. I havent tried a lot of whats available out there, but I just cant imagine anything better!

Thanks but I'm looking for reasons why soaps like that are considered superior to canned creams.

Ah, for a comparison, you could look through the reviews of some of the highend soaps and creams.

I think in general, you will find that the higher end soaps and creams are more moisturizing, provide a nice cushion, are slick, smell nice, form long lasting lathers, etc.

Lather has two main purposes in shaving, hydration and lubrication but ideally you also want to avoid anything which irritates or dries out the skin.

Hydration softens hair making it easier to cut thus reducing pulling and the need for force. Lubrication helps the blade slide easily over the skin reducing razor burn and nicks. These properties are particularly important for shaving with a straight.

Obviously for hydration you want as much water as possible in the mix and for lubrication you want plenty of slippery ingredients.

Companies which make canned foam try to meet these criteria as fully as possible but they have major problems to overcome. Just the fact that the ingredients have to go into a pressurised can and produce an instant lather means very little water can be included (so hydration is relatively poor). There must be a propellant in the can to force the lather out and make it foam - nowadays this is most likely butane which is not good for your skin. In order to foam properly they have to include strong foaming agents like lauryl sulphate (a known skin irritant). And so on . . .

Soaps and creams which are lathered using a brush don't have the same limitations. The lather can contain much more water because the water is added at point of use. There's no need for propellants and the foaming agents can be milder and non-irritant. They can contain more lubricants such as glycerin and oils without negatively impacting their ability to produce lasting lather so you get better lubrication.

Horses for courses as they say and I guess it's all subjective in the end but nearly everybody who tries making a lather with a brush eventually decides it's better.

In summary - canned goo is rubbish.

DING! Give the man a prize. He hit the nail on the head.

X

The main reason I dislike canned crap is that it is cold. I spend all that time prepping my face, opening the pores, softening the whiskers, I don't want to negate all that just before the blade touches my face.

I switched to brush and soap in '73 or '74 and have used it exclusively since, except when I went out of town. A can of goo was easier to carry than my mug and brush. I hated every shave and couldn't wait to get back home. Now I know better and intend to buy a travel brush and tube of creme for travel.

Comparing canned instant foam to brush and soap/creme is like comparing instant coffee to fresh brewed. One is for someone who wants to check it off his list and the other is for someone who wants to savor the experience.

Dave

While I prefer traditional mug soaps, I don't think that they are always better than canned shaving cream. Sometimes, when traveling, a mug and brush has been impractical for me and I've packed a can of Barbasol instead. The Barbasol worked great. This is definitely a YMMV area.

Scott

trewornan said it all. I would only offer the comparison of choosing between powdered eggs or the real thing, Spam versus filet mignon. To me the high quality Simpsons, Rooney or Plisson HMW combined with a fine soap or cream is one of the most enjoyable parts of the whole process.